by Stanton Peele

About the author: Stanton Peele is a psychologist and researcher specializing in drug and alcohol addiction, and the author of The Diseasing of America: How We Allowed Recovery Zealots and the Treatment Industry to Convince Us We Are Out of Control.

A traditional anecdote tells of a congressman who answered a constituent’s inquiry about his position on whiskey: “If you mean the demon drink that poisons the mind, pollutes the body, desecrates family life and inflames sinners, then I’m against it. But if you mean the elixir of Christmas cheer, the shield against winter chill,... then I’m for it. This is my position and I will not compromise!”

Unlike this apocryphal congressman, Americans and their government have staked out strong positions on...