Amphetamines

If you only watch the first five minutes of this video from Kurzgesagt, you might start to think that we should all be taking some form of amphetamine all the time. What could be better than taking a drug that helps us focus, be more productive, and deal with the mind-numbing drudgery and boredom of the modern world? Those qualities are exactly why so many people take some form of speed, both legally and illegally. Amphetamines have legitimate medical uses, like getting kids with ADHD through school. They have fueled armies in war. But there are enormous costs associated with such drugs. If we were all using them, we wouldn't be able to get along with each other, and they eventually lead to disability and death. Besides that, productivity shouldn't be the biggest goal in our lives, because society is about more than winners and losers. The video is 9:45; the rest is ads.