What the hell is with declaring war on things like "terror" and "drugs"

[BabyHeadCrab]

These are things that dont go away.. they are constant struggles.. heres a definition of war off of webster

1 a (1) : a state of usually open and declared armed hostile conflict between states or nations (2) : a period of such armed conflict

Last time I checked drugs were not a nation and neither was terror, they were just ongoing conflicts that lead to violence and battles. We need to stop acting like these are "wars" that can be simply won if we fight hard enough. They are struggles, ongoing ones not wars. With that attitude we should declare a war on homelesness, famine, suicide, and obescity. and omg... TEH WAR ON P1R4CY.. the stupidity never ends :x

 

[The Mullinator]

Those aren't necessarily the only definitions of war:

A. A condition of active antagonism or contention: a war of words; a price war.
B. A concerted effort or campaign to combat or put an end to something considered injurious: the war against acid rain.
From Dictionary.com

It may not be Webster however the English language is a very fluid language where words can change their meanings or be applied to certain situations that they may not have been applied to before. A war doesn't have to be between two nations and it doesn't have to be something that can be won or lost.

 

[KagePrototype]

I really don't see the point in waging war against ideologies myself. I can't make sense out of it.

 

[dart321]

It's not a very complicated thing. Drugs and Terror are bad. Therefor, we declare war on them and all of the countries that drastically harbor these things. Simple.

 

[KagePrototype]

Yeah, but you can't win against an ideology...

I guess "drugs" don't count as an ideology though, not sure where I pulled that one from.

 

[dart321]

Yeah, but you can't win against an ideology...

I guess "drugs" don't count as an ideology though, not sure where I pulled that one from.

Of course we can. We're American.

 

[gh0st]

afghanistan is part of the war on terror.
theres fighting there.
thus, a war on terror.

 

[poksmote]

It's not a very complicated thing. Drugs and Terror are bad. Therefor, we declare war on them and all of the countries that drastically harbor these things. Simple.

since when did we invaid a country that sold us drugs? iraq didnt have WMDs, and all we've done is bring all the torrorists out of the woodwork over there.

recreational drug use should be universaly considered a personal thing. why is it illegal for me to go smoke a joint if someone else has a beer legally? alchahol has far worse effects than drugs like weed, yet its legal. drugs being "bad" is a personal opinion. if someone wants to take something that probably will kill them, and they're probably more than aware of that, so what? thats their choice, and it doesnt stop the fact that people will always use drugs regardless of laws or because of some "war". the war on drugs is pointless, and an utter waste of money.

if you think drugs are truely "bad", go home and throw away every album you've ever bought. drugs have progressively made recorded music better since the 1960s.

 

[oldagerocker]

i dont agree with the whole 'war on' phrases that have been floating around recently. There has always been a fight against terrorism around the world, back in the 60's, 70's and 80's we didnt call the struggle in ireland a 'war on irish terrorism' did we? because it wasn't even though guns were involved...violence involves guns more and more these days, but it isnt a war because of that. But right now political parties like to use phrases like this to make us panic, to feel patriotic on issues that have nothing to do with nationality. There's something wrong with that.

 

[dart321]

since when did we invaid a country that sold us drugs? iraq didnt have WMDs, and all we've done is bring all the torrorists out of the woodwork over there.

recreational drug use should be universaly considered a personal thing. why is it illegal for me to go smoke a joint if someone else has a beer legally? alchahol has far worse effects than drugs like weed, yet its legal. drugs being "bad" is a personal opinion. if someone wants to take something that probably will kill them, and they're probably more than aware of that, so what? thats their choice, and it doesnt stop the fact that people will always use drugs regardless of laws or because of some "war". the war on drugs is pointless, and an utter waste of money.

if you think drugs are truely "bad", go home and throw away every album you've ever bought. drugs have progressively made recorded music better since the 1960s.

I'm not here to argue politics with you. For all you know, I could have agreed with you (which I don't). I'm just giving a legitimate reason behind the whole idea of why we declare war on "things".

 

[Mechagodzilla]

afghanistan is part of the war on terror.
theres fighting there.
thus, a war on terror.

No, that's a war on Afghanistan, or on al-queda.

Terrorism is everywhere, under that broad definition. Basically every country in the world.
A war on Al-queda I can buy, but a war on just general terror has no forseeable end.

 

[Foxtrot]

A war on means playing an active role in somthing rather than a passive role. In other words, givin' it and not takining it in the butt.

 

[hasan]

war on terror means that bush decalred a war against whoever disobeys

Last time I checked drugs were not a nation and neither was terror

blame the dictionary.

afghanistan is part of the war on terror.
theres fighting there.
thus, a war on terror.

is that supposed to mean something?

