This article actually gets close (but NO cigar) to a serious Anthropological investigation (not a one-dimensional Sociological one) into the Demand Drivers behind ‘First World’ self-medication and/or hedonistic nihilism?
This piece goes to the edge of the issue, then falls back to the same old ‘chestnuts’ of hard times drive demand. However, whilst undoubtedly a driver, why in the so advanced, longevity rich, prosperous, livable First World, have we become so utterly IRRESILIENT????
The real interrogation of this failed utopian dream of prosperity, consumption, wealth, pleasure, fun and ‘freedom’ is not forthcoming unless of course, it’s yet another shallow diatribe against Capitalism and the lauding of the clearly and utterly failed cultural ‘experiment’ of socialism. We as a culture have got to go beyond the hamster wheel of one-dimensional socio-political musings, but will we? Well as long as the very small, but cashed up demographic of ‘social elites’ control this narrative, we will not be permitted to break this ‘glass ceiling’ of dysfunction!
To the people dying from the opioid epidemic, drugs aren’t the problem — they’re the solution
To those using them, drugs aren’t a problem — drugs are a solution to their problems. Drugs help people deal with fear, anger, shame, isolation, depression, and other real and deep problems many of us experience on a daily basis.
We all occasionally attempt to resolve, or at least escape, these core dilemmas through inappropriate or ineffective means. Illicit drug use is a particularly destructive and dangerous choice, but it is still an attempt to fix a problem.
For the many people who are unable or unwilling to do the time-consuming work of resolving painful, life-controlling issues, drugs offer some form of immediate relief. There’s a reason a drug dose is called a “fix.”
So how did Americans get so bad at choosing healthy solutions to life’s problems? And, how did our government get so bad at choosing solutions to the problem of drug abuse in our communities?
Though drug dependence is an extreme solution, it’s an outgrowth of an attitude common to all of us. For most issues we face, we expect to find a quick and easy patch. That’s the key message we get from ads for all sorts of products.