--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But why, then, do these ideas persist?…" description: "\"“But why, then, do these ideas persist? Why haven’t the scientists with the better and more accurate ideas eclipsed these old theories? Hart tells me b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/203/johann-hari-20885_illegal-drugs_but-why-then-do-these-ideas-persist-why_1645068.jpg" --- # But why, then, do these ideas persist? Why haven’t the… ![“But why, then, do these ideas persist? Why haven’t the scientists with the better and more accurate ideas eclipsed these old theories? Hart tells me bluntly: Almost all the funding for research into illegal drugs is provided by governments waging the drug war—and they only commission research that…” quote by Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/203/johann-hari-20885_illegal-drugs_but-why-then-do-these-ideas-persist-why_1645068.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/203/johann-hari-20885_illegal-drugs_but-why-then-do-these-ideas-persist-why_1645068.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/203/johann-hari-20885_illegal-drugs_but-why-then-do-these-ideas-persist-why_1645068.jpg) > ““But why, then, do these ideas persist? Why haven’t the scientists with the better and more accurate ideas eclipsed these old theories? Hart tells me bluntly: Almost all the funding for research into illegal drugs is provided by governments waging the drug war—and they only commission research that reinforces the ideas we already have about drugs. All these different theories, with their radical implications—why would governments want to fund those?”” [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Funding biases and political agendas shape which drug research gets supported, often preserving outdated theories. **In simple terms:** Politics influences drug research funding, keeping old ideas alive. Key Takeaway Question funding priorities and seek independent research. Themes politics research drug policy bias funding Mood critical concerned Type analytical commentary When to use this quote - public health policy - academic research - advocacy - legislation - grant applications Key Concepts institutional bias policy influence scientific integrity Questions to Reflect On - How can independent funding change drug research? - What are the risks of politicized science? A Different Perspective Government agendas may limit innovative studies, slowing progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Drug War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drug-war-239298/) [Funding Research](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funding-research-600682/) [Ideas Drugs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-drugs-600683/) [Illegal drugs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illegal-drugs/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Theories Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theories-hart-600684/) [Wine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wine/) ## Related quotes > [It's important that public funds be spent in research directions that are pushing market frontiers rather than working in existing areas. This means funding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariana-mazzucato/it-s-important-that-public-funds-be-spent-in-research-directions-that/) [Mariana Mazzucato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariana-mazzucato/) > [Most Americans violate drug laws in their lifetime, but the enemy in this war has been racially defined. Not by accident, the drug war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/most-americans-violate-drug-laws-in-their-lifetime-but-the-enemy-in/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [Annual drug deaths: tobacco: 395,000, alcohol: 125,000, 'legal' drugs: 38,000, illegal drug overdoses: 5,200, marijuana: 0. Considering government subsidies of tobacco, just what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/annual-drug-deaths-tobacco-395-000-alcohol-125-000-legal-drugs-38-000/) [Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/) > [If I had to guess and put a name on it, I'd say that at some point, the drug war was as much a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-simon/if-i-had-to-guess-and-put-a-name-on-it-i-d-say-that-at-some-point-the/) [David Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-simon/) > [Every addiction arises from an unconscious refusal to face and move through your own pain. Every addiction starts with pain and ends with pain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/every-addiction-arises-from-an-unconscious-refusal-to-face-and-move/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“EIGHTH AMENDMENT The government shall not “crack down” on drug crime while taking kickbacks from industries and companies perpetuating addiction and abuse. You can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trae-crowder/eighth-amendment-the-government-shall-not-crack-down-on-drug-crime/) [Trae Crowder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trae-crowder/) > [A Prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/a-prohibition-law-strikes-a-blow-at-the-very-principles-upon-which/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [“The racial dimension of mass incarceration is its most striking feature. No other country in the world imprisons so many of its racial or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/the-racial-dimension-of-mass-incarceration-is-its-most-striking/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [I have always been very interested in the issue of drugs, because as much as illegal drugs are prosecuted, if you think of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pedro-reyes/i-have-always-been-very-interested-in-the-issue-of-drugs-because-as/) [Pedro Reyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pedro-reyes/) > [“Notice how those who have medicated away their hardships with illegal drugs, alcohol, or sex can seem immature. They may look forty-five, but they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-t-welch/notice-how-those-who-have-medicated-away-their-hardships-with-illegal/) [Edward T. Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-t-welch/) > [Penalties against possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/penalties-against-possession-of-a-drug-should-not-be-more-damaging-to-2/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [Every addiction starts with pain and ends with pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/every-addiction-starts-with-pain-and-ends-with-pain/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“The W. M. Keck Observatory is the only employer that has surprised me during my employment with urine tests for illegal drugs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-w-m-keck-observatory-is-the-only-employer-that-has-surprised-me/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [There are 100,000 total marijuana smokers in the US, and most are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz and swing, result…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-j-anslinger/there-are-100-000-total-marijuana-smokers-in-the-us-and-most-are/) [Harry J. Anslinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-j-anslinger/) > [“According to the CDC, cigarettes kill over 435,000 people a year in the United States. Most of us in Danbury were locked away for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piper-kerman/according-to-the-cdc-cigarettes-kill-over-435-000-people-a-year-in/) [Piper Kerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piper-kerman/) ## More by Johann Hari > [“The Italian philosopher Paolo Virno says we have moved from having a “proletariat”—a solid block of manual workers with jobs—to a “precariat,” a shifting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/the-italian-philosopher-paolo-virno-says-we-have-moved-from-having-a/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [“It might look discouraging , but at every relapse, you learn something new.