 

[Putz]

I just find it funny.... "In God we Trust"

Genesis 1:11
And God said, Let the earth sprout tender sprouts, the plant seeding seed, the fruit tree producing fruit according to its kind, whichever seed is in it on the earth. And it was so.
Genesis 1:12
And the earth bore tender sprouts, the plant seeding seed according to its kind, and the fruit tree producing fruit according to its kind, whichever seed is in it. And God saw that it was good.

It should be changed too, "In God we Trust, when it works for us"

 

[RakuraiTenjin]

This is a fundamental difference between the thinking of liberals and conservatives.

Liberals tend to see the War on Terror and think of it as the War on Drugs, a criminal battle.

The war on terror is an actual war, by definition. Deposing state sponsors of terror and crushing terror organizations.

 

[Wraith]

did you say war on homeless people? thats messed up dude, even for you

 

[hasan]

did you say war on homeless people? thats messed up dude, even for you

war on homelessnes, not homeless people.

lol .. just lol.

 

[Reaktor4]

The 'war on (some) drugs' is just plain crazy. It is the single biggest problem that countries have ever created for themselves.
Anyone who doesnt understand why should read this http://www.tdpf.org.uk/Transform - After the War on Drugs.pdf

 

[Korgoth]

Terrorism is an ideology fueled by a deep hatred for the west. By merely taking combat to these various middle eastern countries we fuel more hatred towards ourselves and fuel more terror. Trying to fight terrorism is like waging war on religion. It won't end. Just like the many wars against communism, they've gotten stale so we switched to terrorism. Always keep the public in a state of anxeity over when they could possibly be at war next.

 

[f|uke]

drugs being "bad" is a personal opinion.

For all you know, I could have agreed with you (which I don't). I'm just giving a legitimate reason behind the whole idea of why we declare war on "things".

He knew you didn't agree because you said:

Drugs and Terror are bad.

pwn.
And saying 'drugs are bad' is not a legitamate reason, mmmkay? Terror is bad, because they are imposing their will upon others. There is nothing wrong with drug use if you do not harm or endanger other people. What I do with my body is my buisness, and the Government does not have the right, IMO, to tell me what I can and can not put into it, as long as nobody else is effected.

Drugs can actually be a good thing, though that is far beyond the reasoning of anyone who has never done them. Drugs can open your mind, but how can you understand that if your mind is closed?

People like to say buying drugs funds criminals, but it is the war on drugs that makes them criminals. Nothing will stop desperate men from doing whatever they can to make money, and the more violent we get in the war, the more violent they become as well.

If we were to legalize the more rational drugs (THC, LSD, Mushrooms,etc), and tax the hell out of them, they would put money into the system instead of draining the system, the 'criminals' would be out of buisness, and we could better monitor addicts and drug abusers (big difference between a user and an abuser)

 

[dart321]

He knew you didn't agree because you said: pwn.
And saying 'drugs are bad' is not a legitamate reason, mmmkay? Terror is bad, because they are imposing their will upon others. There is nothing wrong with drug use if you do not harm or endanger other people. What I do with my body is my buisness, and the Government does not have the right, IMO, to tell me what I can and can not put into it.

Drugs can actually be a good thing, though that is far beyond the reasoning of anyone who has never done them. Drugs can open your mind, but how can you understand that if your mind is closed?

LMAO! Drugs aren't bad? Okay then. I'm gonna take a stab in the dark here, but I'd be willing to guess that you've indulged in said "drugs" yourself? Probably more than once. Probably while you we're typing this.

Drugs can do serious harm to the body. That is proven. Mmmkay?

 

[hasan]

Drugs can actually be a good thing, though that is far beyond the reasoning of anyone who has never done them. Drugs can open your mind, but how can you understand that if your mind is closed?

how can understand that you are fooling yourself if you are doing drugs?

 

[f|uke]

LMAO! Drugs aren't bad? Okay then. I'm gonna take a stab in the dark here, but I'd be willing to guess that you've indulged in said "drugs" yourself? Probably more than once. Probably while you we're typing this.

I've done a shitload of them, and let me tell you, THC has wasted a lot of time, but LSD and Extacy have made me a better, more compasionate person. I have not done eithe of those for many years, and have not done any drugs, not even drinking, for several months. And even after all these years, I'm still much smarter then your average bear.

how can understand that you are fooling yourself if you are doing drugs?

You have no perspective. I have been on both sides of the fence. I know better.

 

[dart321]

I've done a shitload of them, and let me tell you, THC has wasted a lot of time, but LSD and Extacy have made me a better, more compasionate person. I have not done eithe of those for many years, and have not done any drugs, not even drinking, for several months. And even after all these years, I'm still much smarter then your average bear.

Okay. Honestly. Are you joking with me? You're reasoning is insane. Are you saying LSD and Extacy make people better?

 

[hasan]

you know that smokers say smoking doesn't hurt? they've all been smoking for years and they are still alive.

