Theodore Dalrymple - Romancing Opiates - May 2006 (4 of 6)

On May 30, 2006, Theodore Dalrymple marked the release of his book Romancing Opiates: Pharmacological Lies and the Addiction Bureaucracy with a speech at the Harvard Club in New York. The book was published by Encounter Books, and the event was hosted by the Manhattan Institute. To learn more about Theodore Dalrymple, visit www.skepticaldoctor.com, an unofficial website devoted to the man and his work.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• theodore
• dalrymple
• dr.
• anthony
• daniels
• romancing
• opiates
• skeptical
• doctor
• encounter
• books
• manhattan
• institute
• politics

[BFKate]

No one has ever tried to claim rehab is a medical intervention - yet another straw man. Detoxing from alcohol though is a medical issue during which it is possible to die. Odd he doesn't mention that.

[BFKate]

Is he really suggesting forcing people to become homeless and starve to death is a viable option?

[BFKate]

His"research" is very ropey to put it mildly. Its actually outright bullshit that any half decent researcher would have nothing to do with. The story about the cop telling him the unemployed in Holland were making 5000 Euro a month growing dope sounds very suspect as well.

[VictrolaJazz]

@pape37 Frankly I think addicts are of low class criminal nature and deserve to be sneered at because they are what they are by choice--they are people of poor moral character.

[kiwitoffee]

'You can't starve yourself to death' in our society he says, and I agree. Some people do manage to eat or drink themselves to death.

[Xenostrobe]

Of course, you may be wrong. But do you care?

[Pittounikos]

He's a very clever bloke. A bit on the Victorian side though!

[pape37]

So his argument is essentially that opiate addicts are low class criminals by nature, the pleasures of opiates are slight and have been greatly exaggerated, and that withdrawal is a simple and minor affair. All of which he has concluded from observing addicts in prison(What a surprise that they have prior criminal records!) and never having taken opiates himself. Aside from the fact that opiate withdrawal is not PHYSICALLY dangerous, the rest is sheer nonsense, sneering moral judgments.

[senorfarqueso]

i didnt say that all organized crime stopped, i said that bootlegging did, which it did. fear has nothing to do with this. objectivity and reason are what im going on.

we should not just do what the government or the people think should be done, we should do what is rational and reasonable.

[cnasty1]

Organized crime did not disappear after the repeal of prohibition. Regardless, we shouldn't legalize a certain activity just because we fear those who engage in it illegally. If we think a certain activity should be illegal, we need to enforce it. Let's not be ruled by fear.