Fentanyl, Demand, and the Hard Truth America Avoids

A War That Began on the Streets

I’ve contemplated writing about the War on Drugs we’ve been fighting with great effort and by necessity, since the late 1970s. At that time, Miami exploded with drug-trafficking due to its proximity to Latin America, where the majority of the drug trade originated, and the added chaos of the 1980 Mariel Boatlift from Cuba, with the resulting influx of thousands of criminals looking to make their mark. If you’ve ever seen the over-the-top cult-classic movie Scarface, the quintessential Hollywood dramatization of the narcotics world of that time, you will recall it contained many realistic depictions, as there is always truth in fiction. The cash-flow, the killings, and the amount of cocaine circulating here were all true! My agency, Metro-Dade Police, along with the City of Miami Police, had to grow exponentially in attempts to keep pace, but it was a losing battle. It was the proverbial finger-in-the-dyke scenario, and we were not just leaking, we were flooding with drugs and crime, and we were drowning.

Have We Actually Made Progress?

Now, in the wake of the border closing (good), the designation of the Venezuelan government as a Narco-Terrorist trafficking organization (about time and there are others), the targeting of the drug-boats attempting to breach our shores (good), and the seizures of the oil tankers (all good), have we made progress as compared to the 1980s? I have to say yes. The multi-pronged attack is effective. Back then, we didn’t have the political and national will to do it. OH, for sure, we received billions to fight the war; equipment was purchased, personnel hired, and we made a ton of overtime, but we were just spinning our wheels. Times have changed, and now we have many more drug traffickers involved, not just from Central and South America. China, Iran, Africa, and Asia have joined the drug trade, and of course, we can’t forget our old pal the Soviet Union, always trying to undermine the US.

A New & Deadly Player

The introduction of fentanyl-laced drugs has changed the game and caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans. The exact numbers are whatever the news agencies care to report based on government data and aren’t really relevant. Only that they are occurring in numbers never before seen, and that’s what has gotten the attention of the government, the medical field, and the American public. As we did in 1990, when we conducted military operations and arrested Panamanian strongman Manuel Noriega, we just pulled off a textbook mission by capturing and arresting Venezuelan illegitimate-president and dictator, Nicolas Maduro. An indicted Narco-Trafficker for many years and an ally to the aforementioned enemies of our country. Bravo all around! This will be the first of many dominoes to fall, but what is the real cause of the drug trade?

The Real Reason

I am a retired law enforcement officer and don’t believe we should legalize drugs, but I want to point out the elephant in the room that no one, not the government, not the news agencies, and not the American people in general are talking about, which is the insatiable desire by our own citizens to consume drugs, all drugs. Marijuana, Cocaine, Heroin, Methamphetamine, Hallucinogens, Inhalants, and the abuse of prescription drugs. These are just the headliners, and all are extremely dangerous, especially now that many are laced with fentanyl. And let’s not leave out the gangs and human trafficking that come along with the cartels, as this, too, is due to Americans in the market for drugs. Remember Epstein, just to name one of thousands. Reprehensible!

Fentanyl Isn’t an Overdose — It’s Poisoning

So let me say this about fentanyl: the media reports the deaths of Americans as “Fentanyl-Overdoses,” and this is completely wrong. Fentanyl is a painkiller used by the medical profession, not a recreational drug by itself. It is “Fentanyl-Poisoning” plain and simple, and the only way to avoid getting poisoned is not to use the drugs. Cause & Effect.

Supply, Demand, and Shared Blame

So I will submit that we cannot completely lay the blame for the flow of narcotics into the US solely on the Narco-Terrorists. We also have to point a very stern finger at ourselves, the American public, for our demand for the drugs in the first place. Yes, no one wants to hear that, and some who read this will disagree with me, and they would be wrong. This boils down to Supply-Economics. Any product that the public needs and/or demands will create a market, and the market will create suppliers—“Supply and Demand.” In this case, the suppliers are the traffickers, and the customer base demanding the drugs is us! It’s that simple.

Addiction, Responsibility, and Hard Truths

If we didn’t demand the drugs to the extent that we have been for the last 50 plus years, there wouldn’t be such a lucrative market for it. There wouldn’t be the “lure of easy money” as Rick Frey famously penned in his Miami Vice song Smuggler’s Blues. There wouldn’t be the hundreds of thousands of killings during this same time period, and there wouldn’t be the millions of needless and senseless deaths caused by the drugs themselves. Some will say that it’s an “addiction issue.” No, it’s not, it’s also a recreational drug demand and usage issue, and if you didn’t use it in the first place, you wouldn’t get hooked on it in the second.

Three Simple Words

Back in 1984, Nancy Reagan was attending a grade school event, and when asked by a little girl what she should do when offered drugs, the First Lady said, “Just Say No!” Remember that? Mrs. Reagan was lambasted and called out-of-touch for her comment, but why? This, to me, is so simple. This is the very foundation of the D.A.R.E. program (Drug Abuse Resistance & Education). Educating our youth to the dangers of drug use; simply—Say no!

Alcohol, Excuses, and False Equivalencies

But some will push back and say that alcohol is abused more than drugs, and they would be right. I’m not disputing that. People ruin their lives by abusing alcohol, of course. But there hasn’t been killing on this scale in the alcohol trade since Prohibition, and we are fighting Narco-Terrorism, the cartels, and our global adversaries, not Bootlegging-Terrorism, are we?

A Problem Embedded Everywhere

Folks, if we are going to complain and say we should do more to combat the influx of drugs into our country, then we really have to take a hard look at our own culpability and responsibility in this serious issue. This has taken root in every segment of our society—our youth, schools, boardrooms, the medical field, newsrooms, even the military, law enforcement, fire, sports, Hollywood, and the music industry.

The Uncomfortable Conclusion

Ultimately, we have the power to end this just like we do almost everything else. Don’t want drugs, human trafficking, prostitution, arms-dealing, fraud, terrorists infiltrating our borders, and senseless poisoning deaths? Then maybe Nancy Reagan was right: “Just Say No!” It can’t be simpler than that…