Intoxication by Ronald K. Siegel Ph.D.
"We cannot begin to solve the drug problem until we understand it."
Whether you get irie, stoned, ripped, high, twisted, spun, drunk, hammered, wasted, giddy, paranoid, tripped out, zoned out, freaked out, chill, roll, juiced, legless, loaded, polluted, sloshed, tipsy, toasted, baked, fried, bombed, strung out, or... if you prefer to live by the 'safer' and 'legal' intoxication's, MSG's or caffeine, you should borrow this book from me (after I am done with it), or buy it (look for it in a number of book cover designs).
I am about a sixteenth of a way through with this book and its making some interesting analysis and strong statements about drugs, its role in life, its history in the world and ways to begin to problem solve the repercussions of our 'fourth drive.'
So, as we all know by now, humans are not the only ones who get to voluntarily get f***'ed up. Elephants eat fermented fruit and get drunk. Bee's visit particular orchids, drop to the ground, and after they come to, they go back for more. Monkeys 'shroom.' And cats, well, they have cat nip. An interesting point the author brings up in the beginning segment of the book is the notion of 'animals as mans first teacher.'
Could it be we watched animals and, through our own trials and errors, discovered a state(s) of mind that helped us cope with how weird survival was/is by either numbing our thoughts of life or giving them a greater meaning?
Additionally, there is a far out (maybe not that far out) suggestion of allocating the truckload of money that goes into the War on Drugs to research/creation of safe drugs. Whether or not this turns out like Huxley's Brave New World, with the whole Soma trip, it brings with it hope to save lives. And for those who fear losing their humanity, spirit, or natural ways, can we not look at culture, humanity, and 'nature' to be always evolving?
Check it out if time and money permits.
P.S. Do not forget to feed your llamas a well balanced diet of hay, grass,
lichens and coca leaves :)
