[collected 2002-12-29 20:36:53 CST (Dec Sun) 1041215813 from Slashdot]

Why Drugs are Bad   (-not- inspirational, just very, very sobering)

Re:Let me cast the first stone. (Score:5, Interesting)
by Twirlip of the Mists (615030) on Friday December 27, @13:14 (#4967918)

I used to know a guy who was a recovering heroin addict. We had some
pretty candid conversations. I told him once that I didn't understand how
anybody could get addicted to heroin. I mean, coming down off of it is
supposed to be horrible. It ruins your health, it ruins your life. Why
would anybody do it, and once they did, why would they do it a second time?

He didn't say anything for a long time. Then he said something like this:

   When people tell you not to do drugs, they tell you how bad they are
   for you. They tell you how they mess you up and make you sick. They tell
   you that you're putting poison into your veins.
   
   But there's one thing, one little thing that they leave out. It's kind
   of like a secret that nobody ever tells.
   
   The secret is this: heroin is fucking great.
   
   Yeah, you're sitting on the floor in a room that smells like piss. Yeah,
   you're sticking a hot needle into your arm. Yeah, you get so constipated
   that you feel like you're gonna die. But none of that matters, because
   being on junk is like being in heaven. It's like being wrapped up inside a
   warm blanket, only better than you can possibly imagine. It's
   incredible. Wonderful. Perfect.
   
   Nobody ever tells people this, because everybody wants people to think that
   drugs are bad, so they'll never try them. And that makes a lot of
   sense. Because the very first time you try junk, you can't not do it
   again. There are no casual junkies, man. There are no social heroin
   users. Once you get a taste of the stuff, you can't ever get it out of your
   head.

He kinda started to get tears in his eyes as he was telling me this, so I
didn't say anything or a minute so he could get it back together. Then I
asked him, "How did you get off the stuff?" He kinda laughed.

I'm not off junk, man. I just haven't scored any for eleven years, nine
months, and three days. That's all.