The Dr. Junkie Show

C. Dreams, Dr. Christina Perez's moniker while incarcerated, joins me today to talk about addiction, recovery, reentry, education, stigma, social movement, reappropriation, colorism, plus she shares her story of doing interviews (including for this show) on a contraband cell phone smuggled into her prison cell. Check out C. Dreams' work at Filter Magazine. You can also find her on Twitter/X @UnCagedCritique.Support the show

This week I revisit a topic I've discussed repeatedly on this show: the reported success rates of 12-Step programs like AA and NA. I talk about the reason these programs persist as the norm despite an odd lack of data to verify their success, and I walk through the reasons AA and other 12-Step programs are highly religious while almost always claiming (and appearing) not to be.  Read Cochrane's new(er) meta-analysis of 12-step success rates on their website.Read more about aging out of addiction in Zimburg's work. 14% - 31% of people who walk into a 12-Step meeting keep coming for at least 1 year.21% - 22% of people who stay in a 12-Step program for more than a year remain sober.5% - 8% of people who walk in a 12-Step meeting will remain sober for at least 1 year.Some studies show that those who try a 12-Step program actually have worse success rates than non-treatment groups. Support the show

This week I talk about the medication shortages across the United States. Drugs used to treat ADHD, chronic pain, and other conditions have been in short supply lately for reasons unexplained. Different groups have blamed the shortage on one anther: the manufacturers blame the DEA, while the DEA blames manufacturers. But as usual, the problem comes down to a design issue.  For more about Assent's issues with the DEA, check out the Reason article, "DEA Shuts Down Factory even as Adderall Shortage Persists." Support the show

This week I wrap up a multi-part discussion of Foucault's theories of panoptic power, institutional knowledge, and discourses used to endorse awful ideas and beliefs about drugs and drug users. I also talk about Michel Foucault's car accident while high on opium, the notion of panoptic power, Jeremy Bentham's panoptic prison, discourse, stigma and stereotype. Foucault audio at intro and outro from Century of the Self lecture series. Support the show

Captured Words/Free Thoughts is an annual, non-profit publication packed with art, poetry and prose inspired and written inside US prisons. Every year a group of volunteers records some of the submissions in audio form to share with the world. An online version of the full magazine (and all previous volumes) is here. If you or someone you know (in prison or out) would like a paper copy, contact me and I'll make sure to send one out (for free). You can reach us by mail at CW/FT, 1201 Larimer St, Suite 3014, Denver, CO, 80204.Intro: Ben Boyce"My Freedom Kite," by Monica Petrosian "What's in a Name?" by Gary K. Farlow"Pledge of Allegiance," by Gary K. Farlow"Nana," by Tanya Austin"Attempting Sobriety," by Dylan Lapointe (DJ) "To My Trans Brothers (My Incarcerated Word)," by H.L. Tapia  "Quiet Night," by Anthony Enis"Prison is not a Depository," by Abdullah Muhammad "Mr. Box," by Larry N. Stromberg "Methamphetamine," by Dylan Lapointe (DJ) "To Imprisonment," by Eric Perez"A Birthday in Prison," by Keith Pertusio "Prison World" by Larry N. Stromberg "Bound," by Christian J. Weaver "Living are the Dead," by David Neff "A Better Way," by Todd Broxmeyer "No," by Eugene "Tsunami” Miller "The Beast in the Mirror," by David Zenquis "Incarcerated but Inspired," by David Richardson "My First Day on Death Row," by Anthony Enis "Black Boy Dark Child," by Daniel Mopkins "Can’t Breathe," by Larry N. Stromberg "Pain," by Shawn Harris"Lockdown," by Gary K. Farlow "The Man Not Taken," by Christian Weaver "Convict Chronicles: An Ode to Time," by Leo Cardez "Loving a Convict," by Debbie Magee "Meaningful," by Taveuan Williams "Finally," by  Manuel G. Sisneros Sr. "QUO VADIS?" by Troy Brownlow Outro: Meghan Cosgrove & Ben BoyceCover art painting of MLB pitcher Satchel Paige by Warren Worthington Sestina GodspellSix months in prison became a theaterUniforms became just another costumeNot knowing that all of life is a stageEvery man a star to the directorExpectations changed the meaning of danceSoon this chaotic troupe began to dancetogether breathing freedom into theaterEven the gods came to absorb their songCommitment was fit to wear the costumeguided by the light of the directorAll his tender loving care set the stageA bus transported All actors and stagewhere even the law could begin to dancewith shackle and chain requested one directorwhose eye was trained on a different theaterAttempting to restrain men in costumeall the while each was singing the same songUnforgettable Nights echoed their songAncestors followed footprints to the stagewhere reality wore a different costumethe love of family improved the danceNever before hade HOME become  theaterexcept in the heart of our directorFive shows meant oneness with their directorA certain harmony in their songcould be felt in the vibrating theaterHugging hands joined families on stagewhere every soul entered the act of love dancestripping away Lucifer's green costumeIn the next act gone was every costumeFilled with satisfaction our directorcoordinated the tear down danceof this newly formed society's songechoing in their love of theaterTheir hearts will Never leave the magic stageEmpty feels the dance without the old songand costumes feel senseless without a theaterdirected by oSupport the show