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/it-might-look-discouraging-but-at-every-relapse-you-learn-something/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [“I respect you as a person too much to respect your ridiculous beliefs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/i-respect-you-as-a-person-too-much-to-respect-your-ridiculous-beliefs/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [I got my dad a great father's Day present. He called to say: 'Ach. Zis present is so good I now think it vas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/i-got-my-dad-a-great-father-s-day-present-he-called-to-say-ach-zis/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [I'm so patriotic, I think every British kid should have a chance to grow up to be our head of state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/i-m-so-patriotic-i-think-every-british-kid-should-have-a-chance-to/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [“To the prohibitionists, Hannah is a failure, because she continued using drugs. To the Portland, she was a success, because she knew she was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/to-the-prohibitionists-hannah-is-a-failure-because-she-continued/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [The climate-change deniers are rapidly ending up with as much intellectual credibility as creationists and Flat Earthers. ...they are nudging close to having the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/the-climate-change-deniers-are-rapidly-ending-up-with-as-much/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [Your working assumption, when you meet a homophobe, should be that they are gay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/your-working-assumption-when-you-meet-a-homophobe-should-be-that-they/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [“Saw a sunken army who had spent fourteen years waging war on alcohol only to see alcohol win, and win big.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/saw-a-sunken-army-who-had-spent-fourteen-years-waging-war-on-alcohol/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [The US head of state grew up on food stamps. The British head of state grew up on the postage stamps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/the-us-head-of-state-grew-up-on-food-stamps-the-british-head-of-state/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [There is an emerging scientific consensus that global warming is making hurricanes more intense and more destructive. It turns out that Katrina fits into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/there-is-an-emerging-scientific-consensus-that-global-warming-is/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [So the opposite of addiction is not sobriety. It is human connection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/so-the-opposite-of-addiction-is-not-sobriety-it-is-human-connection/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [You will get something wrong today, and tomorrow, and every day of your life. So will I, and everybody you know. You don’t have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/you-will-get-something-wrong-today-and-tomorrow-and-every-day-of-your/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [The bombs held in current nuclear arsenals are seventy times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Nagasaki. If we don't begin opposing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/the-bombs-held-in-current-nuclear-arsenals-are-seventy-times-more/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) > [“So Bruce came to believe, as he put it, that “today’s flood of addiction27 is occurring because our hyperindividualistic, frantic, crisis-ridden society makes most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-hari/so-bruce-came-to-believe-as-he-put-it-that-today-s-flood-of/) [Johann Hari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) [Explore all 30 Johann Hari quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-hari/) ## More Illegal drugs quotes > [“The W. M. Keck Observatory is the only employer that has surprised me during my employment with urine tests for illegal drugs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-w-m-keck-observatory-is-the-only-employer-that-has-surprised-me/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [A Prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/a-prohibition-law-strikes-a-blow-at-the-very-principles-upon-which/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Every addiction arises from an unconscious refusal to face and move through your own pain. Every addiction starts with pain and ends with pain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/every-addiction-arises-from-an-unconscious-refusal-to-face-and-move/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [There are 100,000 total marijuana smokers in the US, and most are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz and swing, result…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-j-anslinger/there-are-100-000-total-marijuana-smokers-in-the-us-and-most-are/) [Harry J. Anslinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-j-anslinger/) > [“According to the CDC, cigarettes kill over 435,000 people a year in the United States. Most of us in Danbury were locked away for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piper-kerman/according-to-the-cdc-cigarettes-kill-over-435-000-people-a-year-in/) [Piper Kerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piper-kerman/) > [Annual drug deaths: tobacco: 395,000, alcohol: 125,000, 'legal' drugs: 38,000, illegal drug overdoses: 5,200, marijuana: 0. Considering government subsidies of tobacco, just what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/annual-drug-deaths-tobacco-395-000-alcohol-125-000-legal-drugs-38-000/) [Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/) > [Every addiction starts with pain and ends with pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/every-addiction-starts-with-pain-and-ends-with-pain/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Penalties against possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/penalties-against-possession-of-a-drug-should-not-be-more-damaging-to-2/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [“Notice how those who have medicated away their hardships with illegal drugs, alcohol, or sex can seem immature. They may look forty-five, but they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-t-welch/notice-how-those-who-have-medicated-away-their-hardships-with-illegal/) [Edward T. Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-t-welch/) > [I have always been very interested in the issue of drugs, because as much as illegal drugs are prosecuted, if you think of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pedro-reyes/i-have-always-been-very-interested-in-the-issue-of-drugs-because-as/) [Pedro Reyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pedro-reyes/) > [“The racial dimension of mass incarceration is its most striking feature. No other country in the world imprisons so many of its racial or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/the-racial-dimension-of-mass-incarceration-is-its-most-striking/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [Prescription drugs can be even worse than illegal drugs. The only difference is the legality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-jones/prescription-drugs-can-be-even-worse-than-illegal-drugs-the-only/) [Grace Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-jones/) > [“In truth, the U.S.-sponsored international “War on Drugs” is a war on poor people, most of them subsistence farmers caught in a dangerous no-win…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/in-truth-the-u-s-sponsored-international-war-on-drugs-is-a-war-on/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [Roland could not understand why anyone would want cocaine or any other illegal drug, for that matter, in a world where such a powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/roland-could-not-understand-why-anyone-would-want-cocaine-or-any/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [You shouldn't be allowed to profit from the illegal proceeds, right? So if you're going to sell narcotics and sell illegal drugs in America,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/you-shouldn-t-be-allowed-to-profit-from-the-illegal-proceeds-right-so/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) [Browse all 56 Illegal drugs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illegal-drugs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“But why, then, do these ideas persist? Why haven’t the scientists with the better and more accurate ideas eclipsed these old theories? Hart tells me bluntly: Almost all the funding for research into illegal drugs is provided by governments waging the drug war—and they only commission research that reinforces the ideas we already have about drugs. 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