5/23/2006

Another Painful Story

I feel like I've read nothing but bad news today. While I could proffer a plethora of infuriating links, I'll settle for just one on an issue that I feel strongly about--and rant about it.

The "War on Drugs"--second only to the "War on Terror" in BSQ, Bullshit Quotient--and its enforcers are at again, wasting precious government resources for no other reason than to promote unhappiness:

Two weeks from now, a South Carolina pain management physician will surrender at the Talladega, Alabama, prison to begin serving a 2.5-year sentence for drug trafficking, racketeering, and money laundering.

Dr. Michael Jackson is one of hundreds of pain management specialists arrested, charged and jailed by federal and state authorities for violating the Controlled Substances Act, designed to limit the dispensing of illegal prescription drugs by doctors and their use by patients.

...

"I believe and I hope that this case has sent a clear message to the medical community that they need to be sure the controlled substances they prescribe are medically necessary," said Assistant US Attorney Bill Day. "If doctors have a doubt whether they could get in trouble, this case should answer that."

"I've done everything by the book; I don't even have a parking ticket," Dr. Jackson said at sentencing. "I think this is just a mistake the government made."

The DEA and its state and local associates have been just as tough on patients. One, wheelchair-bound Richard Paey, has become a kind of poster child for patient prosecutions. A victim of multiple sclerosis, Paey was convicted in Florida's third attempt concerning his use of painkillers. The 45-year-old Mr. Paey turned down an offer of probation based on principle but has now been given a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years in jail.

Paey's supporters say he was unable to find medical help to ease unbearable pain. He was not convicted of selling any medication, and even the prosecutor admitted he used the pills himself. In prison, he is on a morphine pump that administers more pain-killing medication than he was accused of taking before he went to prison.

Physicians' organizations say that one of the worst consequences of the DEA's campaign against Oxycontin is that doctors are being cowed into giving up the practice of pain management - precisely at a time when science is discovering more effective methods of palliative care.

This is utter bullshit. Heaven forbid that someone somewhere should try to do something about chronic pain! Oh no, somebody out there might be experiencing euphoria! We can't let that happen! Think about the children!

The article mentions there's a double-standard, since people like Limbaugh and Hollywood celebrities get off easy. Honestly, I don't give a flying fuck what Rush does in his spare time. If he needs to take pills to dull the anguish that comes with being a gigantic douchebag, more power to him. That's not the real issue here.

The War on Drugs needs to end. Oxycontin and marijuana do not pose a threat to our nation. In fact, I bet that if more people used them, the world would be a better place. George Bush was a fucking cokehead and he got to be president. I mean, come the fuck on.

I am sick of compromising on this issue. This is just fucking ridiculous. I don't care if legalizing marijuana leads every child in the goddamned country to start smoking it. It needs to be decriminalized. NOW. Get the fuck out of our goddamned motherfucking business. What I choose to put in my body is no one's business but my own.

Maybe if this fucktarded country weren't run by war criminals, soulless corporate shills, and amoral demagogues that the mouthbreathing herd thinks they'd "like to have a beer with", those of us with at least half a brain wouldn't need to use recreational drugs. I am so sick of this shit.

And breathe... ok, I feel a little better now. Too bad the whole "letting off steam" thing doesn't really work...

Really, this rant reflects a lot more than the stupid drugs thing. It's so aggravating to live in a nation that is not merely irrational, but actively anti-rational. I'm getting this close to becoming a revolutionary.

1 comment:

Dom E said...

Thanks, although this post is a departure from the kinds of things I normally write. I try to keep a cooler head about things--I usually don't drop so many F-bombs--but hey, I get angry sometimes. In any case, I can't say I'm especially proud of this piece, except for a couple of nice turns of phrase.

I've been thinking about compiling a "best of" list, sorting through my old entries and providing links to the ones I think the most interesting or well-written or whatever.

Ostensibly, I'd be doing this for the benefit of new readers. But, in truth, it's probably just self-indulgent. I have no clue how many people read this thing. I should get one of those counter thingies.