This is True: Drugs/Alcohol

Skirmishes in the War on Drugs

2005-04-13T16:47:25-07:00

This is True's 4 September 2005 issue had a line-up of several stories about druggies doing incredibly stupid things. It's a fairly common theme in True, in fact: drug and alcohol abuse very often makes people do stupid things. In this case, though, it was a bit of a setup: the final story in the group had quite a twist:

Final Skirmish

Anthony A. Diotaiuto, 23, was sitting in his Sunrise, Fla., home when suddenly someone broke down the door without any warning and rushed in. Diotaiuto, who has a gun permit, grabbed his gun to defend himself -- and was shot about 10 times by police doing a drug raid. He was killed. Friends say Diotaiuto was a "casual" pot smoker who did not sell drugs. A search of the home found just two ounces of marijuana. Officers identified themselves as police when they "walked" into the home and ordered him to "freeze," said police spokesman Lt. Robert Voss. "It was his choice not to follow orders." (Miami Herald) ...When the "war on drugs" means the government vs. its own people, it's not surprising to learn that simple possession can become a death penalty offense.

I of course expected that this story would raise some eyebrows. That was its intent. And indeed I got some interesting feedback.

Skirmishes in the War on Drugs: Letters

2005-04-13T09:24:18-07:00

Letters on the "War on Drugs" editorial. If you didn't see the story and resulting editorial, check out Skirmishes in the War on Drugs first.

The result of government determining morals is probably one of the major causes of the moral decline in this country. So long as we can point to Uncle Sam and say that it's ok by his rules we will never learn to take responsibility for our own actions. I believe that is why the courts are so full of absurd legal cases as well. We are no longer held responsible for our own actions when the government makes all the rules and decisions for us in what they decide are our best interest. --Bob, Texas

Binge Drinking in College: No, Not Funny

2004-10-15T21:19:34-07:00

I periodically remind people: the stories in This is True are not always meant to be funny. Even the funny ones are often chosen to drive home a point, but sometimes being funny isn't the way to do that. A good example is this two-story line-up from True's 3 October 2004 issue:

No Kidding

A study by the Berkeley, Calif., based Prevention Research Center of the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation finds that binge drinking among male college students is much worse than school officials, government researchers, and especially parents ever feared. Ten percent of the male students studied admitted to drinking 12 or more alcoholic beverages in a row, and "many" admitted to 24 or more in a row. "These are levels of drinking at which most men will have passed out or become comatose," says study leader Paul Gruenewald. The study did not consider drinking by female students. (Reuters) ...Right -- girls are too smart for that. No need to study them.