The American Opioid Epidemic 20XX: Dropping the H-Bomb

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > The American Opioid Epidemic 20XX: Dropping the H-Bomb

Zarin: Nov 11, 2008; I SEE YOU

Cugel the Clever posted:

Watching the Frontline episode on the Opiode epidemic and it's reaffirmed my ~~sociopathic~~ unpopular opinion that these social programs should be offering to put the junkies out of their suffering. Would save everyone involved a lot of pain, time, and money, plus eliminate the huge externalities these people have on the community around them that the documentary apparently didn't care to talk about.

The_Book_Of_Harry posted:

As a former junky, I can absolutely say that I would have signed-up for something like that. An overdose of opioids/benzos can be manufactured for next to nothing, and it would save communities tons of money.

I don't see assisted suicide as being politically feasible, though.

And most hardline junkies don't really want to die, they just want to find a way to stay high constantly. Protip: it's nearly impossible. Dope always costs exactly as much as you have.

That said, there are huge swaths of addicts who will be nothing but a burden on the system til they die. And treating people who can't or won't change (even when they really want to) gets really expensive.

Even putting everyone on blockers like methadone or bupe only works when people make other lifestyle changes...like attending therapy, shifting to new people, routines, spaces, etc.

The only real answer seems to be legalization and regulation, with easily accessible treatment (I prefer medication and science-based treatments moreso than 12-step/spiritual methods, but they can co-exist).

Jail is expensive and doesn't help. Legal drugs lower prices and reduce external harm. Suicide booths are always an option, I guess. But there should be a psychiatrist and a methadone clinic right next door...

Granted, I didn't watch the Frontline episode, but re-reading Cudgel's post, I keep reading it two ways:
1). "Put them out of their suffering" = encourage and facilitate a quick and clean OD
2). "Put them out of their suffering" = make the drugs available for actual prices based on cost (i.e. dirt cheap) and let people just self-medicate if that's what they want to keep doing

Now, enacting 2 will lead to some of 1, even if we don't push people in that direction. But pushing 1 as a matter of course seems ... wasteful, at best, and barbaric at worst.

I mean, there are plenty of high-functioning addicts that do just fine in society already. Some are workaholics, some alcoholics, along with other addictions such as internet, cigarettes, games, caffeine, sex, gambling ... the list goes on.

Personally, I don't see what makes [insert scary drug here] more special than anything else I've listed above. People get addicted to poo poo. So what? Give them the tools to manage it on their own if they want, but provide help to end the addiction if/when they ask. Any other option is as useful as old_man_yells_at_cloud.jpg; good luck railing against human nature. Congrats on all the suffering you'll cause, I hope it makes you sleep better at night.

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The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > The American Opioid Epidemic 20XX: Dropping the H-Bomb