An open letter to Bryan Walsh, author of End Times
by Ballard Quass, the Drug War Philosopher
July 23, 2022
In End Times, science reporter Bryan Walsh never mentions the Drug War's role in keeping us from using empathogens, drugs that can help bring human beings together.
Dear Mr. Walsh,
I enjoyed your book on End Times, however I believe you omitted to mention the single best hope that humanity has for avoiding nuclear or biological Armageddon in the first place, and that is to make our species more loving with the help of psychoactive medicines that we call empathogens - i.e., substances that help the user feel compassion and love for their fellow human being. Before we go tweaking the human genome a la your Oxford philosopher to favor empathy (or implanting neuro robots in our brain a la Elon Musk to make us behave civilly) we should first consider the much simpler and more obvious expedient of ending the anti-scientific Drug War, which teaches us to fear and hate psychoactive substances rather than to learn how to use them safely for the profit of humanity at large.
There are two empathogens in particular that have demonstrated their ability to change minds for the better thus far in the 21st century. These are psilocybin mushrooms and MDMA, aka Ecstasy. With regard to the former empathogen, more than half of those who used shroom medicine in Roland Griffiths studies called it one of the most important experiences of their lives. With regard to the latter empathogen, Ecstasy brought unprecedented peace and love to the British dance floor in the 1990s. Here are some comments from DJs of that time as recorded in the documentary One Nation by concert organizer Terry "Turbo" Stone:
"It was the first time that black-and-white people had integrated on a level... and everybody was one." -- DJ Ray Keith.
"It was black and white, Asian, Chinese, all up in one building," -- MC GQ.
"Everyone's loving each other, man, they're not hating." - DJ Mampi Swift.
Imagine if the use of E were actually encouraged in society -- and actually required by those who have been diagnosed as hot heads and loose cannons, like potential school shooters and curmudgeonly political leaders with their fingers on the nuclear trigger.
Of course we assume that governments want peace, love and understanding like this, but not so, Bryan. The British preferred to have a Drug War. And so they cracked down on "E," merely because of a few deaths that were caused, not by E, but by a lack of "safe use" info about E that was a natural result of a government policy of demonizing substances rather than teaching about them. And so the unprecedentedly peaceful dance floor became ultra-violent overnight, as dancers switched from Ecstasy to anger-facilitating alcohol, and concert promoters had to hire special forces troops to keep the peace. Another "victory" for America's war on drugs.
Like all nonfiction authors these days, you write as if the Drug War is an issue unto itself, without any relation to other crucial topics like human survival. But a drug-war society does not provide a natural baseline for scientific reporting. It is rather an anti-scientific society in which we are obliged to completely ignore the power of psychoactive medicine to make positive differences in the lives of humans or humanity, whether we're writing about depression, anxiety, Alzheimer's disease, or the threat of nuclear annihilation caused by hot-headed human beings.
In short, in my opinion, America has got to decide: which do we prefer? fighting a Drug War or avoiding nuclear annihilation?
So far, the evidence is that we'd prefer nuclear annihilation.
Shortly after the Rogue Star incident that almost blew up Pearl Harbor with a nuclear bomb, Nixon launched a Drug War to combat just the sort of peace-making medicines as those mentioned above
Shortly after the Damascus incident nearly blew up Arkansas, Reagan cracked down again on psychoactive medicines, urging kids to turn in their parents should they partake.
Americans, in short, behave like arch Christian Scientists: they would much rather hate their fellows -- than to love them thanks to the use of a "drug."
Sincerely Yours,
Brian
PS I hope you will do your part as a science author to spread the word that the Drug War is censoring your work, by discouraging and otherwise prohibiting the research of certain psychoactive substances. Galileo realized he was censored by the Church. I think it's long past time for scientists to admit that they're being censored by the Drug War.
The Links Police
Do you know why I stopped you? That's right, because the Drug War's turned me into a noxious busybody. That and the fact that I have some more links on the subject of overlooked drug benefits in the days of the Drug War.
