- This blog was referenced from (and inspired by) a series of documentaries on mind-altering substances, human anatomy, and the war on drugs.
- The titles of the documentaries in question are written below the blog's main body.
- I just want to apologize in advance for my obtuse grammar (but worth the read if you have time, at least I hope so)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Everyone must understand, that as long as human beings continue to exist, there will always be a demand for mind-altering substances. And as such, there will always be someone desperate enough to attempt to supply these substances, regardless of the possible consequences including capital punishment.
Whoever you are, you can continue to attempt to stop these substances from being available for purchase, but you will never succeed. And I would hope that after a century of countless politicians and bureaucrats trying to do the exact same thing, others would realize that it is beyond futile to continue.
Therefore, if you cannot stop it from happening, and, trust history (if not myself) in that you seriously cannot, why not take it over and regulate it?
By doing this, ironically, you'd actually be saving lives instead of enabling addicts to further destroy themselves - at least in the long run, which is appropriate, as habitual drug use (addiction) is an extremely complicated issue which cannot be solved by the overwhelmingly popular 'quick-fixes' that tend to dominate so many political and bureaucratic responses to societal issues.
Do you really think it's so wrong for people to sell drugs if they aren't sanctioned by Big Brother? Regardless of how you may feel about this, you should know that drug use is actually part of what makes us human, which brings me to the following rhetorical question:
What is it about the pursuit of pleasure that compels us to risk our health - our lives even - in order to achieve it?
Well, without these pleasures that come with various activities in life, frankly, most of us would quickly become miserable, unmotivated, and a burden to society - or "dead weight" if you prefer.
A life without pleasures would quickly progress to a stagnant existence, which wouldn't feel like living at all.
Science tells us that, with any pleasurable activity in life, the brain begins releasing dopamine - even before it's begun - in anticipation of the upcoming experience (which results in a mild high).
This mild high manifests itself in various ways depending on the activity in question. As an example, the thought of eating cheesecake makes my mouth water, and the thought of going to a rave gives me butterflies in my stomach, where as, the thought of sleeping with a certain someone gets me sexually aroused.
Any pleasurable activity whatsoever will also carry with it a degree of risk. As a result, while the dopamine is being released in anticipation of the experience, the amygdala - the brain's primordial panic button - is also being pressed at the same time in response to the risk associated with the activity in question, with the intensity of this panic (or fear) varying depending on the activity.
As an example, this is precisely why a couple - who hours ago, met at a bar and decided that they want to have sex - will typically be wondering about whether their potential mate has a disease which can be transmitted through sexual intercourse. The fear, the pleasure, the potential risks - all these competing signals get processed into action.
And as each person's dopamine bombards their brain(s), their motivation for pleasure may overwrite their fear of the risks involved. If it was the other way around, the sex would be called off - meaning that the amygdala "pushed the panic button hard and fast enough" that it made them decide the risk ain't worth the possible pleasures in unprotected fucking if the consequences include possible life-long infection with a Sexually Transmitted Disease.
It is this motivation for pleasure which makes a human being inevitably decide whether to consume a mind-altering substance. And it is this motivation for pleasure which is highly susceptible to influences by feelings of despair, acute or chronic pain, hopelessness, suffering, oppression, racism, bullying, peer pressure, and so forth.
The problem with our pleasures in life is that, as with everything which we perceive as a unique experience, with each repetition, we become desensitized to whatever it is that makes it pleasurable. This desensitization varies in amount depending on the activity and experience.
In other words, when we look at what happens in the brain, we see that on repeated exposures to pleasures - whether it's food, drinks, sex, drugs, etc. - we've observed that the dopamine response gets a little bit less with each repetition.
So, each time we repeat a pleasurable activity, we get a little less "bang for the buck."
This leads thrill seekers to increase the risk in order to chase the pleasurable effects (or high) - whatever their thrill seeking may be (e.g. extreme sports, drugs, sex, etc.)
This is why, for drug users, (in simple terms) they eventually require more and more of the same substance in order to maintain the same level of euphoria or euphoric effects - alcohol included.
It has become evident that novelty is a really big jolt for the dopamine system.
