Precursors of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and other deadly, yet cheap, drugs are manufactured in places like China and shipped to Mexican drug cartels, who are happy to mix them up and move them across the U.S. border. U.S. drug dealers are buying pill presses and filling them with whatever is cheapest, then stamping them to look prescriptions drugs like Oxycontin, Xanax, Adderal. Users, some addicts, and some just looking for a party, are popping these pills and in some cases dying.

It’s a mess. I wouldn’t call it a “war”. The fundamental problem is the U.S. demand for these substances, and the secondary problem is the criminalization of these substances which creates plenty of business opportunities for criminals. The less organized ones are getting caught by law enforcement, the organized ones are making a fortune, and the customers are dying, especially the younger, less well informed, and lower income ones. The makeup of the customers/victims may look a little different than some drug waves of the past, but the story has not really changed.