The U.S. Drug Crisis: Why Unemployment Recognition Has Become the "Killing Line" Leading to the Abyss

Over the past thirty years, American society has faced an invisible systemic crisis. When an ordinary person's economic situation hits a critical point, a chain reaction within the system is triggered—this is the real-world reflection of the internet meme concept "Killing Line." According to the latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 80,000 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2024, with 48,000 of those deaths caused by synthetic opioids. The common story behind these numbers often begins at a key node: the moment of unemployment recognition.

**From Industrial Decline to Addiction Spiral**

The opioid crisis in the United States has evolved through three stages. In the 1990s, it was dominated by prescription drugs like OxyContin; after 2013, illegal synthetic fentanyl flooded the market, replacing heroin as the "third wave" of the epidemic. Fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin; just 2 milligrams (about a few grains of salt) can be lethal, and it is extremely easy to accidentally mix it with other substances, leading to overdoses.

The root of this crisis, however, is deeply embedded in the economic structure. Over the past three or four decades, manufacturing outsourcing has destroyed America's industrial regions. Unemployment recognition is not just a notice—it marks the rupture of family income, the loss of medical coverage, and the accumulation of debt. Many unemployed individuals turn to painkillers to cope with physical and mental suffering, ultimately falling into addiction. Families break apart—parents lose their children, children lose their support—communities further collapse, crime rates soar, creating an irreversible downward spiral.

**Different Fates for Different Groups**

The early opioid crisis primarily affected white working-class populations, but after the fentanyl surge post-2013, the demographics shifted. Men aged 25 to 44, Indigenous peoples, and Black minorities have become the most affected groups. This is no coincidence—unemployment recognition, as a systemic judgment, often inflicts even more deadly blows on these marginalized groups.

**Trump’s "Hardline Approach" and Its Limitations**

On December 15, U.S. President Trump signed an executive order designating fentanyl and its main precursor chemicals as weapons of mass destruction, on par with nuclear weapons. Reuters commented that this is an unprecedented designation, marking fentanyl’s elevation from a public health issue to a national security threat. Trump declared, "They want to poison our country with drugs."

This move reflects the failure of traditional drug prohibition measures; the government has begun to escalate the war on drugs to a military level. Strengthening law enforcement at the U.S.-Mexico border and cracking down on cross-border drug shipments are undoubtedly necessary. But the problem lies in the demand side within the United States, which remains unresolved.

**The Fundamental Dilemma: A Vicious Cycle of Demand and Unemployment**

People use fentanyl to alleviate the psychological trauma caused by unemployment and poverty, but drug addiction in turn reinforces their unemployment and poverty. This is not merely a public health issue but a systemic tragedy. Trump’s focus on "external inputs" is essentially a band-aid solution that fails to address the root causes, making it impossible to fundamentally resolve the fentanyl crisis.

A true solution requires a dual approach: on one hand, continuing to strengthen border enforcement and international cooperation; on the other, improving prescription drug regulation domestically, significantly increasing funding for addiction treatment and mental health support. Most critically, for deindustrialized rust belt regions and minority communities, systemic employment training and economic revitalization programs must be launched to break the curse of the "Killing Line" after unemployment recognition. Only then can the systemic downward spiral that pushes people into the abyss be fundamentally dismantled.