And so, when we look at any activity which has a reputation for being a thrilling experience, the activity in question typically tends to be a mixture of pleasure + risk, which, believe it or not, has been shown to maximize the pleasure response.
And that mixture of (pleasure + risk) + (novelty factor - diminishing returns) is what provokes a maximized dopamine release, but also makes it addictive or habit forming.
In other words, by keeping things new and fresh (or different), it keeps the dopamine rush consistently high.
This applies to everything, not just drugs!
Experiment for yourself if you disagree.
Eventually, you'll find that your favorite type of food will make you gag if you eat enough of it, and, for a prolonged period of time.
Even with something as necessary to life as plain drinkable water, you will find that, eventually, you'd do anything to get your hands on a flavored beverage.
It doesn't stop with food though. The same sex position with your partner, or, the same porn over and over again eventually becomes less pleasurable as well - to the point where you cannot become sexually aroused enough to achieve orgasm.
Sadly, this may also be the reason why drug law enforcement organizations such as the DEA are defying their government's orders to stop going after marijuana in states which have legalized its medical usage.
Considering how defiant Michelle Leonhart has been towards Uncle Sam, it's hard to believe that they aren't addicted to the thrill of going after "bad guys" because some may be violent and/or armed. And once they do make a bust, their dopamine system kicks in as well.
A further motivation for their insubordination is most likely due to the law pertaining to seizure of property from such "bad guys" which they may perceive as their rightful (and sometimes very lucrative) plunder.
In any case, scientists believe that humans find danger-seeking pleasurable because it's been necessary to our evolution.
"If humans didn't take risks," they say, "we'd still be living in caves!"
----------------------------------------------------------------
Assuming you had the time to read through that poorly proofread mess (for which I thank you), what's your opinion on the topic of pleasure-seeking being part of who we are?
And do you believe that the controlled substance-using minority of pleasure seekers deserve to be treated as equals with respect to consumers of tobacco/nicotine products and/or alcoholic beverages?
Notable Documentary Acknowledgements:
---------------------------------------------------
- National Geographic Drugs Inc.
- Ecstasy Rising
- The House I Live In
- How to Make Money Selling Drugs
- History Channel - The Human Brain
- History Channel - The Human Body
- The titles of the documentaries in question are written below the blog's main body.
- I just want to apologize in advance for my obtuse grammar (but worth the read if you have time, at least I hope so)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Everyone must understand, that as long as human beings continue to exist, there will always be a demand for mind-altering substances. And as such, there will always be someone desperate enough to attempt to supply these substances, regardless of the possible consequences including capital punishment.
Whoever you are, you can continue to attempt to stop these substances from being available for purchase, but you will never succeed. And I would hope that after a century of countless politicians and bureaucrats trying to do the exact same thing, others would realize that it is beyond futile to continue.
Therefore, if you cannot stop it from happening, and, trust history (if not myself) in that you seriously cannot, why not take it over and regulate it?
By doing this, ironically, you'd actually be saving lives instead of enabling addicts to further destroy themselves - at least in the long run, which is appropriate, as habitual drug use (addiction) is an extremely complicated issue which cannot be solved by the overwhelmingly popular 'quick-fixes' that tend to dominate so many political and bureaucratic responses to societal issues.
Do you really think it's so wrong for people to sell drugs if they aren't sanctioned by Big Brother? Regardless of how you may feel about this, you should know that drug use is actually part of what makes us human, which brings me to the following rhetorical question:
What is it about the pursuit of pleasure that compels us to risk our health - our lives even - in order to achieve it?
Well, without these pleasures that come with various activities in life, frankly, most of us would quickly become miserable, unmotivated, and a burden to society - or "dead weight" if you prefer.
A life without pleasures would quickly progress to a stagnant existence, which wouldn't feel like living at all.
Science tells us that, with any pleasurable activity in life, the brain begins releasing dopamine - even before it's begun - in anticipation of the upcoming experience (which results in a mild high).
This mild high manifests itself in various ways depending on the activity in question. As an example, the thought of eating cheesecake makes my mouth water, and the thought of going to a rave gives me butterflies in my stomach, where as, the thought of sleeping with a certain someone gets me sexually aroused.
