Real-life zombies in San Francisco (no AI). Terrifying
Fentanyl is turning thousands of people into street zombies in San Francisco. An analysis of the causes, the FDA's role, and whether Europe is prepared.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
San Francisco: fentanyl is turning thousands into street 'zombies'
A video circulating on social media shows dozens of people in a catatonic state, doubled over, motionless in the middle of the street. It is not an art performance or a hoax: it is the daily scene in the areas hardest hit by the fentanyl crisis in San Francisco. The bodies, in impossible positions, recall the living dead of the movies, but there are no special effects here. The question hanging in the air is how it came to this.
The fentanyl theater: from epidemic to agony
The debate agrees that fentanyl is the main culprit behind this transformation. A synthetic opioid up to 50 times more potent than heroin, capable of plunging users into a deep trance. Testimonies from those who know the substance from the inside are chilling: they describe an extremely pleasurable experience, so addictive that even anesthesiologists fall into its clutches. But the price is the total annihilation of will and consciousness. The viral video is not an isolated case: in Vancouver they talk of an avenue kilometers long full of 'zombies', and in Hollywood the Walk of Fame has also filled up with similar figures. The crisis has intensified over the last three years.
The FDA's pharmacy: who created the monster?
Opinions are divided between those who blame FDA policies and the pharmaceutical industry as the origin of the problem. The ease with which opioids were prescribed for minor pain created a generation of addicts who, once cut off from the legal supply, turned to cheaper and more potent alternatives on the illegal market. Others point to social decay and the lack of mental health care. But there is consensus that the crisis is not just a matter of voluntary 'junkies': many of these people led normal lives before falling into the fentanyl pit.
An American problem only?
Although the focus is on the U.S., several analyses remind us that the phenomenon is not exclusive. In Europe, anxiolytics and antidepressants generate their own army of silent zombies: people with blank stares wandering aimlessly under the effects of legal drugs. The difference is that fentanyl causes a more extreme and visible state. Meanwhile, the debate in Spain about 'when it will arrive here' mixes with the certainty that the health system already funds fentanyl patches for chronic pain, in a context of medical supervision that rarely leads to addiction.
While the public debate focuses on immigration and security, the bodies doubled over on the sidewalks of San Francisco (and Vancouver) are the most visible symptom of a silent crisis that is growing with no one seemingly willing to stop it. The question that remains: what does it take for a society to react before it is too late?
Related debates in the forum
A video circulating on social media shows dozens of people in a catatonic state, doubled over, motionless in the middle of the street. It is not an art performance or a hoax: it is the daily scene in the areas hardest hit by the fentanyl crisis in San Francisco. The bodies, in impossible positions, recall the living dead of the movies, but there are no special effects here. The question hanging in the air is how it came to this.
The fentanyl theater: from epidemic to agony
The debate agrees that fentanyl is the main culprit behind this transformation. A synthetic opioid up to 50 times more potent than heroin, capable of plunging users into a deep trance. Testimonies from those who know the substance from the inside are chilling: they describe an extremely pleasurable experience, so addictive that even anesthesiologists fall into its clutches. But the price is the total annihilation of will and consciousness. The viral video is not an isolated case: in Vancouver they talk of an avenue kilometers long full of 'zombies', and in Hollywood the Walk of Fame has also filled up with similar figures. The crisis has intensified over the last three years.
The FDA's pharmacy: who created the monster?
Opinions are divided between those who blame FDA policies and the pharmaceutical industry as the origin of the problem. The ease with which opioids were prescribed for minor pain created a generation of addicts who, once cut off from the legal supply, turned to cheaper and more potent alternatives on the illegal market. Others point to social decay and the lack of mental health care. But there is consensus that the crisis is not just a matter of voluntary 'junkies': many of these people led normal lives before falling into the fentanyl pit.
An American problem only?
Although the focus is on the U.S., several analyses remind us that the phenomenon is not exclusive. In Europe, anxiolytics and antidepressants generate their own army of silent zombies: people with blank stares wandering aimlessly under the effects of legal drugs. The difference is that fentanyl causes a more extreme and visible state. Meanwhile, the debate in Spain about 'when it will arrive here' mixes with the certainty that the health system already funds fentanyl patches for chronic pain, in a context of medical supervision that rarely leads to addiction.
While the public debate focuses on immigration and security, the bodies doubled over on the sidewalks of San Francisco (and Vancouver) are the most visible symptom of a silent crisis that is growing with no one seemingly willing to stop it. The question that remains: what does it take for a society to react before it is too late?
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (85 replies).
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