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The Hippie Counter Culture

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Drugs are bad. That’s what has been the publicly correct view for ages. Yet we say this while sipping a cup of tea or coffee. That’s because instead of saying drugs are bad because we actually think so, we say it because of what we associate with drug use. In the latter half of the 1900s there was a very obvious split in between those who would use drugs and those who would shun the idea. In 1971 U.S. President Richard Nixon named drug abuse as “public enemy number one in the United States” and declared the “War on Drugs”. But, without this drug use, many of the wonderful things we have just would not have existed in the way they do now.
The hippie counter-culture brought with it many new things in large. It brought a new style of music, …show more content…

Because of this, society had a prejudice toward them about their motives which made them less likely to agree with anything hippies did, leading to many of the police riots that occurred so often at peaceful sit-ins. Hippies tended to believe in nonviolence and love for all and most were quite spiritual. So they were well on board when they discovered that hallucinogens could create a spiritual experience like no other. From the outside the drug use was seen as more of a form of rebellion than anything else. While in reality, people were using these drugs as a way to feel connected to whatever holy and otherwise intangible beings that they believed in. Others would use them as a way to let their creativity flow, and many songs, novels, and art pieces were created under the …show more content…

For example, LSD had the potential to be used as a great espionage stopping tool until it’s use got completely out of hand. Also, marijuana has many medicinal purposes, such as seizures, mood and sleep problems, and pain, among other things. Moreover, while people look down on the use of drugs such as methamphetamine, or meth, and opium, doctors proscribe methylphenidate, better known as Ritalin, to those with attention disorders and morphine to those with severe or chronic pain. Meth also can treat attention disorders as can opium for pain. However, the use of either of these illegal drugs would cause a panic to the general public. Though drugs do indeed have many good uses, they can also completely destroy lives. It all depends on the person, and the drug(s) involved. For some people marijuana will soothe their pain or limit their seizures while for others it could just cause anxiety, insomnia, or difficulty learning and

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