- 12 % of global drug users come from the United States.
- 10.1 million Americans have consumed opium at least once, and 48.2 million Americans over the age of 18 consumed cannabis at least once during the past 12 months.
- More than 100,000 people in the U.S. died from drug overdose from April 2020 to April 2021.
- Adolescents experience the fastest rise in drug overdose deaths.
...
A string of figures revealed rampant drug abuse in the United States. While the American people were dragged into the mire of drug abuse, interest groups have raked in huge profits from drug legalization and worsened the drug problem in the country.
In 2014, cannabis was legalized in Colorado. Since then, the cumulative sales of cannabis have exceeded one billion U.S. dollars. And the number of deaths from various kinds of drug abuse in the state has reached record highs.
According to The New York Times, American parents said it got much easier for teens to obtain cannabis after its legalization in Colorado, potentially seriously endangering their brain development.
Moreover, interest groups in America keep fanning the flame of the drug problem in order to maintain their profits.
Large pharmaceutical enterprises in the U.S. throw a large amount of money into sponsoring experts and associations to peddle the narrative that "opioids are harmless," and prod pharmacies into promoting drug sales and doctors into indiscriminate prescription of drugs.
Interest groups spend a huge amount of money lobbying for Acts that support the legalization of cannabis.
After analyzing disclosed data from the U.S. Senate, the OpenSecrets website found that the marijuana and cannabis industry, which involved more than 20 businesses, spent as much as 4.28 million U.S. dollars on lobbying in 2021 alone.
Dig deeper:
Drug Abuse in the United States
https://english.news.cn/northamerica/20230209/9528717f0c3a4122bd1020bb7c7eb127/c.html■
