 I want to say something about the opioid death, the opioid crisis, the opioid epidemic, however you want to call it. Opioid deaths, deaths from opioids and deaths from drugs generally over those of drugs in 2021 was a record year. They flattened out 18 and 19 and then 20 and 21 were up significantly and 21 being up dramatically. So in spite of the fact, you know, a lot of people blamed the opioid epidemic on drug companies and in spite of the fact that we clamped down on drug companies, the opioid epidemic continues. A lot of this was blamed on particularly medical practices and particular doctors. Some doctors were sued and taken to courts and suffered a lot. In spite of that, the opioid epidemic continues, in spite of the fact that everybody now knows that morphine is addictive and be careful when you take these painkiller drugs that you could get addicted. In spite of that, we still have an opioid epidemic as fentanyl is the drug of choice these days but the whole idea was people were taking this drug because they start on painkillers and then they get addicted and then, well everybody knows now, it's been in the news forever now. They claim ignorance, not as a doctor, not as a patient, not as a consumer, everybody knows that these are the results and yet people are dying and people are dying at growing and growing numbers of people, right? So you know, the question is really why? Given that we've penalized the drug companies, given that we penalized doctors, we've changed procedures for distributing painkillers, why is this becoming a bigger and bigger and bigger issue? Why are people taking more and more and more fentanyl and then mixing it up now with methamphetamines and cocaine so that total drug deaths are up but fentanyl is mixed in with all these other drugs. So fentanyl is behind a lot of these deaths. What is actually going on here? Why is the opioid crisis continuing when we've already penalized the villains? And I know a lot of you don't want to hear this, I've got a lot of pushback on this but I'm going to say it anyway. Because I don't think the villains, I don't think the problem was ever the drug companies. I don't think the problem is drug companies. I don't think the problem for the most part was doctors. I don't think the problem for the most part, I mean there are problems in the medical system associated with the FDA and associated with drugs and different painkillers and what painkillers are being prescribed and all of that. But I don't think that's a basic problem. The fundamental problem is the users. The fundamental problem is that people want to escape reality. The fundamental problem is a moral problem. It's a lifestyle problem. It's a well-being problem. I think that's the fundamental problem that we have in America. It's a problem of a vast number of, and by the way the opioid epidemic strikes in rural areas primarily. It's 25 to 55 year olds primarily. It's white males, it's males primarily. It's people that have given up on life in some way or another, primarily. Again not to say that they're not some people who get addicted innocently. But to a large extent this is a phenomena of people using these drugs to escape reality. Using these drugs in order to escape the alienation they feel from the world around them. Using these drugs to escape poverty, to escape hardship, to escape the fact that the mixed economy and the mixed moral messages have basically made them feel alienated from their own life. They have no self-esteem. They have no confidence in their ability to get a job and to have a fulfilling job and to enjoy their job. They are basically detached from their ability to gain self-esteem. They're detached from their ability to have any self-respect and as a consequence they are depressed. This is related to the depression epidemic in this country where people don't find meaning in life. This is ultimately related to I think a lot of the violence that we see in our society people don't have meaning in their life. And it's partially related to education but not only related to education, it's related to the lack of values and the lack of ability of our world to provide people and to teach people appropriate values. It's the bankruptcy of modern philosophy. It's the bankruptcy of modern religion. It's the bankruptcy of the modern world. And we're seeing that in homelessness, we're seeing that in drug use, we're seeing that in depression, we're seeing that generally in the rise of mental illness, you're seeing that in school shootings, you're seeing that in just general shootings, you're seeing that in the, you know, tribalism that is inflicting the world in which we live. Altruism, we're seeing a consequence of altruism, we're seeing a consequence of mysticism, we're seeing a consequence of a mixed economy. The consequence of nothingness, subjectivism mixed in with everything else. The meaninglessness of life that is taught by modern philosophy. You know, what modern philosophy, anyway, from the postmodernists to really everybody. Who is out there advocating for values, for philosophically, for finding values, for living a good life, for taking your life seriously, for figuring it all out. The lockdowns, you know, made people, it's interesting, suicide, regular suicide, not overdose-related suicide, a regular suicide was weighed down during the lockdowns, partially because people don't commit suicide when they're locked down with their family. But depression was weighed up during lockdowns, the lockdowns helped, but I wouldn't be surprised that 2020 continued the trend. But I think it's a lack of meaning. It's the lack of meaning in people's lives. And the inability to find meaning in themselves, and the inability to use a reason to find meaning. And the fact that our leaders, our intellectual leaders are teaching us nothingness. It's why people like Jordan Peterson are so popular because they try to give people a sense of meaning. They try to give them a sense of hope. They try to give them structure to their life. And I think people are looking for that because they have none. Our culture doesn't give it to them. Educational system doesn't give it to them. Students don't give it to the kids anymore. This is a world completely driven by emotion, a world driven by subjectivism and where nobody teaches the importance of figuring out how to live and how to live well. So just wanted to, I mean, I really do think that we have, you know, and no, by the way, this is all linked of course to, in a deep sense, in a deeper sense, the personal responsibility, the responsibility to live your life well, the personal responsibility to make your life the best life that it can be. That attitude, that perspective, that way of thinking about the world, whoops, I think that's wrong, just doesn't exist out there. We have, because of the welfare state and because of, you know, our expectations and because of populist rhetoric, we have promised people the moon that the state will provide, that the world provide and people are going, where's my job? Where's my higher standard of living? Where's my higher quality of life? You promised me. Thank you for listening or watching the Iran book show. If you'd like to support the show, we make it as easy as possible for you to trade with me. You get value from listening. You get value from watching. Show your appreciation. 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