Lies, damned lies, & semantics: Language matters

If we want an evidenced based scientific discussion about psychoactive drugs we talk about psychoactive drugs

If we talk about the 'war on drugs' we have been deceived into thinking it is a war on psychoactive drugs.

It isn't. If the war on drugs was opposed to psychoactive drug use, the proponents would fiercely oppose the use of all caffeine products, alcohol products and nicotine products.

They never have

Most proponents of the war on drugs enjoy using state approved psychoactive drugs.

THREAD:
Are you struggling to understand why drug laws and drug policies have no interest in evidence and seem almost impossible to change? Our drug laws and policies across the globe have little to do with science and everything to do with ideological beliefs, social controls and vested interests

THREAD: Our drug policies are placing young people at risk and causing untold harm: 1./16 Prohibition means people have as no idea of the purity or strength of the drug and risk overdose and death.

1/ THREAD: Could legal regulation of drugs end up benefitting the privileged and penalising the poor? 2/ Criminologist Dr Julian Buchanan says drug reform is well overdue, but argues that legalising prohibited drugs, like cannabis, might end up only benefitting those who can afford legally-approved drugs.

Drug policy reform will founder if it colludes with these four prohibition paradigms:

1. “There is a war on drugs” — there has never been a war on drugs, or a war on drug users — what we have is a war on certain sections of society who use unapproved drugs. 2. “There is global drug problem” — there is no global drug problem, what we have is a devastating global drug policy problem caused by prohibitionist policies.

A THREAD: The Lies You've Been Told About Drugs Myth #1. “There is a clear pharmacological definition for drugs.” There isn’t – what we classify as controlled ‘drugs’ is a 1950s & 60s social and cultural construct with no coherent pharmacological rationale. We fail to recognise alcohol, tobacco, caffeine or sugar as drugs 1/13

A THREAD
The Drug War is sustained by vested interests, here they are:

1. It protects the market share and status of the privileged, promoted and culturally embedded legal drugs: alcohol; caffeine; tobacco; sugar and pharmaceuticals 2. It provides the police with excellent powers to easily stop, search, arrest, interrogate and prosecute.

3. It successfully attracts significant additional funding for police, armed services, customs officials and security services.

A thread
1.
I did a radio interview and I was asked:

"Is compulsory treatment for drug use, rather than prison, a step in the right direction? 2.
Here's my long answer:

1st What do you mean by drugs?

Do you mean psychoactive drugs such as stimulant use - like people who need a few shots of coffee before they can face the day?

2nd If it only applies to unapproved drugs, why is that?

I did a radio interview this morning & was asked:

"Is compulsory treatment for drug use, rather than prison, a step in the right direction?"

Answer:
a. What do you mean by drugs? Psychoactive stimulant use - such needing a shot coffee before you can face the day?

1/8 2/8

b. Oh - it only applies to unapproved drugs, I see, - but there is no scientific evidence to support that separation between the legal and unapproved drugs. So on what basis can the distinction be justified?

There is no 'world drug problem'

Don't collude with this nonsense

We have a world drug policy problem that has been caused by ideologically driven 'drug' prohibition that has peddled propaganda, misinformation & lies

Expose it
Challenge it

#WeAreAllDrugUsers There is no logical category of substances the UN or Governments widely call 'drugs'

Their term 'drugs' has no pharmacological or scientific basis whatsoever - it's a social construction rooted in political propaganda