If we wanted to design a culture from the ground up to maximize both the potential and severity of addiction, we would build it exactly like the United States today.  Once upon a time, humans received contentment and fulfilment from their work, and they often went home feeling connected to their communities and identified with the service or goods they offered for sale. But for the last hundred years we've steadily changed that. Today, 1 in 8 of us in the United States has worked at McDonalds, a job that might pay the bills, but certainly isn't showing anyone how much they are truly capable of doing or connecting them to a sense of identity related to their work. We just do it to get a paycheck. In this episode I will cover the various ways our medical, educational, employment, legal and political systems are all built to maximize addiction potential and severity, and to hide their tracks by blaming drugs and drug users for problems caused by the environment in which we life. Cocaine and heroin costs around $1 per gram to produce from coca leaves and opium poppies, respectively. Yet these substances will cost a consumer upwards of 50x that much on the streets.Find out more about behavioralist B.F. Skinner here. Read about his use of Operant Conditioning here.In Bruce Alexander's experiments, rats that were put in a toyless, friendless cages used 19 times more morphine than those placed in comfortable, familiar homes with other rats. For more about maximizing button-pressing by rewarding the button-presser randomly, in unexpected and unpredictable patters, check out this article.Support the show

This week I dive into neoliberalism and oligarchy, 2 systems the USA has repeatedly rejected despite their current resurgence of late. The war on drugs is part of a larger move to privatize public systems like medicine, post office services or policing, and to allow profiteering by rich folks who can step in to provide gear and services for these new markets once managed and paid for by the government. For more about Clarence Thomas 's grifts, see The Nation article here. Read more about the call for Clarence Thomas to excuse himself in Trump ballet case here. For more about 6 corporations controlling 90% of our media, see the short article here. More about Newt Gringrich's (and Frank Luntz's), "Language: A Mechanism of Control" here. For stats on wealth/income gains between 1944-2014, check out this article by Thom Hartmann. Support the show

Why do humans have such an odd fascination with criminals and outlaws? What happened to all the kings and queens who used to be in charge of everything...where did they go? Why? And what does any of this have to do with drugs?In this episode I pick up where I left off last time by introducing Michel Foucault's concept of panoptic power, which explains why now days we all self-discipline to conform to social regulations. The war on drugs thrives in spaces where most citizens are thoroughly convinced of the stereotypes that surround drug use: immorality, contagion, degradation, the "disease" of addiction. Today I explain how that cultural knowledge comes to exist, and perhaps how we might be able to disrupt and rewrite those scripts.   Support the show

Have you ever thought, "dang, I just got out of work and I already dread going back tomorrow!"? Most of us have, and in response we did something to make ourselves feel better, something to take the edge off: we treated ourselves to an ice cream cone or binge watched our favorite Netflix series. That's the norm of 21st Century capitalism. Today's episode is about America's drug problem, but I take a route through a number of related topics including capitalism, leisure time, the "culture industry" (a term coined by Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer), and Marx's alienation.I also cover some theory from Friedrich Nietzsche, Theo Adorno, Max Horkheimer, Herbert Marcuse and Karl Marx. Intro from Office SpaceSupport the show

This episode is all about America's unhealthily relationships with work and drugs. We live in a world where we are increasingly distracted and secluded, and our daily schedules often consist of punching a clock and returning home. It's no wonder we feel so compelled to use drugs. We are torturing ourselves with capitalism. Benjamin Fong's book, Quick Fixes: Drugs in America from Prohibition to the 21st Century Binge, is available now. His other work is linked below on most pod-catchers."The Psychedelic Renaissance Is on the Verge of an Uneasy Enlightenment" in Jacobin.  "Monsters of the Brain, Images of the Deity: Psychology and Religion in the Eighteenth Century" in The Journal of Religion."Hans Loewald and the Death Drive" is in Psychoanalytic Psychology."On Critics and What's Real: Russell McCutcheon on Religious Experience" is in the Journal of American Academy of Religion. For more about eugeroics/nootropics like modafinil, check out the Vice article, "Taking the 'Smart Drug' Modafinil Made Me Love Work but Hate People"Support the show

Colorado's state prison budget has grown by almost 1300% in the last 35 years; it's now more than a billion dollars-per-year. This week I talk to Christie Donner, founder of the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition. We discuss the current state of prisons in Colorado and across the US, and we spend some time digging into a few specific bills currently being debated by Colorado Legislators, including Good Samaritan Laws, fentanyls, safe use sites, and  education in prison. We also discuss Pell Grants, the school-to-prison pipeline, negative press coverage, and the ongoing staff crisis in departments of corrections across the country, specifically in Colorado. You can watch the negative news coverage of La Vista Women's Prison Honor House on YouTube. You can hear Dean Williams entire interview on the With(in) podcast, season 1, episode 1. The DOC in crisis article Christie mentioned is available at ccjrc.org. Support the show

