How can addiction be avoided?

“Addiction can become a source of bonding between parents and their children." That's a quote, a startling quote if ever I saw one, from a New York Times article on the high rate of addiction in a New Mexico county, and some of the methods used to deal with the high rate of overdoses. The story is grimly fascinating.

“Addiction can become a source of bonding between parents and their children.”

How fucked up is that? How fucked up is that thinking? What kind of parent looks at their own flesh and blood and thinks, "Maybe if we just shot up together, we'd be closer"?

There's a part of me that finds it very difficult to lay part of the blame on historical institutional injustices visited upon a group of people, or poverty, or anything else. They're all just excuses.

But whatever the reason, we're still talking about human beings here. How do we as a culture make people strong enough to avoid addiction?

The article focuses on the high rate of heroin addiction in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico. Heroin robs people of their souls, and even if the habit is kicked, the soul doesn't come back whole. No one should suffer that fate. How can we stop people from going down this road to nowhere?

I believe in the power of thought, that how one views life, positively or negatively, is a con job. We con ourselves into being happy and hopefully strong, or into being negative and cynical. How can we give people who may be predisposed toward having an addictive personality the tools to con themselves into being positive minded with personal strength and self discipline to avoid the despair of drugs and alcohol addiction?

How do we stop the addictions? If there's anybody out there, give me some answers, or at least let me know you're thinking...