From back cover:
As much as I value destruction toward the creation of joyful rebellion, I refuse the self-destruction created by intoxication culture – a form of self-destruction driven by the inherent power imbalance between an individual and the (mental and physical) demands of a chemical addiction. I refuse to surrender myself to consuming alcohol, smoking weed or cigarettes, and drug use because of their notoriety for maintaining controlling relationships with their consumers. Whatever benefits they may offer me are not worth the risk of my relationship with them turning from casual to life-long control and abuse. Because at the end of the day who uses who? Does an individual use the drug? (Or the bottle or cigarette?) Or do these vices use the individual – slowly increasing one’s dependency over time and therefore increasing one’s desperation for the money to continue purchasing them. Is it not the drug that punishes the individual with withdrawal symptoms when that individual tries to leave the relationship? Does the alcohol not demand involvement in one’s attempt to enjoy an evening at home after work? To socialize? To make new friends, or even make love? How often does nicotine successfully coerce one to stand outside in freezing weather to take a puff – or in some cases search the ground for half-used cigarettes discarded by strangers?
Total sobriety provides me razor-sharp clarity and connection to my emotions, keeping my senses engaged at all times. All the pain and misery in life experienced without a filter is a firm reminder of the world I live in and the reality of its industrialized atrocities. I prefer this harsh clarity. I prefer supreme control over my mind and body because that power and control belongs to no other than myself. Just as I’d never give such power to cops, capitalists, the Church, or politicians, I’d never give it to a culture dictated by the commands of chemical addiction.
