ABSTRACT
One of the central difficulties in thinking effectively about drugs and addictions lies in the fact that the whole topic is dominated by propaganda, outdated information and superstition. Whenever people begin to talk about drugs (including alcohol) the following ideas are trumpeted as fact:
Addiction is a progressive chronic disease that ends in death or abstinence.
There is some single identifiable entity called addiction.
All drug use inevitably leads to addiction.
Certain drugs have the specific property of being addictive.
Certain people are born with addictive personalities.
