Who here supports FAA drug policy?

[Papa Woody]

What makes illicit drugs more dangerous than licit ones?

 

[IBNAV8R]

What makes illicit drugs more dangerous than licit ones?

Politics and profit.

 

[Amish RakeFight]

What makes illicit drugs more dangerous than licit ones?

It's interesting as to why pot was first made illegal. Racism. Minorities using it to coax white women into sexual dalliances.

 

[stupidpilot]

This is America and our drug policy is wrong in my opinion. I say legalize ALL drugs for ADULTS and let the private sector work it out with exceptions. If you fly planes, drive trains/semis/buses and the like then there should be a govt law that prohibits drug use. Schools should drug test. But as for the rest, let employers or insurance companies decide. If one is a librarian or painter, who cares what they do in their free time. If Microsoft does not want their employees to do drugs then let them have that perogative and let them do testing. Instead of worrying about going to jail for smoking some dope, you just have to worry about your employment or insurance. Jails emptied, hoodlums on street corners go onto the next crime of the day instead of drugs. What is going on right now is not working. Illegals forming huge drug syndicates using gangs...MI-13 and the such are thriving under the current policy and it is innocent Americans that are paying the price when caught in the crossfire. Billions of dollars are dumped down an endless hole and the only winners are the budgets of the DEA and the coffers of the drug kingpins. Rules on alcohol/cigarettes seem to work fairly well. Just look what happened to the bootlegger gangs after prohibition ended. Use a fraction of the money being spent now and saturate the airwaves with don't use drug messages and open treatment and rehab clinics.

Those that say drugs can be dangerous are correct but who is govt to tell a private citizen what they can and cannot do? Alcohol, sky diving, rock climbing and cheerleading are all dangerous. Driving to work can be dangerous. If you are no harm to the general public then I think you should be free to proceed with your life how you see fit. Sure people will OD. They are the same ones who are doing it now. Call it natural selection if you will. But if you OD, then make it clear you will pay your hospital bill and if you can't then you are doing community service out the ying yang.

Rant over.

You apparently haven't read the history of hallucinogenic drug use. Before they were illegal there was rampant addiction, mothers giving drugs to their children, and much more. It was really horrific to read some of the stories from that era. Drugs were made illegal for a very good reason, and they should stay that way(except maybe pot). If you feel the need to do a drug to make you feel good, then I suggest it's time to examine your life and find out what is making you unhappy and fix it. Drugs do nothing but gloss over the real problem instead of dealing with it.

 

[Ty Webb]

Stfu

If you feel the need to do a drug to make you feel good, then I suggest it's time to examine your life and find out what is making you unhappy and fix it. Drugs do nothing but gloss over the real problem instead of dealing with it.

Funny that after two pages of discussion, you are the first one that felt the need to give unsolicited advice . . . . :laugh:

 

[luckytohaveajob]

Drugs are bad and no one should do them.

But forcing someone to watch me pee in a jar is wrong. Forcing me to take a drug test without cause is wrong. And taking away my Constitutional freedoms because I fly is wrong. And making me a suspect for no reason is wrong. And convicting me for something because I can not comply with an unreasonable request is wrong.

Innocent until proven guilt is not am American policy any longer.

 

[Fins Up]

Drugs are bad and no one should do them.

But forcing someone to watch me pee in a jar is wrong. Forcing me to take a drug test without cause is wrong. And taking away my Constitutional freedoms because I fly is wrong. And making me a suspect for no reason is wrong. And convicting me for something because I can not comply with an unreasonable request is wrong.

Innocent until proven guilt is not am American policy any longer.

The days of innocence are long gone. Aviation isn't the only field where random, mandatory drug testing takes place. Military folks do it all the time. I know there are others too.

I'm all for random testing. Unfortunately without the threat of testing, some folks are going to use drugs before coming to work because they think it's not big deal. That is reality.

 

[stupidpilot]

Funny that after two pages of discussion, you are the first one that felt the need to give unsolicited advice . . . . :laugh:

So you're an addict that needs advice?

 

[Mamma]

You apparently haven't read the history of hallucinogenic drug use. Before they were illegal there was rampant addiction, mothers giving drugs to their children, and much more. It was really horrific to read some of the stories from that era. Drugs were made illegal for a very good reason, and they should stay that way(except maybe pot). If you feel the need to do a drug to make you feel good, then I suggest it's time to examine your life and find out what is making you unhappy and fix it. Drugs do nothing but gloss over the real problem instead of dealing with it.

Perhaps making drugs illegal is not the cause for the decreasing addiction rates. Maybe addiction rates are down, but drug use is still rampant. Mushrooms, ecstacy, pot and many over the counter drugs are still being abused.

The point is, should the govt throw a citizen in jail for using a drug? They are not harming anyone else or causing a problem. We are paying for them to be arrested, put on trial, and incarcerated. Also, we are dumping billions down a bottomless hole to keep drugs out of the country. Show me the progress there? Our jails are full but the drugs keep coming!

Last, I like to tie one on every now and then. I am not doing this to gloss over a problem but to have some fun. People do not have to be unhappy to want to have some of the wacky weed!

