“The Opioid Diaries” by The Offspring

Perhaps the simplest way to begin describing “The Opioid Diaries” is as it being premised on a conspiracy theory. And that is Big Pharma intentionally getting people hooked on opioids. This seems to be something they’ve more or less admitted to themselves, though not the intentional part. 

But the truth of the matter is simply this. Yes, America does concurrently have a deadly-serious problem with opioids. And users are actually getting a lot of these drugs from legitimate prescriptions.

So enter The Offspring. They start off by explaining that many of the “kids” who are labeled as “junkies” are being judged unfairly. That’s because it’s “Big Pharma [that] hooked them in the first place”. So the implication is that if anybody gets chastised for this situation then it should be the entities who provided the drugs, not the people who became dependent on them.

Sean

But that noted, “Sean”, i.e. the personification of the aforementioned “kids”, is being advised to dedicate his all to kicking the habit. He still has hope. And being addicted to this substance is a the-sooner-you-quit-the-better type of scenario. 

For instance, if the opioids stop coming in, what will he turn to in their stead? Also it’s not like prolonging the inevitability of quitting will positively contribute to the situation. So the vocalist feels compelled to encourage him to quit while the time is ripe.

What “The Opioid Diaries” is all about

So more than anything, “The Opioid Diaries” is a song of sympathy for addicts. The Offspring perceive the current generation of opioid abusers as being victims to the greed of the mega-entities which make these substances available, including, to some degree, the United States of America itself. 

So he’s doing the best he can with what he has available, the power of music, to try to bring some awareness and help to the situation.

Summary

The Offspring uses this tune to address the opioid epidemic. And in doing so, they blame the situation on Big Pharma instead of the usual targets – those that become addicts.