This week my partner Dr. Erin Boyce joins me to talk about one of her areas of study, attachment theory. We discuss childhood development, identity formation, the important of strong attachments to parental figures, authenticity, depression, repression, and lots more.For more on Attachment Theory, check out Mary Ainsworth's work.For more on attachment, authenticity and addiction, check out Dr. Gabor Maté's work.Support the show

This week I share a summary of my new book, The Spectacle of Punishment: Lessons from a Century of Prison Films. I discuss cinematic outlaws and lawmen, and I cover the three main prisons used in every movie: prison as a playground, prison as a paradox or prison as penance.  For more on Bill Yousman's work, check out his book Prime Time Prisons on US TV. Check out Ear Hustle and DU-PAI's With(In) Podcast for voices from inside US prisons. Support the show

This week I follow the trail of the US War on Drugs from 1970-2020. I cover Reagan's Iran-Contra scandal, the CIA's importation of cocaine into low income communities, Freeway Ricky, crack-versus-powder sentencing disparities, fentanyl, xylazine, and the role of media in all of it.You can find links to citations in the episode descriptions of sampled audio. Support the show

This week I share part 2 of The War on Drugs: 1920-1970. If you prefer the video format with lots of images and videos, you can find it on YouTube at The Dr. Junkie Show channel. I cover Harry Anslinger, the origins of the war on drugs in the early 1900s, alcohol prohibition, stigmatization, and the recipe used by every politicians since to ramp the war up a bit more.Support the show

This week I share lecture I recorded a few years ago in video format. If you prefer to watch the video, you can find it on YouTube here: The War on Drugs pt 1. I discuss the stereotypes that surrounded drugs prior to the 1900s, the ease with which addicted people could live normal lives, the medicalization of drugs, and the racism used to create and support the original drug laws in the United States (from California's ban on opium smoking in the late 1800s, to Maine's early prohibition of alcohol in the 1850s to the southern states' focus on cocaine and marijuana). Support the show

This week I talk to Dr. Ashley Hamilton, director and founder of DU-Prison Arts Initiative. Dr. Hamilton's work has focused on using theater as a space of identity (re)formation, and she has become a force in Colorado DOC, spearheading the state's only prison newspaper, The Inside Report, the state's only prison radio station, Inside Wire, and a podcast devoted to rethinking incarceration called With(in). She also periodically directs plays inside prisons across the state. You can check out DU-Prison Arts Initiative's recent production of These Walls on YouTube. Support the show

This episode features the annual performance of Captured Words/Free Thoughts: Art and Poetry Inspired Inside US Prisons, volume 19. This year we have a great lineup commentated by Meghan Cosgrove, Dr. Erin Boyce, and of course, me. To read complete editions of Captured Words/Free Thoughts, check out the CU-Denver Communication Dept. page.You can check out Javonte Evans' work at his Instagram pageSpecial thanks to Dr. Hamilton Bean for recording his father's poem. Thanks to my students in Communication 4040 Spring 2023 semester for recording many other poems. And of course, thanks to Meghan's sister, Sophie, who has a future in spoken word. For a free copy, or to contribute art, poetry or prose to our next edition, please email me at benjamin.boyce@ucdenver.edu, or snail mail me at Captured Words/Free Thoughts, 1201 Larimer St. Suite 3014, Denver, CO, 80204. Intro & Outro by Javonte Evans. All other music from Pixabay. Support the show

Have you ever wanted to reduce or moderate your consumption of alcohol or other drugs, but you didn't know how to do it or where to go for help? Today I talk to the founder of the nonprofit support group HAMS, Kenneth Anderson. HAMS stands for Harm reduction, Abstinence, and Moderation Support. They are a coalition of drug and alcohol users who support one another through recovery on their own terms. Kenneth and I discuss 12-step programs, harm reduction, cultural issues with alcohol, the difference between booze and other drugs, the lack of treatment options for folks who want to moderate (not quit) their drug or alcohol use, and a lot more.  Additional links to Kenneth's  work:  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09B78Z88Rhttps://www.amazon.com/How-Change-Your-Drinking-Reduction/dp/145383060Xhttps://play.google.com/books/reader?id=4zOAEAAAQBAJ&pg=GBS.PP1Support the show

This week I talk about synthetic cannabis, also known as Spice or K2. It hit the market in the late 1990s, and it was legal for many years before government officials both in the US and elsewhere passed new legislation banning it in all its forms.  Check out the 1982 article, "“Cannabimimetic Activity from CP-47, 497, a Derivative of 3-Phenylcyclohexanol" to read about the earliest synthetic cannabinoid on record. For more general information about Spice, check out the academic article, "Spice drugs are more than harmless herbal blends: A review of the pharmacology and toxicology of synthetic cannabinoids." For more on Marshall McLuhan's "The Medium is the Message," check out his work in Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man. Support the show