 

[stupidpilot]

Perhaps making drugs illegal is not the cause for the decreasing addiction rates. Maybe addiction rates are down, but drug use is still rampant. Mushrooms, ecstacy, pot and many over the counter drugs are still being abused.

The point is, should the govt throw a citizen in jail for using a drug? They are not harming anyone else or causing a problem. We are paying for them to be arrested, put on trial, and incarcerated. Also, we are dumping billions down a bottomless hole to keep drugs out of the country. Show me the progress there? Our jails are full but the drugs keep coming!

Last, I like to tie one on every now and then. I am not doing this to gloss over a problem but to have some fun. People do not have to be unhappy to want to have some of the wacky weed!

Maybe its just me but I never understood the need to use a drug because it was fun. There are a lot more constructive ways to have fun. Also, if you think doing drugs isn't hurting anyone else then you are sorely mistaken. There have been too many crimes committed and people hurt because someone decided to get high on dope.

 

[freeflyer14]

There have been too many crimes committed and people hurt because someone decided to get high on dope.

But a little alcohol never hurt anyone, right?

 

[Fins Up]

Maybe its just me but I never understood the need to use a drug because it was fun. There are a lot more constructive ways to have fun.

Yeah, like drinking beer. Lots and lots of beer. :laugh:

 

[MD11Drvr]

I will be happy to piss in a cup when they require those drawing any form of social assistance to do the same. No Whiz Quiz, No Money

 

[waveflyer]

Where is the conservative rhetoric on personal responsibility on this issue?
There are millions of people who can do certain types of drugs and be very productive and normal- alcohol is a drug-
some things just shouldn't be regulated- the enforcement money can be better spent addressing the problem in other ways.
I will disagree that some illegal drugs do cause harm to people other than those who use them. I did get stabbed in the forearm with a plastic fork bc the person tripping thought he had to kill a deadly spider on me--- super glad all he had was a plastic fork

 

[Ty Webb]

So you're an addict that needs advice?

No, but apparently you're a moron with extremely limited social skills.:laugh:

 

[Mamma]

Where is the conservative rhetoric on personal responsibility on this issue?
There are millions of people who can do certain types of drugs and be very productive and normal- alcohol is a drug-
some things just shouldn't be regulated- the enforcement money can be better spent addressing the problem in other ways.
I will disagree that some illegal drugs do cause harm to people other than those who use them. I did get stabbed in the forearm with a plastic fork bc the person tripping thought he had to kill a deadly spider on me--- super glad all he had was a plastic fork

It would seem conservatism would be for putting drug use on the private side and let them regulate it and liberalism would outlaw it...big brother knows best. Another irony in today's world.

 

[Amish RakeFight]

Drugs hijack your brain. Don't do them (with the expection of pot). They accelerate the weathering of your body and mind, burning out your delicate internal circuitry. Particular drugs do irrepariable damage to your CNS by destroying the myelin sheathing which functions to insulate your neurons.

Most addicts abuse drugs as a shortcut to happiness. An internal need (for various reasons; social to genetic) for immediate gratification. Normally, one achieves pleasureable feelings or elation following a positive event, most often associated with a sense of accomplishment through skill, ability or perserverance. Our bodies selectively secrete and transmit signals which foster these feelings via a reward system. Do something well and our body rewards us with a nice feeling inside.

The reason they loosely label it "dope," stems from the effects of the neurotransmitter, dopamine. In particular, it faciliates the functioning of the "pleasure center" of the brain and its intrinsic reward system. Essentially, those who become frustrated with life or lack the ability to persevere, succeed or cope, often turn to drugs as a way to provide these hard-earned euphoric feelings humans covet.

Sometimes, an individual is hard-wired with neurotransmitter deficiences. These individuals will often have life-long substance problems compared to individuals whose system is more in equalibrium. The latter falls into a more casual user who lacks the proclivity to harbor a spiraling addiction. They often use drugs to escape reality for a moment for social reasons and rarely get addicted. Their chemistry differs from the indivudal who has a more organic need to immediately produce naturally occuring and pleasurable feelings.

 

[waveflyer]

Thx doc- so it's illegal bc some have a chemical tendency toward addiction?
Not disagreeing- alcohol is the only drug I've used- just think much of it could be legalized and save us all a lot of money and pain- we exaserbate the problem and the 'tough on crime' jail lobby has gotten way too much power- especially in California-

 

[luckytohaveajob]

Beyond the general societal debate the specifics of the FAA requiring the test or making you guilty is the issue I am concerned with.

The military asks if you have ever done drugs. If you answer yes you are ineligible to serve. If there is probable cause you are tested. But if you answer no, don't show signs, and keep it a total secret it is your problem alone.

Lets keep our business our business unless it becomes apparent or a problem. Not you are all guilty and all must submit.

 

[BoilerUP]

Caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol are just as much addictive drugs as their illegal counterparts...not to mention medically-prescribed drugs that are addictive and so often abused.

I've never tried it, but considering cigarettes and alcohol are legal vices with a long trail of bodies behind them count me in the "legalize pot and tax it" group.