The Native Iowan

Damn! Another year phlashes past in a blur.

It may well be me… Aging sharpens one’s time-awareness.

Ruminations…

Is China flooding the world market with fentanyl in retribution to the “opium wars”?

The Opium Wars (1839–1842 & 1856–1860)
The Opium Wars were two 19th-century conflicts between China (Qing Dynasty) and Western powers (primarily Britain, later joined by France and others). They were triggered by trade imbalances, opium smuggling, and clashes over sovereignty.

BackgroundTrade Imbalance:
China exported tea, silk, and porcelain to Britain but imported little in return → Britain paid in silver, draining its reserves.

Opium as Solution:
British merchants (via the East India Company) smuggled Indian-grown opium into China to reverse the trade deficit.

By the 1830s, millions of Chinese were addicted, and silver was flowing out of China.