We TRIPPED into it all...

Chaos gives new life, and little more than a half century ago, things were about as chaotic as ever. Politics were deeply enthralled in foreign matters such as war. The Vietnam War was in full effect and taking a toll on US Soldiers, not because they were poorly trained, had insufficient resources or inferior weapons, but because many of our soldiers were stoned. Opium, heroine, LSD and marijuana really got their starts during this time and drug use/abuse by soldiers has been well documented. After the war was over and we gave "Peace a Chance", our soldiers came back : some as junkies, others needing it to cope with the insane amounts of death and carnage they bared witness to. Drug use quickly spread from just our troops to the general population. Here marks the rise of Frank Lucas (American Gangster), the Italian Mafia (Goodfellas) and the Cuban/Miami Connect (Scarface). Drugs were growing ever-popular by the day, and those who had the balls and resources to import these products were becoming unimaginably wealthy in a short period of time.

It didn't take long before this widespread drug use took it's effect on society, for good and for bad. Everyone knows the bad-- Crime, corruption, disease, addiction, but the good is what some may overlook or refuse to even acknowledge. Individual expression took a shot in the arm, so to speak, and the arts were directly affected by it. Music evolved into a whole new sound and with the steady advancements in technology, new genres were born and they older ones were given a much needed breathe of fresh air. Drugs aided musicians to focus acutely and express exactly what they felt. From the Beatles to Pink Floyd, from the Rolling stones to Jimi Hendrix, musicians were at the forefront of the new era. An era were politics were secondary and the people (the individual) came first.

We fast forward thru the experimental hardtimes of the 60's to the LSD plagued- groovy years of the 70's to the cocaine-driven party times of the 80's, we stagger into my generation-- a potent cocktail of pills and thrills. My generation listened to music, watched cartoons/TV shows, wore fashion and used technology created by the minds from the tripped out past generations. Hell, many of those same hippies and party-people are our parents! We have it good, the best of the best weed is available, the purest coke is only a call away, for like any business, people began to specialize and technology is improving exponentially. But we also have it tough, for drug laws created by the government makes the consequences of drug use extremely difficult to overcome, some drugs are becoming "too good", too potent, and we maybe should ask ourselves "how high do we really need to get?" When did weed become not enough? Should it be an everyday thing? Or just every now and then to take the edge off (or put the edge on, lol)? Should marijuana really be legalized? I know how I feel, but how do you?

-The Mad Musician