fbpx
Skip to content

TH: +66 20 385 469     Toll Free USA/CAN: 1 888 806 6776     Toll Free UK: 0 808 189 0393     Toll Free AUS: 1 800 251 994     HK: +852 3008 5841     SG: +65 3158 7621

  • Home
  • What We Treat
    • Addiction
      • Alcohol Addiction Treatment
      • Drug Addiction Treatment
      • Amphetamine Addiction Treatment
      • Cocaine Addiction Treatment
      • GHB Addiction Treatment
      • Heroin Addiction Treatment
      • Ecstasy Addiction Treatment
      • Marijuana Addiction Treatment
      • Methamphetamine Addiction Treatment
    • Mental Health
      • Anxiety disorder treatment programme
      • Depression treatment programme
      • Co-treating Addiction and Trauma Disorders
      • Dual Diagnosis/Co-Occurring Disorders
    • Behavioral Addiction
      • Co-Occurring Disordered Eating Treatment
      • Internet Addiction Treatment
      • Rehab for Gambling Addiction Treatment
  • Our Programme
    • Changing Pathways Addiction Programme
      • Physical Therapy
    • The Kintsugi Programme
    • Disordered Eating Programme
    • Continuing Care
    • Recovery House at The Cabin
    • Sunday Excursions
  • About Our Rehab
    • About the Cabin
    • Accommodation and Facilities
    • Gallery
    • The Cabin Group
    • Our Team
    • Client Testimonials
    • In The Press
    • Blogs
  • Admissions
    • Admissions Process
    • How Rehab Works at The Cabin
    • Online assessment
    • FAQ
    • Family Advice
  • Contact
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Referring a Client

Get Help Now
10/21/2014

The Real Truth About Drugs and Society

Home › Blog › The Real Truth About Drugs and Society

The Real Truth About Drugs and Society

Neuroscientist Carl Hart PhD, tells the real truth about drugs and their effects on society.

Neuroscientist Carl Hart PhD, grew up on the impoverished streets of Miami, engaging in petty crimes and drug use in his youth. After high school, he joined the United States Air Force which allowed him a chance at a higher education. In 1998 he became the first tenured African-American professor in the sciences at Columbia University – a long way from the youth he was on the streets of Miami.

With his long dreadlocks and easy way of speaking, Dr. Hart has become not only a scientist, but an activator and educator as well, doing his best to spread the truth about drugs and addiction across America and the world.

“Drug Addiction wasn’t the Problem. The Problem was Law Enforcement.”

Growing up in Miami in the 70’s and 80’s, Hart says that cocaine was everywhere. First it was powder cocaine, but that slowly turned into crack cocaine. Coming back to Miami after serving in the Air Force, he could see that cocaine was ruining his community – according to Hart, 60 to 70 percent of the guys his age were getting arrested for drug-related charges.

When Hart had an opportunity to study the effects of drugs at the University, he gladly accepted – thinking, he says in an interview for Columbia University, “Maybe this is the key. Maybe I could figure out why people like drugs so much. And then maybe I’ll be able to help do something back home. I thought I was going to be able to cure drug addiction.”

However, as Hart began his research – first on rats and then on humans – he realised that the truth about drugs and addiction stemmed a lot further away from the drugs than he had thought. The problem, he had begun to realise, was law enforcement.

The Truth about Drugs: The Effects of Harsh Penalties on Drug Crimes

Hart believes that during the ‘war on drugs’, a false representation of these drugs has been made into the “reality”, caused mainly by well-known drug campaigns such as “Don’t Do Drugs” and “This is your brain on drugs” (with a picture of a broken egg in a frying pan). Hart believes that educating the public about the real effects of drugs is the only way to go in the future – that, and legalizing them.<

According to Hart, the only things that come from harsh penalties for drug crimes and possession are ruined lives, seasoned criminals, and addicts who don’t know where to get help. He is not shy to remind folks that President Obama once used illegal drugs – and should he have been caught with those on his person at any time – he would have been sent to jail, lost years of his life in a violent place, and likely never would have made it to become President. Hart fully believes that pulling your life together again after prison is difficult for everyone, and impossible for some. Further, he notes that exaggerating the effects of drugs and giving them such a negative stigma means that many of those who need help with a drug problem won’t seek help out of fear of being ostracized.

In his recent TedMed2014 talk, Hart speaks the truth about drugs, their effects, and how society in general should react to drugs going forward, and the stereotypes and stigmas that surround not only the drug users, but the drugs themselves. The full video can be viewed here.

If you or someone you know is suffering from addiction, contact a professional.

