‘Broadband Fraternity’ Must Contribute to a Universal Anti-Drug Campaign

“The ‘Broadband Fraternity’…. I don’t know exactly, if such an expression is globally popular, or at least popular within the segment. However, in spite of all the cut throat competition in the market, there is a subtle chain that links all the relevant entities, ranging from broadband technologists, scientists and media to broadband providers, LLUs, and the customers. Since it is one segment that covers a large part of the society, it calls for the moral obligation of the sector to contribute into the authorities’ undertaking of the anti-drug campaign, against a potential threat that is stealthily eating up its way into the flesh of the society.” This was the statement given by Chuck Doherty, the chief broadband analyst at Broadband Suppliers, when asked to comment on the drug issue that is currently haunting the nation.

Doherty revealed that he was alarmed reading the news in a respected UK daily that one million Britons had used cocaine in 2008, and more smoked skunk. However, he disclosed that he felt even more horrified reading the number of comments being regularly posted in online news sites, against articles pertinent to drug trafficking and prevention, hinting at a legalisation of the hitherto considered stigma. “Take Times’ report that uses the headline ‘police can’t win war on drugs and must focus on limiting damage’; the news site has also taken pain to cite the example of Boston, the infamous US city of history where murder rates plunged once police offered amnesty, and the right to trade drugs freely to gangsters, if they ceased to kill each other.” Doherty pointed out.

According to Doherty, the nation would be heading to nowhere if the stuff, along with its trade and usage (abuse) is made legal. He lambasted the argument that ‘moral externality’ or the effect of gauchery or any personal behaviour amounting to being immoral, on the innocent bystanders could be reduced by simply displacing the drug market to a different area, a place believed to cause lesser impact. Doherty questioned, “Can you expect the substance abusers detain themselves to certain areas, which are exclusively earmarked for them?” “Do you expect that the typical drug addict’s trait of craving for a timely dose, along with its fiscal relevance are going to be subjected to a radical change with the legalisation?” “Or do you expect the small time drug peddlers, along with their big time mentors to desert the sector to leave it a peaceful haven, once larger firms like BT, Virgin Media or O2 will take their place owing to the legalisation of the industry?”

The broadband analyst explained, “One of my friends, who is a clinical psychiatrist at the Maudsley psychiatry institute had once told me I remember, that what they could do was treat peripherally by using chemicals such as methadone, pentazocaine, buprenorphine, etc in the preliminary stage to reduce the physical craving associated with the withdrawal symptoms, use anti-depressants such as haloperidol, imipramine, dothiepin, fluoxetine, etc to stabilise the wildly tuned drug receptors in the middle stage, and educating, taking through rehabilitative drills, and even giving certain low intensity shock therapies in the final stage, but it was the determination of the patient that in the end of the day, segregated the normal man from an abnormal one.” He adds, “If this is the version of the medical team that is looked upon with great hopes regarding the provision of ‘cure’, then there is a great role for the broadband sector of the country to play.”

“The broadband internet segment that is expected to emerge as the predominant media in the near future, can more than anyone else, spread the message of a detoxified world, one free from the ill-effects of substance, one free from the mentally and physically impaired drug-victims”, claimed Doherty. According to him, every website based in and catering to the UK should, on moral grounds, earmark some space on its home page to publish anti-narcotic messages. He also advocates a search engine policy of giving priority to sites sporting such messages on their homepage. “I reckon a recent adverts trial undertaken by 3 UK on its mobile broadband platform; it is some sort of adverts in the form of pop ups that pop up as a routine on the welcome page, when the user connects to the internet every time. It will not be much of a burden for 3 to include an anti-drug message in the pop up ads”, opined Doherty.

The broadband expert of Broadband Suppliers also expected internet service providers coming forward to carry out anti-drug campaigns, in a similar way to Vodafone and Virgin Media are wooing the cricket enthusiasts. He was hinting at the recent pro-cricket campaigns of Vodaphone who launched Vodafone Street Sixes and Nightwatchman, and Virgin Media that announced a charity of GBP1000 with every half century scored by an English batsman. “Meanwhile, many websites can contribute to the cause by publishing highly valuable articles pertinent to the context, besides holding discussions, and criticising any move from any body that dastardly supports any insane pro-narcotic theory. However, prior to setting out for an action, I think it is highly significant to reach a consensus within the segment”, suggested Doherty.

Chuck Doherty also held out his view that the issue was one of the gravest the nation have ever faced, hence should be dealt with utmost perseverance, by not just a few segments of the society. He expressed his hope that the nation would address this problem with a positive as well as a forthright approach. “For, let us not see virtual zombies vagabonding in our streets, let’s not witness our young ones transforming into zombies, more importantly let’s not watch BT promoting a broadband plus free-cocaine offer in the place of its broadband plus free-wine offer” , Doherty concluded.

Pic Credit: GC Comix