Future Dimly Perceived

Don't bring me flowers any more (mic.com image)

Scientists have discovered a way to make morphine and heroin from glucose. While the steps are complicated---currently beyond the capabilities and equipment of non-chemists--the technology will undoubtedly develop to the point where it will be feasible to manufacture one's own.

The implications are profound for the War on Drugs, as users of home-made supply overwhelm law enforcement and already overcrowded prisons. After generations of "war" society will have to confront the fact that it won't be able to lock up everyone who abuses heroin, morphine, oxycodone, and other opiates.

The implications are equally profound for Third-World poppy growers and drug cartels whose economic models will be upended:

If strains of yeast that can turn out opiates are liberated from laboratories and pass into general circulation, brewing morphine-containing liquor for recreational use will be easy. It will be illegal, of course. And the authorities will, no doubt, try to crack down on it. But those who smuggle the stuff from places like Afghanistan may find themselves driven out of business by home-brew opium clubs based in garages.

Solar panels, 3D printing/manufacturing, home-brewed drugs, self-driving cars, and the World Wide Web are only a few examples of the individual empowerment that is disrupting giant institutions--and society--and leading toward a future dimly perceived.