Get A Free Consultation
Search

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
  • Alcohol Addiction Treatment
  • Behavioral Addiction
  • Blog
  • Co-occurring Disorders
  • Cocaine Addiction
  • Drug Addiction
  • Food Addiction Treatment
  • Gambling Addiction Treatment
  • Gaming Addiction Treatment
  • Infographic
  • Infosheet
  • Internet Addiction Treatment
  • Prescription Drugs Addiction Treatment
  • Reach
  • Recovery
  • Relapse Prevention
  • Rise
  • Sex Addiction Treatment
  • Trauma and Addiction
  • Video
  • Youth Addiction Treatment
Cabin Sober House Residents Compete in 2016 Laguna Phuket Triathlon
Blog | Recovery

From Addiction to Triathlon: The Cabin Sober House Residents Compete in the 2016 Laguna Phuket Triathlon

We sat down with three Cabin Sober House residents to talk about their participation in the 2016 Laguna Phuket Triathlon and what it meant to their addiction recovery.  The event was a culmination of hard work that pushed them to their limits, brought them together and surpassed their expectations. Sharelines “I pushed myself past my boundaries,...
12/06/2016
how to spot addiction
Infographic | Recovery

7 Telltale signs of addiction

09/11/2014
Client SG
Alcohol Addiction Treatment | Infographic

Singaporian Client Statistics [Infographic]

10/13/2014
The Cabin Logo

The Cabin Rehab Centre
9 Khua Mung, Saraphi District,
Chiang Mai, Thailand 50140

Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Linkedin

OUR TREATMENT

  • Alcohol Addiction Treatment
  • Drug Addiction Treatment
  • Disordered Eating Programme
  • Gambling Addiction Treatment
  • Changing Pathways
  • Kintsugi Programme
  • Sunday Excursions
  • Relapse Prevention

ABOUT THE CABIN

  • About Us
  • The Professional Team
  • Why The Cabin
  • Our Accommodation
  • Admissions Process
  • What is Our Client Say?
  • FAQ
  • The Cabin’s Blog
  • Cookie Policy
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms and Conditions

CONTACT US

TH: +66 20 385 469
USA/CAN: 1 888 806 6776
UK: 0 808 189 0393
AUS: 1 800 251 994
HK: +852 3008 5841
SG: +65 3158 7621
Download Our Brochure

© 2023 The Cabin Chiang Mai. All Rights Reserved.

Get Help Today!
Getting the Help You Need Today!

If you require further information, Please do not hesitate to contact us.

  • TH : +662 038 5469
  • US : +1 888 806 6776
  • UK : +44 808 189 0393
  • AU : +61 1 800 251 994
  • HK : +852 3008 5841
  • SG : +65 3158 7621
close
Manage Cookie Consent

To provide the best experiences, we and our partners use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us and our partners to process personal data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site and show (non-) personalized ads. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.

Click below to consent to the above or make granular choices. Your choices will be applied to this site only. You can change your settings at any time, including withdrawing your consent, by using the toggles on the Cookie Policy, or by clicking on the manage consent button at the bottom of the screen.

Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Statistics

Marketing

Features
Always active

Always active
Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
View preferences
{title} {title} {title}
Manage Cookie Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Statistics

Marketing

Features
Always active

Always active
Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
View preferences
{title} {title} {title}
Scroll to top
  • Home
  • What We Treat
    • Addiction
      • Alcohol Addiction Treatment
      • Drug Addiction Treatment
      • Amphetamine Addiction Treatment
      • Cocaine Addiction Treatment
      • GHB Addiction Treatment
      • Heroin Addiction Treatment
      • Ecstasy Addiction Treatment
      • Marijuana Addiction Treatment
      • Methamphetamine Addiction Treatment
    • Mental Health
      • Anxiety disorder treatment programme
      • Depression treatment programme
      • Co-treating Addiction and Trauma Disorders
      • Dual Diagnosis/Co-Occurring Disorders
    • Behavioral Addiction
      • Co-Occurring Disordered Eating Treatment
      • Internet Addiction Treatment
      • Rehab for Gambling Addiction Treatment
  • Our Programme
    • Changing Pathways Addiction Programme
      • Physical Therapy
    • The Kintsugi Programme
    • Disordered Eating Programme
    • Continuing Care
    • Recovery House at The Cabin
    • Sunday Excursions
  • About Our Rehab
    • About the Cabin
    • Accommodation and Facilities
    • Gallery
    • The Cabin Group
    • Our Team
    • Client Testimonials
    • In The Press
    • Blogs
  • Admissions
    • Admissions Process
    • How Rehab Works at The Cabin
    • Online assessment
    • FAQ
    • Family Advice
  • Contact
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Referring a Client