Politics, Pain, and Drug Prohibition

I know L&P co-blogger Arthur Silber has written a bit on the DEA's heartless war on prescription painkillers. Last Friday I attended a Capitol Hill briefing on the topic sponsored by the American Association of Physicians and Surgeons. Half the room was in tears. It's really hard to believe that the war on drugs has reached the point where the federal government would rather sick people suffer than take the chance that otherwise helpful medication might be used for recreational purposes. And it's an absolute disgrace that only a handful of politicians have taken notice. Sad fact of the matter is, some Senator's kid, or wife, or brother will have to get a long, painful, terminal illness before Congress finally steps up and exercises some oversight, and takes the DEA to task.

At any rate, the whole sorry affair is the subject of my Fox column this week.