{"id":10639,"date":"2019-07-05T11:49:09","date_gmt":"2019-07-05T18:49:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/derangedlacrimes.com\/?p=10639"},"modified":"2019-07-05T11:52:44","modified_gmt":"2019-07-05T18:52:44","slug":"learning-to-fly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/derangedlacrimes.com\/?p=10639","title":{"rendered":"Learning to Fly, Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u201cIf you remember the \u201960s, you really weren\u2019t there.\u201d\u00a0 Charlie Fleischer, comedian<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The United States officially banned LSD in 1967.\u00a0 The government, media and parents all over the country relied on fear-based tactics to keep kids off drugs. It didn\u2019t work.<\/p>\n

Attempts to terrify young people into abstinence is nothing new. The Women\u2019s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) held that there was no such thing as \u201cmoderate drinking\u201d.\u00a0 A small tipple always led to \u201can uncontrollable appetite\u201d for more. They used the same approach regarding tobacco. Temperance Helps for Primary Teachers<\/em>, offered a catchy verse meant to keep young men from smoking:<\/p>\n

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Say No! to tobacco, that poisonous weed.<\/p>\n

Say no! to all evils, they can only lead<\/p>\n

To shame and to sorrow, Oh, shun them, my boy,<\/p>\n

For wisdom\u2019s fair pathway of peace and of joy<\/p>\n

(Preese 1901)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Does the \u201cJust Say No\u201d message sound familiar? If you grew up in the 1980s, you’ll recall First Lady Nancy Reagan’s anti-drug campaign.<\/p>\n