[January 28, 2018] The recent news of a growing epidemic of opioid drug use in America is unsurprising as its use has now spread among the rich and famous; those with influence and power. I bring up the war on drugs because it provides us with an opportunity to look at the failure of leadership at the highest levels of government. Nearly a year ago, I wrote about this failure in The War on Drugs: Leadership Revisited I.
It has been said that the widespread use of illegal, opioid drugs corresponds with two common human conditions. First, denial that there is a problem with illegal drugs at all and second, the belief that there is nothing that can be done to effectively control it. Beginning with U.S. President Ronald Reagan, a war on drugs was begun with the task to reduce the destructive nature of many drugs.
The war on drugs from Reagan through George W. Bush was judged a failure in its mission to both educate Americans that there is a problem and that something can be done about it. Of course, we should admit that the first step in solving a problem is to identify the problem clearly.
During President Obama’s eight years in office, U.S. illegal drug policies were largely eliminated. The argument was that criminalization of drug production and distribution in the United States was a twofold problem. First, enforcement actions predominantly fell on racial minorities and therefore it was racist. Second, drug use is an individual choice and if there is to be any action by the government it should focus on treating drug addiction.
The legacy of Obama’s policies was a dramatic rise in illegal opioid drug use. When Obama said that “the war on drugs has been an utter failure,” he was correct. Looking back over the past eight years, we can also conclude that Obama’s approach was also a failure.
Does anyone have the definitive answer? Well, the obvious answer is “no” … or we would have heard it by now. This is where great leadership comes into its own. Leadership means designing solutions, convincing us that it will work, implementing the solution, and assessing its worth.
“If you want to fight a war on drugs, sit down at your own kitchen table and talk to your own children.” – Barry McCaffrey, former U.S. Army General and current news commentator
Barry McCaffrey points us in a direction that has not been considered as being realistic. He believes that the solution is at the family level, convincing our children and other family members that illegal opioid drug use is wrong and has serious negative society affects.
Solving the problem begins here and whatever the U.S. government does (or does not do), it must begin with the family. That is real leadership.
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