This morning, I picked a page at random (as I live and breath, at random) from this book:

Thinking in Systems: A Primer by Donella Meadows

Here it is, from the preview available at Chelsea Green; page 135:

The Trap: Shifting the Burden to the Intervenor

"Shifting the burden, dependence, and addiction arise when a solution to a systemic problem reduces (or disguises) the symptoms, but does nothing to solve the underlying problem. Whether it is a substance that dulls one's perception or a policy that hides the underlying trouble, the drug of choice interferes with the actions that could solve the real problem.

"If the intervention designed to correct the problem causes the self-maintaining capacity of the original system to atrophy or erode, then a destructive reinforcing feedback loop is set in motion. The system deteriorates; more and more of the solution is required. They system will become more and more dependent on the intervention and less and less able to maintain its own desired state.

The Way Out

"Again, the best way out of this trap is to avoid getting in. Beware of symptom-relieving or signal-denying policies or practices that don't really address the problem. Take the focus off short-term relief and put it on long-term restructuring."

A few thoughts: animals will learn to avoid the traps set by hunters, I've heard; and coyotes, I've heard, will crap on a hunter's trap after turning it over. There's a lesson here, probably about traps. Duh.

Breaking the cycle of this addiction is going to hurt; and it is precisely that threat of pain that is the Sword of Damocles over your head, gentle reader.

Again, I'll ask: Is there anyone out there up for a New Economy?