Comment Something from the other side... (Score 2) 300
Coming from the other side of the "fence" on this war on drugs issue maybe I could point out a couple of things. I was born and lived almost 23 years in Buenos Aires, Argentina (I'm 25 now). Also, since I was 19 and due to my job, I had the opportunity to visit several other latin american countries including Chile, Uruguay, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela and Mexico)...sometimes staying there for months at a time.
Having this background (no offense, but I'm sure most of you don't have it), maybe I can shed some light in a couple of issues :
1) There is NO such thing as a 'War on Drugs' in any of the above mentioned countries. The 'War on Drugs' is viewed mainly as a US domestic initiative and there's actually no help, or very little help at all, from the US to these countries to combat the problem locally, at its source. Sure, there are each countries policies on drugs, the occasional DEA presence and help packages...but all those do very little. The somewhat recent help package from the US to Colombia (in money and BlackHawk helicopters) did nothing actually.
The money ended up in the pockets of corrupt gov't officials, politicians and other 'power' individuals (yes, including some drug lords). The choppers are generally used to combat the guerrillas along the Colombian-Venezuelan borders. To presume the US gov't doesn't know about all this is ridiculous.
2) In fact, almost 50% of the drugs actually consumed all over latin america come from the US (and to a lesser extent, Europe). Drug exporting countries in latin america generally export the raw product. Processing is done in US based labs and then exported back south. Processing cocaine is not terribly difficult, chemically speaking... but trying to process it in the amounts that are demanded is. The amount that is actually demanded far surpasses what can be processed in few jungle labs here and there.
The 'War on Drugs' it's a joke. If you want an analogy, think if in WWII, Germany sent their soldiers to be trained on the US and then the US sent them back to fight against its own men. It doesn't make sense... but in a way, it's what's going on right now.
Peace...
Having this background (no offense, but I'm sure most of you don't have it), maybe I can shed some light in a couple of issues :
1) There is NO such thing as a 'War on Drugs' in any of the above mentioned countries. The 'War on Drugs' is viewed mainly as a US domestic initiative and there's actually no help, or very little help at all, from the US to these countries to combat the problem locally, at its source. Sure, there are each countries policies on drugs, the occasional DEA presence and help packages...but all those do very little. The somewhat recent help package from the US to Colombia (in money and BlackHawk helicopters) did nothing actually.
The money ended up in the pockets of corrupt gov't officials, politicians and other 'power' individuals (yes, including some drug lords). The choppers are generally used to combat the guerrillas along the Colombian-Venezuelan borders. To presume the US gov't doesn't know about all this is ridiculous.
2) In fact, almost 50% of the drugs actually consumed all over latin america come from the US (and to a lesser extent, Europe). Drug exporting countries in latin america generally export the raw product. Processing is done in US based labs and then exported back south. Processing cocaine is not terribly difficult, chemically speaking... but trying to process it in the amounts that are demanded is. The amount that is actually demanded far surpasses what can be processed in few jungle labs here and there.
The 'War on Drugs' it's a joke. If you want an analogy, think if in WWII, Germany sent their soldiers to be trained on the US and then the US sent them back to fight against its own men. It doesn't make sense... but in a way, it's what's going on right now.
Peace...
