Poppy

Chris rock in his deep wisdom had a comedy bit where he spoke about the unfairness or illegality of brown peoples drugs versus white people’s drugs. He said white people decide what is legal and if you look at drugs and their popularity the brown people’s drugs are much more fun. Now in truth the white people’s drugs; pharmaceuticals are more pervasive and have done massive damage and continue to in America because it is legal, promoted and condoned by the AMA. How many horrible commercials are we assaulted with pushing for drug use to avoid “restless leg syndrome or erectile dysfunction” as they quickly list the side effects which are usually more deadly than the original illness, crazy, all of it. Yesterday listening to an NPR story about a small remote village addicted to Opium in Afghanistan it occurred to me that we have it wrong. The story spoke about how in this remote village farmers were addicted but happy. They realized that even the mice were addicted to the smoking of the plant, that everyone and everything was dependant on the poppy plant but not just by ingestion. They made bricks of the narcotic which was smoked or made into a tea or consumed as a food plus they used the stalks for firewood and also make soap with the seeds. Fascinating as they listed about 8 different things they use the plant for. It made me think that it was a gift the Poppy plant.
Sadly we have made it illegal because we don’t like to lose control and we are ignorant about the spiritual and physical benefits of the drug and we have no faith in humanity to decide for themselves. Opium is a strong narcotic which can be highly addictive and yet where food is scarce if there is no choice but to suffer how is it bad that it is used to assuage hunger? Also for many in Afghanistan it is the only crop that brings relief in terms of food and money. Pomegranate and almonds is not enough. The huge campaign we wage all over the planet to ban “brown peoples drugs “should be rethought. The white man’s drugs of choice (big pharmaceutical) should be made more difficult to get and the brown drugs of choice more available if needed. We would benefit as a society from the new taxes legalizing these drugs.
This is prohibition plain and simple; free up illicit drugs, let individuals who prefer them do them in safe houses, drug neighborhoods. They are doing it now. Free up the prisons, millions of inmates would be released saving more tax money for us. I know many officials have admitted that the US has lost the drug war but we still wage it, how dumb is that? I think we could better use the money we waste to battle drugs worldwide to say fund “planned parenthood, education, Medicare and Social Security” simple.
It is racial, religious and political the resistance to legalization and dated. We need to be smarter than this; we need to rethink our prejudice and ignorance. By the way I know what crack and meth do to people it isn’t pretty or smart or nice. I am not saying this to promote addiction I am just saying we don’t make addiction or drug use go away by making it illegal. We only help to keep attractive and alive by pushing it underground and many people who need to cultivate the plants are dying of hunger and who are we to deny them a living? I would like to think it is not a race issue but it is fascinating that today in our society so many toxic compounds are available in Wal Mart for cheap. We could do better we could stop prohibition globally and net billions for the effort.