RIP Amy Winehouse

Amy Winehouse had a choice. She decided to drown her sorrows in alcohol and drugs, but it was still her choice.

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2009/08/09/qa_with_gene_m_heyman/

 

This thread has gone full retard.

 

So you're prepared to argue that there's no such thing as addiction? There's only moral failing?

Cheeky.

 

Are you prepared to argue that there is no such thing as choice? If so, do serial killers get a pass because if they felt compelled to kill?

Even with addiction, there is a choice.

 

Look, it's the same as the discussions on depression. People who have had, or been close to those with addiction are clearly going to have a different outlook on it than those who have not.

It's just as ridiculous to rail at those who subscribe to the "hitch-up-your-pants-and-fix-yourself" theory as it is to shake one's head at those who believe addiction/depression are out of one's control. It's not a matter of one's right and one's wrong, regardless of how many studies you have. It's a matter of somebody has an opinion different than yours.

And if anyone's about to say, "No, one's right and one's wrong," then you're just as bad as the people you're arguing with.

 

No one's right and no one's wrong.

One extra word and one less piece of punctuation makes it right. Argue THAT.

 

I don't know why every one of these deaths has to be a teachable moment.

She partied too hard. She stretched herself too thin. She met the ferryman. End of story.

 

"No one's right and no one's wrong" is 7 percent better than "No, one's right and one's wrong."

I have studies at my disposal, you know.

Well, yeah. But then your debate becomes "Poor Amy Winehouse, a victim of her personal demons" vs. "I won't shed a tear for Amy Winehouse; she did it to herself."

 

They tried to make me give a damn about Amy Winehouse being dead ...

 

There's actually an emerging line of study that suggests just that about murderers. Baylor neuroscientist David Eagleman is a leader in this field and wrote an article in the most recent issue of The Atlantic about this issue. For example, Charles Whitman, who climbed a tower on the University of Texas campus and shot 45 people, was discovered to have a brain tumor:

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/print/2011/07/the-brain-on-trial/8520/

 

OK, my opinion here.

Yes, there is addiction, and yes, there is depression.

And if help is offered and you still wind up ruining yourself, well, the help was offered.

 

You can expect people to take personal responsibility for their actions, while at the same time realizing the complexity of why people become addicted and how they do (or do not) approach their problems. It's possible to be empathetic without making excuses.