I agree completely that the opioid epidemic was inevitable either. I'm from Dublin (Ireland) where heroin just 'appeared' in the 1980s. But it didn't just appea

I agree completely that the opioid epidemic was inevitable either. I'm from Dublin (Ireland) where heroin just 'appeared' in the 1980s. But it didn't just appear, a few criminal families introduced it, got richer selling it in deprived parts of Dublin, then with the increased wealth, spread the drug around the larger cities in the country. I live in Stockholm and there is pretty much no heroin here. Don't let people say "there is", there's not. Compared to any large european city, you never see strung out junkies anywhere. I would love to know how much of the crime difference between a city like Dublin and Stockholm can be explained by heroin (just heroin - we don't have much crack or breaking-bad stuff). I expect it's the majority of crime and definitely the majority of homelessness. Heroin is like a viral infection. If it appears in a city, you have to quarantine off that area, clear the infection or it will spread and then it's just chronic management after that.