Carl Hart > Quotes

“I am an unapologetic drug user. I take drugs as part of my pursuit of happiness, and they work. I am a happier and better person because of them.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“The philosopher John Locke once noted that pursuing happiness is “the foundation of liberty.” This idea is at the core of the Declaration of Independence, the document that gave birth to our nation. The Declaration asserts that each of us is endowed with certain “unalienable Rights,” including “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness,” and that governments are created for the purpose of protecting these rights. The
use of drugs in the pursuit of happiness, in my view, is arguably an act that the government is obliged to safeguard.

[So] why is our government arresting hundreds of thousands of Americans each year for using drugs, for pursuing pleasure, for seeking happiness?”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear