Fentanyl

Ride the Wave!

By: Callan Crofton

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Fentanyl is an extremely popular opioid that was first synthesized in the 1960s and has been used widely for medical procedures since its patent expired in the 1980s. The use of opioids is part of modern medicine as they are used in pain management during surgeries and for post-operative care. Some blame the use of synthetic opioids on pharmaceutical companies and chemical manufacturers globally that produce the precursors for the drug as well as governments. Still, the reality is that people have been using opiates since 3,400 BC in the first recorded civilizations in Mesopotamia and probably for much longer. People use fentanyl because they like the euphoria that accompanies the high, which is fast-acting, lasts for about 3 hours, and is 50 to 100 times stronger than heroin, depending on the batch quality of the supply being used. As a free society, we are going to have to accept that by making something illegal we make it exclusive, create a profit motive to produce it and import it, and waste a bunch of money trying to stop it and police the behavior surrounding it. Addicts have the right, whether they are addicted to coffee, nicotine, cocaine, heroin, opioids, etc..., to use drugs, self-medicate, and live freely. By legalizing all drugs, the sale and production of the drugs can be controlled, and people should be free to use them in safe settings. Most narcotics that are made illegal around the world today are sold by drug dealers who have a profit motive to smuggle and sell drugs into markets in which they are controlled, and this leads to the adulteration of drugs, an organic chemistry race to create more addictive substances, and disrupts individuals rights to use them recreationally and be functioning addicts if they choose. If people are using fentanyl recreationally, because they are addicted to it, or want to commit suicide, they have a right to do so, and they have a right to use safe drugs in safe settings with dignity for whatever individual purpose they choose. Addiction does lead to negative mental and physical health outcomes, but making drugs illegal and stigmatizing them costs more, leads to overdoses, increases suicides, and in certain circumstances, results in murders. By legalizing fentanyl and all other narcotics, we give people a chance to become high-functioning addicts that contribute to society, we can allow people to live freely, and we can remove the profit motive from the illicit nature of dealing drugs and the negative outcomes that result from producing inferior narcotics in clandestine laboratories/kitchens. Fentanyl is a powerful opioid that should be used in modern medicine as it has positive outcomes in pain management for patients during and after surgeries in conjunction with being a popular drug for people who choose to use it recreationally for pain management. Allowing people to receive or purchase their desired drugs and feed their addictions legally is a better choice than criminalization both fiscally and socially, and we must accept that drug use is part of our communities and allow individuals to use narcotics of their choosing in settings freely and with dignity, similar to other addictive substances like coffee, alcohol, cigarettes, and so on.

"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it." - Thomas Paine