[December 19, 2024] One of the terrible self-inflicted tragedies of the modern era is young men (and others) who are addicted to illegal drugs and alcohol. According to NCDAS, half of all teenagers have misused drugs and over 60 percent abuse alcohol. We also know that young men are dying at a faster rate than ever from drug and alcohol abuse. But why was it that I avoided the allure of drugs and alcohol?
My friends will likely say it’s my strong religious upbringing or perhaps my career in the military, where the use and misuse are prohibited, that drove me to avoid them. While my religious upbringing may have influenced me at a level undetectable, there are more practical reasons.
I’ve been a realist all my life and a rather good observer of human behavior. I might not have known the cause of any particular behavior, but I could recognize some patterns in the actions of my schoolmates in High School and early College days. I saw that the students who were getting into trouble with the school and local police were those who smoked cigarettes, drank alcohol (usually liquor), hung out in the streets after midnight, and were crude in their daily language. I didn’t want to be like them.
I didn’t want to get involved in this “subculture” and maybe get addicted or dependent on drugs and alcohol. So, I made a choice. For me, I had a zero-use policy. I didn’t care what others did with their time. I promised myself never to do drugs, not even experiment with them. The anti-drug programs that started their more aggressive advertisement programs also showed me I was not some know-nothing boy but that they were saying what I was thinking. Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say No to Drugs” campaign, which came out in the early 1980s, helped me justify my position.
Furthermore, it was also easy to see the physiological impact of illegal drugs on their body. These young men rarely were involved in any sports, school clubs, or activities. They had their hangout groups. Some were the school bullies. That was no life to live, constantly looking over my shoulder for the police or school principal. They dressed poorly, didn’t have good personal hygiene, smelled awful, and were just nasty. Interestingly, most had bad teeth.
I was also lucky to speak with some men much older than me who warned me about how drugs and alcohol had largely destroyed their health, marriage, career, and relationships. I was shocked. The media and the new hippie and ‘let it all hang out’ peace movement glorified its use. I figured out the media was lying to my generation.
We know much more today than in those days about the deleterious effects of drugs and alcohol use, even in small quantities. It was obvious to me then, and the data is clear today. They will degrade your physical and psychological well-being. They will kill you, even if it takes a few decades. And they won’t solve any of your problems. Only you can do that.
At all costs, avoid the use of illegal drugs and alcohol.
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Please read my books:
Gen. Satterfield, thank you for sharing your struggles to avoid illegal drugs and alcohol. Most stories are about those who have fallen into the trap of drugs and alcohol and we cheer those who win out in that struggle but ignore those who avoided it to begin with. We should not overlook these good men and women who were strong in the face of a great temptation.
Excellent point, The Observer. And this needed saying. We just assume that it’s easy to avoid illegal drugs and alcohol but that is not true.
Hey folks, a little off topic for us, but I hope you’ve all gotten ready for the holidays. Better safe and get a simple gift for that special other and for the kiddos. 🎄
Well, I must say that this one was unexpected regarding the avoidance of illegal drugs (or really any drug that if misused can do great harm) and alcohol (esp. in excessive amounts or to depress bad feelings or hurt). Gen. Satterfield tells us here that he avoided the trap of drugs by simple observation of those who were involved and saw their lives were poor. The pattern recognition is a skill we all should have. If you want to be like someone, then observe what they do. See what their goals and behaviors are like. And HOW they think. This puts you that much closer to getting life right. Do as he has done. Also, if you want a closer look, then read, “55 Rules for a Good Life” and practice those rules to live well. The solution is there for the taking, proven ways to live well.
“But happiness is fleeting and unpredictable. If you want happiness, drink alcohol and abuse drugs (that’s a bit of sarcasm). But drug use works, at least in the short term, and it’s cheap and instantaneous. Of course, alcohol and many drugs destroy the lives of perhaps five to ten percent of our society and severely handicap those it does not kill. Don’t pursue happiness. Pursue who you could be because you are not who you could be.”
— 55 Rules for a Good Life: Pursuing Truth and Responsibility by Brig. Gen. Douglas Satterfield
https://a.co/5Oox3Wb
Best ever book that summarizes the right path to a good life. And, he is right. Don’t pursue happiness because that is not a legitimate life pursuit.
Exactly, most people are not smart enough to actually read a book that contains 55 proven ways to be a good person and live a good life. How could we want anything more? No way. But, of course, those same folks are out there, and making their own lives difficult and our lives problematic. LadynHawk nailed it here. Go get yourself a copy.
AMAZIN’
Follow Gen. Satterfield’s led and you can’t go wrong.
Right. But as we know for those interested in concepts of leadership, we also must understand why. That is the reason – one of the reasons / that I read this blog. It’s the only place I can get leadership insights without having to pay for it.
As a young boy, the now-Gen. Satterfield just didn’t want to be a hippie or drug addict. You can see this in one of his letters to his granddaughter.
This is the one you might be referring to mit was one of my favorites.
“ Letters to My Granddaughter, No. 82 (Church and Baptism)”
https://www.theleadermaker.com/letters-to-my-granddaughter-no-82-church-and-baptism/
😍😍😍😍😍😍😍❤️😍😍😍😍😍😍
Excellent article, sir. Thanks for the insight on one of the struggles you had to undertake and you made the right choices.
There is an important point that Gen. Satterfield is making in this quote of his. Read the last line. It says that he figured out the media was lying. Elsewhere he notes that the bad influence might also have been our culture in general.
“ I was also lucky to speak with some men much older than me who warned me about how drugs and alcohol had largely destroyed their health, marriage, career, and relationships. I was shocked. The media and the new hippie and ‘let it all hang out’ peace movement glorified its use. I figured out the media was lying to my generation.”
Thank you, Gen. Satterfield.
Good catch, King. Clearly it’s more complicated than Gen. Satterfield can put into a short article. I get your point. There appears to be at that time, that a confluence of factors in “modern” culture said , “Hey, drugs and alcohol are okay.” “Peace, man!” This was the times that, except for a few people warning use, said go for it. Well, Gen. S. fortunately didn’t go for it. “It” being illegal drugs and alcohol. We are all bald he didn’t fall for it. That took guys. I pray that more young men and women do the same and are saved from this scourge.
I’m nor sure, Gen. Satterfield, if you were smart or lucky or something in between. But, you did the right thing.
Nick, surely it takes more than luck to swim against the peer pressure tide that tends to grab young folks and pull them under. Peer pressure is hard to avoid as a kid and when you are not with it, you will be mocked and bullied. This is not easy stuff to conquer when you’re young and still stupid.
Well said, Yusaf and Nick. Hey guys, I finallyngot a copy of Gen. Satterfield’s two books. If you don’t yet have a copy, then order now because you can give them away as presents and get them before Christmas.😀