Use and abuse

As I write this, the Associated Press is calling the no-vote for California's Proposition 19 with 39% of precincts reporting. Those of us nowhere near California figured the measure had a pretty good chance, but the ten-point margin of defeat makes it seem as though in hindsight it was never close. The only counties voting yes seem to be all the ones around the Bay Area and a couple on the Nevada state line just south of Lake Tahoe. Los Angeles County, which includes Claremont, latter-years home of David Foster Wallace, is voting no.¹

I wonder how Wallace would have voted. Even having read his extended essay on John McCain's 2000 presidential campaign, I know very little of the man's politics. I do know, however, that he had a pretty serious drug problem as a young adult, and a big part of that was his marijuana habit. Most stoners will be happy to tell you that, unlike, say, herion, which permanently hinders one's endogenous opioid production, marijuana use does not result in physical dependence. Psychological dependence, on the other hand, is a more subjective, and debatable, subject. I have no doubts as to where Wallace would stand on the matter.

Many of Ken Erdedy's habits, obsessions, neuroses, denials and rationalisations will be familiar to anyone who has smoked a lot of grass over a long period of time. He's certainly not physically unable to stop himself, but mentally he's helpless. Wallace spoke quite candidly in interviews about similar experiences.

I'm going to phrase these next two sentences carefully in order to avoid any spoilers. Erdedy will not be the only character whose marijuana use gets beyond his control. And, at some point, the possibility of professional counseling for marijuana use will be addressed. There, I hope I didn't give too much away. When we think of rehabilitation for substance dependence, we rarely associate it with marijuana. Wallace, however, takes the idea quite seriously, and it seems like one of the underexplored themes in the literature I've read about the Jest.² Worth keeping in mind moving forward.

As a final note, I wonder whether, had he lived to see marijuana legalised in California, Wallace would have felt compelled to move. Could he have resisted the temptation?

1. As is Humboldt County, by the way. Seriously guys? Couldn't get off the couch for thirty minutes to go vote? [Return]


2. Not drug rehab in general, mind you, just the idea of it being equally applicable to excessive marijuana use as to that of other, "harder" drugs. [Return]