Once Yusuf Estes said that lying is the worst sin, because before you do any sin, you lie to yourself, telling it that "it's okay!".

 

[Reaktor4]

Hasan and dart, you guys obviously have little clue on this subject. Please read the link i gave.

 

[hasan]

Hasan and dart, you guys obviously have little clue on this subject. Please read the link i gave.

why, clue guy? your book is about politics, not drug itself.

I'm not gonna waste an hour or two of my time to read a book on drugs just because an anonymous person on a forum posted a link for it. get real. if you want your links to be read, make them half a page to two pages.

 

[Reaktor4]

No, it actually sums up the problems with your 'argument' quite nicely and it is about illegal drugs not just politics.
I might be just some guy you dont know on a forum, but i have researched drugs quite extensively for some years.

 

[dart321]

No, it actually sums up the problems with your 'argument' quite nicely and it is about illegal drugs not just politics.
I might be just some guy you dont know on a forum, but i have researched drugs quite extensively for some years.

I'm talking about LSD, Ecstasy, Heroin, etc. You can't possible try to defend these things. Not even the ideology behind them.

 

[Reaktor4]

heh..
Ironically enough heroin is the easiest drug to 'defend', but i bet you have no idea why.... Would you like to hear it?
Also please realise that this isnt about defending drugs, its simply a matter of distinguishing fact from fiction.

 

[f|uke]

Drugs can do serious harm to the body. That is proven. Mmmkay?

THC or LSD use has never, ever killed anybody outright.. only by acts of their own stupidity. Alcohol kills people outright, and has killed FAR more for acts of stupidity, not to mention innocent people.

Okay. Honestly. Are you joking with me? You're reasoning is insane. Are you saying LSD and Extacy make people better?

Definitly not. I'm saying they made me a better person. (And I know a number of others who feel the same). However, in the hands of someone who didn't know what they were doing, they can wreak havok. Too much X is very bad for the brain stem, and excesive use has killed people. LSD has the potential to give you bad trips, which can be traumatic, and if you do lots of LSD you may start to lose your grip on reality. I would definitly not reccomend these drugs to just anybody.

However, with proper education, they can be theraputic. This has been proven. Before LSD was made illegal, it was highly used among PHDs and therapists for regression therapy.

 

[dart321]

heh..
Ironically enough heroin is the easiest drug to 'defend', but i bet you have no idea why.... Would you like to hear it?
Also please realise that this isnt about defending drugs, its simply a matter of distinguishing fact from fiction.

Opium? Wow. I'm talking about heroin. Put in needle and inject into your body heroin. What exactly are you trying to distinguish? Seriously, I really don't know.

 

[Reaktor4]

Opium what?
What im trying to distinguish is the plethora of bullshit about illegal drugs from what is actually the case.

 

[dart321]

THC or LSD use has never, ever killed anybody outright.. only by acts of their own stupidity. Alcohol has killed FAR more users, not to mention innocent people.Definitly not. I'm saying they made me a better person. (And I know a number of others who feel the same). However, in the hands of someone who didn't know what they were doing, they can wreak havok. Too much X is very bad for the brain stem, and excesive use has killed people. LSD has the potential to give you bad trips, which can be traumatic, and if you do lots of LSD you may start to lose your grip on reality. I would definitly not reccomend these drugs to just anybody.

However, with proper education, they can be theraputic. This has been proven. Before LSD was made illegal, it was highly used among PHDs and therapists for regression therapy.

What world do you live in? Drugs can be used for good but most people will abuse them. Why should we encouge these substances to be legal when you yoursef have pointed out people can and will abuse them?

 

[dart321]

Opium what?
What im trying to distinguish is the plethora of bullshit about illegal drugs from what is actually the case.

Which is....?

 

[BabyHeadCrab]

I think i'm going to declare a war on thread rapeists

 

[Reaktor4]

Too much X is very bad for the brain stem, and excesive use has killed people.

i hope youre not referring to this http://mdma.net/toxicity/ricaurte.html

 

[dart321]

I think i'm going to declare a war on thread rapeists

Sorry. We mean well.

 

[f|uke]

What world do you live in? Drugs can be used for good but most people will abuse them. Why should we encouge these substances to be legal when you yoursef have pointed out people can and will abuse them?

Liberty and justice for all, man. Freedom of choice. Why do we allow handguns when we know they're used to kill people? Why do we let food companies make snacks high in sugar and saturated fat when we know that people can, and will, abuse them, to the point of death? Cigarettes are HIGHLY addictive, but they're legal.

We cant make the whole world out of nerf. We cant cater to the lowest denominator. And if we legalized, we could do a much better job of educating.

 

[f|uke]

i hope youre not referring to this http://mdma.net/toxicity/ricaurte.html

No, just news stories I've heard. Is it bogus?