Author's Follow-up: January 17, 2024
Like almost all non-fiction authors these days, Bryan Walsh reckons without the Drug War. If humankind is going to be annihilated by nuclear war, it is going to be because we have demonized the drugs that inspire peace. Ecstasy brought unprecedented peace, love and understanding to the British dance floor in the late '80s and early '90s, but British politicians did not want peace, they wanted a Drug War. When they cracked down on ecstasy, the ravers switched to hate-facilitating drugs like alcohol, creating so much violence that concert organizers had to hire special forces troops to keep the peace. Special forces!
Ecstasy is one of the safest drugs on the planet. It is only dangerous to those with whom we have refused on principle to discuss "safe use." Meanwhile Big Pharma drugs like Rinvoq have side effects that include cancer and death, and yet they are advertised openly on prime-time television.
The Drug War has already given a victory to Trump by arresting millions of his opponents and removing them from the voting rolls, Trump, the guy who now wants to kill the minorities that we were formerly happy with merely arresting.
The anti-democratic trend continues. The Fourth Amendment was long ago suspended on behalf of the Drug War. Until authors like Walsh stop pretending that there is no Drug War, nothing is going to change -- except for the worse. To the extent that we are approaching "end times," it is because of the Drug War and the militaristic anti-democratic mindset that it represents. (less)
The addiction gene should be called the prohibition gene: it renders one vulnerable to prohibition lies and limitations: like the lack of safe supply, the lack of choices, and the lack of information. We should pathologize the prohibitionists, not their victims.
The Drug War is one big entrapment scheme for poor minorities. Prohibition creates an economy that hugely incentivizes drug dealing, and when the poor fall for the bait, the prohibitionists rush in to arrest them and remove them from the voting rolls.
Besides, why should I listen to the views of a microbe?
That's the problem with prohibition. It is not ultimately a health question but a question about priorities and sensibilities -- and those topics are open to lively debate and should not be the province of science, especially when natural law itself says mother nature is ours.
Prohibition turned habituation into addiction by creating a wide variety of problems for users, including potential arrest, tainted or absent drug supply, and extreme stigmatization.
I agree that Big Pharma drugs have wrought disaster when used in psychotherapy -- but it is common sense that non-Big Pharma drugs that elate could be used to prevent suicide and obviate the need for ECT.
It's also not clear why we have such a low tolerance for the downsides of drug use but are fine with high risk levels for any other activity on earth. If drug warriors were serious about saving lives, they'd outlaw guns, free flying, free diving, and all pleasure trips to Mars.
Until we get rid of all these obstacles to safe and informed use, it's presumptuous to explain problematic drug use with theories about addiction. Drug warriors are rigging the deck in favor of problematic use. They refuse to even TEACH non-problematic use.
We need a few brave folk to "act up" by shouting "It's the drug war!" whenever folks are discussing Mexican violence or inner city shootings. The media treat both topics as if the violence is inexplicable! We can't learn from mistakes if we're in denial.
The DEA should be tried for crimes against humanity. They have been lying about drugs for 50 years and running interference between human beings and Mother Nature in violation of natural law, depriving us of countless potential and known godsends in order to create more DEA jobs.
Buy the Drug War Comic Book by the Drug War Philosopher Brian Quass, featuring 150 hilarious op-ed pics about America's disgraceful war on Americans
You have been reading an article entitled, The Drug War and Armageddon: An open letter to Bryan Walsh, author of End Times, published on July 23, 2022 on AbolishTheDEA.com. For more information about America's disgraceful drug war, which is anti-patient, anti-minority, anti-scientific, anti-mother nature, imperialistic, the establishment of the Christian Science religion, a violation of the natural law upon which America was founded, and a childish and counterproductive way of looking at the world, one which causes all of the problems that it purports to solve, and then some, visit the drug war philosopher, at abolishTheDEA.com. (philosopher's bio; go to top of this page)
You have been reading an article entitled, The Drug War and Armageddon: An open letter to Bryan Walsh, author of End Times, published on July 23, 2022 on AbolishTheDEA.com. For more information about America's disgraceful drug war, which is anti-patient, anti-minority, anti-scientific, anti-mother nature, imperialistic, the establishment of the Christian Science religion, a violation of the natural law upon which America was founded, and a childish and counterproductive way of looking at the world, one which causes all of the problems that it purports to solve, and then some, visit the drug war philosopher, at abolishTheDEA.com. (philosopher's bio; go to top of this page)