by Dr. Harris Stratyner, Ph.D.
I just watched a deer jump a fence down by a patch of phragmites enveloping a cove of the Long Island Sound. The water is still, on this lovely July day.
This was a meditative moment for me in a world of seeming chaos and violence, made more complicated by myriad drugs of abuse and an industry of alcohol that makes every social occasion another opportunity to catch a “buzz.”
Don’t get me wrong, people have a right to have a drink if they don’t have the disease of addiction — I just wish every advertisement didn’t make alcohol seem like the only way to enjoy oneself!
I notice that I write about the topic of getting intoxicated a great deal. There is an obvious reason for this — I believe it is harming the confidence and minds of our burgeoning young men and women, and will eventually weaken our world. I truly say this as a scientist and clinician who has watched our society at large become less interested in global affairs and true survival.
There is a great deal of talk about global warming, war, terrorism, racism, etc., etc., but we need sober minds to make these things happen. Are we going forwards or backwards? There is no excuse when we have evidenced-based treatments for addiction.
We must ensure that our schools, houses of worship, broadcast, print, and social media, get the word out.
Here goes Dr. Stratyner again — life is a wonderful thing folks, but not when you’re in a drug-induced altered state of consciousness — then it is (in this social scientist’s mind) just a waste of time.
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