The Presidential Election and Addiction

I would like to think that whoever becomes our next President will have a good understanding of our nation’s problem with addiction, but I haven’t heard much at all about the subject from the candidates — they appear to have lots of other things on their minds. I’m not convinced the solution to addiction problems, such as the nation’s heroin epidemic, must necessarily come from government, and I tend to think that local communities might find better solutions than top down federal government solutions, but it’d be good if representatives making all the funding decisions in DC really understood addiction.

So much could be done to save lives if only government officials would handle fundamental problems with fundamental solutions rather than wasting money applying symptomatic solutions to symptomatic problems. It appears that most efforts to deal with addiction have created unintended consequences, like the War on Drugs. After decades of treating drug addiction as if it’s a part of an enemy plot to destroy America, the problem is arguably worse than when the “war” started. Locking up drug users along with drug dealers has only ruined the lives of many good people who could have received treatment and gone on to live productive lives. The money it costs to house drug users in prison where they learn criminal behavior is mind-blowing.

I don’t have much hope that the next President will do much that’s different from what other Presidents have done, but it doesn’t hurt to hope. Drug court programs are successful government efforts, although it’s more of a local solution. As middle class and upper class mothers and fathers lose children to heroin overdose, maybe the nation will wake up and pay attention to addiction in general, thus creating a path to apply fundamental solutions. We’ve wasted enough time, money, effort and lives battling drugs as if we can make an imaginary Drug Invader surrender. As along as the demand for drugs grows, the supply will follow. We need innovation, creativity and perseverance to find true, lasting solutions