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Whilst violence is on the increase around the world, starting with
governments inflicting violence on their, or some other nation's,
citizens, I do not believe any of it should be attributed to amphetamine
use. Wendy Loxley carried out a study in Perth looking for amphetamine
associated violence and was surprised to see that most violence associated
with a drug was associated with alcohol use. We already know from the
work of McAndrew and Edgarton on expectancies years ago that even alcohol
related violence is not "caused" by alcohol use, since genetically similar
people using the same product in different settings will behave quite
differently. So why now invent amphetamine caused violence, when in most
cases it will, at best, be violence associated with amphetamine use, which
in many cases, then codes for poverty, inequity, helplessness, ADHD traits
and more in a rapacious consumer world.
I would not like to see our increasingly violent world governments given
another excuse to "blame the victim". And there's noone they like blaming
more (OK, after the Bin Laden group) than drug users.
Competing interests:
No competing interests
14 December 2001
Rod MacQueen
Clinical Director, A&OD
Mid Western Area Health Service, Forest Rd, Orange 2800 Australia
Amphetamines and violence??
Editor,
Whilst violence is on the increase around the world, starting with
governments inflicting violence on their, or some other nation's,
citizens, I do not believe any of it should be attributed to amphetamine
use. Wendy Loxley carried out a study in Perth looking for amphetamine
associated violence and was surprised to see that most violence associated
with a drug was associated with alcohol use. We already know from the
work of McAndrew and Edgarton on expectancies years ago that even alcohol
related violence is not "caused" by alcohol use, since genetically similar
people using the same product in different settings will behave quite
differently. So why now invent amphetamine caused violence, when in most
cases it will, at best, be violence associated with amphetamine use, which
in many cases, then codes for poverty, inequity, helplessness, ADHD traits
and more in a rapacious consumer world.
I would not like to see our increasingly violent world governments given
another excuse to "blame the victim". And there's noone they like blaming
more (OK, after the Bin Laden group) than drug users.
Competing interests: No competing interests