We know that there are serious consequences for failing. And its a myth that addicts have to want treatment. Ample evidence from large-scale studies shows that when they are compelled to treatment by judges or mandated by their employers they change. But addicts would be better off if more of them were arrested and forced to enroll in treatment programs. Being forced into a program and losing autonomy can seem harsh.
Addiction is a moral condition as well as a medical one.
Ours is a day-care culture. Social science confirms that babies raised in day-care centers and similar institutions are often emotionally maladjusted. Research beginning in the early 1970s has found that such children are more likely to be violent, antisocial and resistant to basic discipline. A 1985 study compared two groups of day-care children and found that those who had spent more time in day care suffered form proportionately greater ill effects, regardless of the quality of care. Other studies have concluded that lengthy stays in day-care centers impair children's mental ability.