What’s In Your Bowl?

The Bar at Keens Steakhouse in New York City

For better or for worse, those gifts from nature’s bounty that have fueled my occasional altered states of mind have been legal in all fifty states since the repeal of Prohibition. I have always preferred a cocktail over cannabis, the grape instead of ganja. and the hops in lieu of hemp. But I will not attempt to make a case for one over the other because I firmly believe that everyone has the right to name their own poison. Furthermore, that poison should be tailored to the mindset and metabolism of the individual. And no matter which way one chooses to go in order to fuel their recreation, I do not want anyone who has begun their day with either a bowl of Macallan or Meshmacan flying the plane or drilling my teeth!

When it comes to trying to understand America’s longstanding conflicted relationship with Dr. Feelgood, one needs to probably look no further than their own liquor or medicine cabinet to understand the precarious position of our physical and mental wellbeing. When we consider the tens of thousands of yearly deaths now being attributed to the nation’s current opioid epidemic, it is easy to understand the thinking of those who might call for stricter laws and another all out war against drugs. But we have fought and lost those fights before–and there is absolutely no indication or evidence to suggest that the heavy handed approach of the past will yield a different outcome this time around. But try and convince one Jefferson Beauregard Sessions of that reality.

Perhaps it is some lingering childhood nightmare after seeing the film Reefer Madness in his high school health and hygiene class  that has pushed the United States Attorney General to wage a new war on weed after California’s legalization. More likely, its about going after some perceived left wing pot dealer as opposed to locking up the irresponsible physicians and pharmaceutical executives that helped to bring about our most recent addiction crisis. After all, the latter two groups are probably much more likely to donate to the Republican National Committee. Then again, maybe this is just a about a gentleman with deep red southern roots taking on the bluest of all states. And if that is the case, I would like to remind Mr. Sessions about all those years of service to his Alabama constituents who would rail against the idea of any intrusive federal reach interfering with the rights of a state to decide its own future.

Setting the politics aside though, when it comes to putting in place those policies that govern our natural inclination to indulge in the myriad of human vices–interdiction and incarceration have done virtually nothing to curb abuse and addiction. The solution to those problems will be found in better education, better parenting, access to treatment, and individual responsibility. So whatever one chooses to put in their bowl–I strongly suggest that the blend includes a mix of moderation along with the milk of human kindness!

Posted by: Chris Poh for American Public House Review

 

 

 

 

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