Chic - He sounds very much like my son, but mine doesn't drink or drug. He blames it all on depression (he sees a therapist, but with no improvement yet). Mine claims he fell through the cracks at school, never felt a part of anything - and yes, the economy is at fault, the record/book store he managed closed. An endless stream of excuses & reasons why.
I'm at a loss also Chic.
I did like the story of the recovering heroin addict - very uplifting - things can change. Our guys need to want to rise up out of their misery.