#7: Paths Out of Addiction: Fantanyl, Meth, Marching Band, & Hope | Sam Quinones

100,000 Americans die of drug overdose a year. One solution, today's guest discovered, is rather dorky...

Sam Quinones spent 12 years reporting on America’s drug crisis and how heroin, fentanyl, meth have reshaped the country. In this episode, he unpacks how Mexican cartels replaced poppy fields with chemicals, lowered the price of meth by 90%, and unintentionally created a schizophrenia crisis. Since then, Sam has been on a mission to find the antidote to modern day addiction. And he found it in an unlikely source: the tuba. Yes, the musical instrument. Sam explains why marching band may very well be the best anti-drug program in America and how we can help our children avoid a life of addiction and suffering.

Even if you don't want to play the tuba—and you don't—the lessons from marching band can help anyone build a better life. This episode is about the value of hard work without fanfare, the power of community, and how to find hope in a broken world.

Sam is the author of Dreamland, The Least of Us, and his new book The Perfect Tuba: Forging Fulfillment from the Bass Horn, Band, and Hard Work.

Two Percent is hosted by Michael Easter. Today’s episode was produced by Joey Fischground, Robbie Hiser, Dana Brawer and Julia Nutter. From Kaleidoscope, our executive producers are Mangesh Hattikudur and Kate Osborn and Julia Nutter. From iHeart, our executive producers are Katrina Norvell and Nikki Ettore. Our Head of Video is Maria Paz Mendez Hodes. This episode was edited by Joey Fischground. Our theme music is by the Heater Manager.


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Chapters:
00:00:00 - Intro
00:00:29 - Who is Sam Quinones
00:03:37 - The shredding of community that fueled addiction
00:07:14 - How drugs became faster, stronger, cheaper
00:11:28 - The 2008 P2P shift and the rise of meth psychosis
00:15:13 - Why gambling, porn, weed and meth all changed at once
00:19:51 - Why Sam wrote a book about tubas
00:24:57 - Marching band as the opposite of addiction
00:30:42 - How to keep your kid away from drugs
00:31:17 - The Texas border town where band beat the cartels
00:36:18 - His next project: a Chalino Sanchez biography

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