Sun. Mar. 19, 2023
Back in the 1980s, when crack cocaine became an epidemic in the United States, especially in black neighborhoods, mainly because it was cheap and so addictive, the government’s response was, “just say no!” Nancy Reagan was the chief spokesperson for this ad. Congress passed bills that caused the mass incarceration of black men, users, dealers, and suspects! People were dying, killed by the poison, and those who survived were so hooked that they committed whatever crimes necessary that would help them get that jolt, the next instantaneous and fleeting high. The Reagan administration blamed Mexico and the South American cartels for this plague-like curse that remained a problem, mostly in minority communities.
Three decades later, fentanyl is the new crack, and it is mostly white, whereas crack was mostly black, and I’m talking about the victims. The dealers are the pharmaceutical companies, doctors, pharmacies and the Mexican cartels and China. No mass incarcerations, no demonizing of its victims; after all they didn’t know how addictive it would become, it’s not their fault. But it was so obvious, the way the government treated the victims, and they are victims, of these 2 killers! Crack cocaine was an epidemic; fentanyl is a national emergency! Once again, Congress, and especially the Republicans, are blaming refugees, illegal immigration, the cartels, Mexico, and China for this latest Armageddon on the American populace. But the difference in the way in which they handled these 2 cases is very glaring. Some lives apparently are worth more than others! Even comedians make fun of that fact.
For once I wish that Congress, the President, the police, parents, the American people as a whole, would start accepting the blame for the rate at which people are dying, as a result of their carelessness. If there were no demands for these drugs, there would be no market, a very lucrative one at that. We don’t accept the fact that these drugs are pouring in because we let them in. Because parents and doctors and health officials sanction these drugs, all for profit, and no one cared until it was too late! Too late to stop it, because of corruption in the health industries, in the medical field, right down to the borders and ICE and neglect! The chickens are coming home to roost.
Addiction is a terrible thing, except if you’re addicted to keeping fit, in my opinion, and maybe we shouldn’t be assigning blame; no, we should blame all of us, for not paying attention. We don’t question our doctors when they prescribe drugs they’re paid to push on us. We don’t hold our politicians responsible for the decline in the social order; in fact, we keep reelecting the same irresponsible agents of destruction. We don’t pay enough attention to our kids; we give them such wide leeway that sometimes they can’t distinguish between right and wrong. And chaos ensues!
Just Say No!
Glen