Adderall & the peace process
Benjamin Leffell
Issue date: 10/29/09 Section: Op/Ed
Our society has developed a major and debilitating habit: we have embraced the "quick fix" as a viable solution to our problems. No longer do we seek to solve the causes of problems, rather we simply seek to eliminate the symptoms of those problems.
The top selling drug in the country, Lipitor, is a medicine used to lower a person's blood cholesterol. Instead of a patient changing his eating or exercise habits, or really his lifestyle in general, doctors prescribe a pill that will seemingly fix his problem. We have to ask, what is the patient's problem, the high cholesterol or his lifestyle?
Another popular drug, that all college students are at least vaguely, if not intimately, familiar with, is Adderall, a drug designed for people with Attention Deficit Disorder or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. It does not cure the patient in any form, it merely masks their symptoms. This drug does the patient and certainly the recreational user a disservice, because rather than learning to cope with and compensate for an inability to sit still or pay attention for long periods of time, he uses a pill to temporarily hide the problem. Essentially, Lipitor and Adderall can be categorized as "quick fixes" for the consumer's much larger problems.
In order to solve the consumer's larger problems a tremendous amount of effort to reform his lifestyle would be necessary. Similarly, in diplomatic circles, there is the constant need to weigh the time and discipline necessary for real solutions against the desire for a "quick fix". In attempting to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, diplomats and negotiators try to differentiate and separate the primary or final status concerns from the secondary concerns. The primary negotiation concerns consist of the issues concerning final borders, Palestinian refugees, water rights, and determining the status of Jerusalem. The secondary concerns are in regard to Anti-Semitic incitements, acceptance of Israel's status as a Jewish state, and Palestinian political violence. In titling the concerns in such a manner, it prioritizes them in terms of what must be negotiated first and then what will be dealt with at a later point.
The top selling drug in the country, Lipitor, is a medicine used to lower a person's blood cholesterol. Instead of a patient changing his eating or exercise habits, or really his lifestyle in general, doctors prescribe a pill that will seemingly fix his problem. We have to ask, what is the patient's problem, the high cholesterol or his lifestyle?
Another popular drug, that all college students are at least vaguely, if not intimately, familiar with, is Adderall, a drug designed for people with Attention Deficit Disorder or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. It does not cure the patient in any form, it merely masks their symptoms. This drug does the patient and certainly the recreational user a disservice, because rather than learning to cope with and compensate for an inability to sit still or pay attention for long periods of time, he uses a pill to temporarily hide the problem. Essentially, Lipitor and Adderall can be categorized as "quick fixes" for the consumer's much larger problems.
In order to solve the consumer's larger problems a tremendous amount of effort to reform his lifestyle would be necessary. Similarly, in diplomatic circles, there is the constant need to weigh the time and discipline necessary for real solutions against the desire for a "quick fix". In attempting to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, diplomats and negotiators try to differentiate and separate the primary or final status concerns from the secondary concerns. The primary negotiation concerns consist of the issues concerning final borders, Palestinian refugees, water rights, and determining the status of Jerusalem. The secondary concerns are in regard to Anti-Semitic incitements, acceptance of Israel's status as a Jewish state, and Palestinian political violence. In titling the concerns in such a manner, it prioritizes them in terms of what must be negotiated first and then what will be dealt with at a later point.