Hello everyone,
I think the members here have a wide variety of political views. I am not joining discussions about politics, because I think it only leads to unnecessary stress.
But here is my biggest concern. Usually the two major parties in the USA hold opposing views on a subject, and laws get tighter and looser depending what party has the most power.
There's one exception: drugs. I don't mean medical marijuana. But both parties want to implement more control and more regulations. Maybe for different reasons, but the result is the same: the laws only get stricter. Here both parties work together and pull the load in the same direction. Also both parties want more control over our money transactions, our purchases and expenses, etc.
I personally think it's not going to end well: in some states even people with terminal cancer have problems getting adequate pain management. There're talks about scheduling Gabapentin, which will cause even more unnecessary suffering. Scheduling tramadol was stupid enough, but Gabapentin with its low toxicity and a great safety profile?
I think both elephants and donkeys are pulling us to a deep pool of pain. Because they don't use the same healthcare services we do. Because overdose deaths are easily calculated and give a basis to demonize opioids, and other meds too, just in case. Because shorter lives, lower functionality, raising alcohol consumption among patients suffering from chronic pain are much more difficult to present as numbers and graphs. Because no numbers or graphs can reflect suffering.
I think the members here have a wide variety of political views. I am not joining discussions about politics, because I think it only leads to unnecessary stress.
But here is my biggest concern. Usually the two major parties in the USA hold opposing views on a subject, and laws get tighter and looser depending what party has the most power.
There's one exception: drugs. I don't mean medical marijuana. But both parties want to implement more control and more regulations. Maybe for different reasons, but the result is the same: the laws only get stricter. Here both parties work together and pull the load in the same direction. Also both parties want more control over our money transactions, our purchases and expenses, etc.
I personally think it's not going to end well: in some states even people with terminal cancer have problems getting adequate pain management. There're talks about scheduling Gabapentin, which will cause even more unnecessary suffering. Scheduling tramadol was stupid enough, but Gabapentin with its low toxicity and a great safety profile?
I think both elephants and donkeys are pulling us to a deep pool of pain. Because they don't use the same healthcare services we do. Because overdose deaths are easily calculated and give a basis to demonize opioids, and other meds too, just in case. Because shorter lives, lower functionality, raising alcohol consumption among patients suffering from chronic pain are much more difficult to present as numbers and graphs. Because no numbers or graphs can reflect suffering.
