Philip Seymour Hoffman’s death has sparked another round of debate about heroin, drug legalization and the nature of addiction. The New York Post’s Andrea Peyser wrote a controversial column arguing that Hoffman shouldn’t be pitied because he chose to use, and by making that decision, sealed his fate. By calling addiction a “disease,” Peyser says, we give a pass to addicts and absolve them of responsibility for their choices.

In this segment the panel discusses the nature of addiction, whether heroin and other drugs should be legalized and the impact of narcotics on brain chemistry.

Host: Ana Kasparian

Panel:
Cara Santa Maria: Producer, Co-host – TakePart Live on Pivot TV
Peter Nonacs: UCLA Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Christopher Ryan: Author – Sex at Dawn

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