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Take a TRIP to the Future
Almost every civilization throughout time has been built around
a perception of reality
based on some sort of faith. In the pursuit of being closer to
their deities humans havesought the use of hallucinogens, at least
until now.Hallucinogens are defined as any chemical that brings
about a state of alteredperception and the inducement of
hallucinations. For argumentative purposes onlythose compounds
occurring in nature and Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD)
areincluded. I believe that through the habitual use of these
compounds human kind has infact evolved faster than we would have
without. Scientists have even found severalcompounds occurring
naturally in the mammalian brain that are very similar to the
LSDcompound. We even have chemical receptors named after
cannabis.According to Cunningham there are approximately 450+
different plants containingqualities that can be constituted as
psycho-active out of which 120 can qualify as trulyhallucinogenic.
Many hallucinogens have chemical structures similar to those of
humanneurotransmitters... (Cunningham). The short-term effects of
these compounds include:Hilarity, ataxia, nausea, vomiting,
dizziness, and intense hallucinations. The long-termeffects are
thought to include flashbacks, impaired memory, and a possibility
of psychiatric illness. Researchers are unable to agree where
exactly to place alteredperception. And yet the use of these
hallucinogens has grown greatly in use andpopularity, in fact the
subjects of one study claim that their use of psilocybin has been,
if not the most, one of their top five life experiences, and has
vastly improved their outlookon and quality of life and
spirituality, even a year after the initial ingestion
(Spiritual).The Hallucinogenic compounds in question are currently
illegal due to the fear of thealtered state of reality but then
again what is reality other than an individualisticperception? If
we were raised wearing rotten fish on our head, attracting a cloud
of flies
to protect us from the spots we see after looking into a bright
light, which, everyoneknows is pure evil trying to consume your
soul, would it still be deemed crazy or notrealistic?Cunningham
states that there are insufficient data to determine a direct
causative linkbetween, or the likelihood of, neuronal damage in
humans with the use of mosthallucinogenic plants. And claims that
the biggest problem with these plants is thatpeople try to harvest
them without properly identifying what they are picking.
Thegovernment could step in and set up shop to sell the proper
plants and fungi to be usedin an appropriate environment to prevent
the deaths that occur from misidentification.Regardless of the
legality hallucinogens will continue to be used as they have
beenthroughout history.The opposition to legalizing these wondrous
compounds would argue that many of these compounds are habit
forming or would be abused and used for recreationalpurposes
causing problems as bad as alcoholism and other such things. *cite
studiesand spirituality*when this is just the opposite. Every
medical document I have readconcerning these compounds has claimed
that hallucinogens are not addictive and afew clinics are actually
looking into altering the chemicals to stop addiction (Vastag).
Isaddiction or habitual use of hallucinogens any different from
people that go to churchevery day to further their spirituality? We
are all different and should be tolerant of theindividual and their
religious/spiritual beliefs. Even without the use of any drugs
many
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religions have done terrible things in the name of their faith
and have been perceived asa threat to society, just yesterday a
Christian militant group was arrested for
terroristicthreats!Allowances have been made for Peyote, a cactus
containing mescaline, to be used bythe Native American Church.
South American cultures have used a chemically-symbiotic mixture of
two plants called Ayahuasca in their religious ceremonies
andpractitioners continue to use this compound. But what about
those people lookingoutside the box and seeking spirituality akin
to shamanism where use of hallucinogensis not only allowed but
expected? Will the US government allow more plants to belegalized
for those people? I think not. It is hard enough for current
researchers toobtain the plants to continue examinating their vast
expanse of usefulness.Einstein himself said that, We can't solve
problems by using the same kind of thinkingwe used when we created
them." And, A person starts to live when he can live
outsidehimself." I translate these as a dire need to re-introduce
the use of hallucinogens to theeveryday, for the sake of our races
further evolution and spiritual growth.We need to alter our ways of
thinking and introduce a little bit of imagination and adifferent
view on the normal and acceptable. Throughout history the most
profoundtimes of growth and development have been those of a
certain freedom and changing of our collective perceptions were
when we believed in the use of hallucinogens andimagination. In
example the time of Vincent Van Gogh saw the popularity of
Absinthe,an alcoholic hallucinogen. This period was defined with
industry including theautomobile, and some of the greatest art we
have the pleasure of viewing. But that is
just a recent time. What of the staple civilizations of history?
The Aztecs, Mayans, andEgyptians are all attributed with vast
advances in technology and great thought. ALL of these cultures
habitually used hallucinogens.Many of our childrens books and
programming include several references to amanitamuscaria, a red
mushroom with white dots on the cap, and other hallucinogens.
Themusic that we have listened to all our lives that has inspired
and helped us was
influenced by the use of hallucinogenic compounds. Whether or
not you like it,hallucinogenic plants are in our culture and have
been documented since as early ascaveman days
(History).Hallucinogenic plants have played a major role in the
history of man. It is only recentlythat these compounds have been
banned from use in most countries, despite clear medical and
scientific evidence that hallucinogens may be the future of
medicine. Weneed to stand up and re-gain the legality of these
amazingly important plants andembrace the future and all that it
has to offer.