Any pleasurable activity whatsoever will also carry with it a degree of risk. As a result, while the dopamine is being released in anticipation of the experience, the amygdala - the brain's primordial panic button - is also being pressed at the same time in response to the risk associated with the activity in question, with the intensity of this panic (or fear) varying depending on the activity.
As an example, this is precisely why a couple - who hours ago, met at a bar and decided that they want to have sex - will typically be wondering about whether their potential mate has a disease which can be transmitted through sexual intercourse. The fear, the pleasure, the potential risks - all these competing signals get processed into action.
And as each person's dopamine bombards their brain(s), their motivation for pleasure may overwrite their fear of the risks involved. If it was the other way around, the sex would be called off - meaning that the amygdala "pushed the panic button hard and fast enough" that it made them decide the risk ain't worth the possible pleasures in unprotected fucking if the consequences include possible life-long infection with a Sexually Transmitted Disease.
It is this motivation for pleasure which makes a human being inevitably decide whether to consume a mind-altering substance. And it is this motivation for pleasure which is highly susceptible to influences by feelings of despair, acute or chronic pain, hopelessness, suffering, oppression, racism, bullying, peer pressure, and so forth.
The problem with our pleasures in life is that, as with everything which we perceive as a unique experience, with each repetition, we become desensitized to whatever it is that makes it pleasurable. This desensitization varies in amount depending on the activity and experience.
In other words, when we look at what happens in the brain, we see that on repeated exposures to pleasures - whether it's food, drinks, sex, drugs, etc. - we've observed that the dopamine response gets a little bit less with each repetition.
So, each time we repeat a pleasurable activity, we get a little less "bang for the buck."
This leads thrill seekers to increase the risk in order to chase the pleasurable effects (or high) - whatever their thrill seeking may be (e.g. extreme sports, drugs, sex, etc.)
This is why, for drug users, (in simple terms) they eventually require more and more of the same substance in order to maintain the same level of euphoria or euphoric effects - alcohol included.
It has become evident that novelty is a really big jolt for the dopamine system.
And so, when we look at any activity which has a reputation for being a thrilling experience, the activity in question typically tends to be a mixture of pleasure + risk, which, believe it or not, has been shown to maximize the pleasure response.
And that mixture of (pleasure + risk) + (novelty factor - diminishing returns) is what provokes a maximized dopamine release, but also makes it addictive or habit forming.
In other words, by keeping things new and fresh (or different), it keeps the dopamine rush consistently high.
This applies to everything, not just drugs!
Experiment for yourself if you disagree.
Eventually, you'll find that your favorite type of food will make you gag if you eat enough of it, and, for a prolonged period of time.
Even with something as necessary to life as plain drinkable water, you will find that, eventually, you'd do anything to get your hands on a flavored beverage.
It doesn't stop with food though. The same sex position with your partner, or, the same porn over and over again eventually becomes less pleasurable as well - to the point where you cannot become sexually aroused enough to achieve orgasm.
Sadly, this may also be the reason why drug law enforcement organizations such as the DEA are defying their government's orders to stop going after marijuana in states which have legalized its medical usage.
Considering how defiant Michelle Leonhart has been towards Uncle Sam, it's hard to believe that they aren't addicted to the thrill of going after "bad guys" because some may be violent and/or armed. And once they do make a bust, their dopamine system kicks in as well.
A further motivation for their insubordination is most likely due to the law pertaining to seizure of property from such "bad guys" which they may perceive as their rightful (and sometimes very lucrative) plunder.
In any case, scientists believe that humans find danger-seeking pleasurable because it's been necessary to our evolution.
"If humans didn't take risks," they say, "we'd still be living in caves!"
----------------------------------------------------------------
Assuming you had the time to read through that poorly proofread mess (for which I thank you), what's your opinion on the topic of pleasure-seeking being part of who we are?
And do you believe that the controlled substance-using minority of pleasure seekers deserve to be treated as equals with respect to consumers of tobacco/nicotine products and/or alcoholic beverages?
Notable Documentary Acknowledgements:
---------------------------------------------------
- National Geographic Drugs Inc.
- Ecstasy Rising
- The House I Live In
- How to Make Money Selling Drugs
- History Channel - The Human Brain
- History Channel - The Human Body
