Date: Thu Apr 04, 1996 11:12 pm CST From: Moderator of conference justice.polabuse EMS: INTERNET / MCI ID: 376-5414 MBX: bwitanek@igc.apc.org TO: * David Beiter / MCI ID: 635-1762 Subject: Chomsky - War on Drugs From: Bob Witanek /* Written 4:34 PM Apr 4, 1996 by bwitanek in igc:njspeakout */ /* ---------- "Chomsky - War on Drugs" ---------- */ Posted: Ronnie Dadone Subject: War on Drugs, Noam Chomsky Subject: Uncle Sam: The war on (certain) drugs http://www.worldmedia.com/archive/sam/sam-3-2.html > What Uncle Sam Really Wants Copyright ? 1993 by Noam Chomsky > Previous section | Next section | Contents | Archive | New World > Media > --------------------- > > The war on (certain) drugs > > One substitute for the disappearing Evil Empire has been the threat > of drug traffickers from Latin America. In early September 1989, a > major government-media blitz was launched by the President. That > month the AP wires carried more stories about drugs than about Latin > America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa combined. If you looked at > television, every news program had a big section on how drugs were > destroying our society, becoming the greatest threat to our > existence, etc. > > The effect on public opinion was immediate. When Bush won the 1988 > election, people said the budget deficit was the biggest problem > facing the country. Only about 3% named drugs. After the media > blitz, concern over the budget was way down and drugs had soared to > about 40% or 45%, which is highly unusual for an open question > (where no specific answers are suggested). > > Now, when some client state complains that the US government isn't > sending it enough money, they no longer say, "we need it to stop the > Russians" -- rather, "we need it to stop drug trafficking." Like the > Soviet threat, this enemy provides a good excuse for a US military > presence where there's rebel activity or other unrest. > > So internationally, "the war on drugs" provides a cover for > intervention. Domestically, it has little to do with drugs but a lot > to do with distracting the population, increasing repression in the > inner cities, and building support for the attack on civil > liberties. > > That's not to say that "substance abuse" isn't a serious problem. At > the time the drug war was launched, deaths from tobacco were > estimated at about 300,000 a year, with perhaps another 100,000 from > alcohol. But these aren't the drugs the Bush administration > targeted. It went after illegal drugs, which had caused many fewer > deaths -- over 3500 a year -- according to official figures. One > reason for going after these drugs was that their use had been > declining for some years, so the Bush administration could safely > predict that its drug war would "succeed" in lowering drug use. > > The Administration also targeted marijuana, which hadn't caused any > known deaths among some 60 million users. In fact, that crackdown > has exacerbated the drug problem -- many marijuana users have turned > from this relatively harmless drug to more dangerous drugs like > cocaine, which are easier to conceal. > > Just as the drug war was launched with great fanfare in September > 1989, the US Trade Representative (USTR) panel held a hearing in > Washington to consider a tobacco industry request that the US impose > sanctions on Thailand in retaliation for its efforts to restrict US > tobacco imports and advertising. Such US government actions had > already rammed this lethal addictive narcotic down the throats of > consumers in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, with human costs of the > kind already indicated > > The US Surgeon General, Everett Koop, testified at the USTR panel > that "when we are pleading with foreign governments to stop the flow > of cocaine, it is the height of hypocrisy for the United States to > export tobacco." He added, "years from now, our nation will look > back on this application of free trade policy and find it > scandalous." > > Thai witnesses also protested, predicting that the consequence of US > sanctions would be to reverse a decline in smoking achieved by their > government's campaign against tobacco use. Responding to the US > tobacco companies' claim that their product is the best in the > world, a Thai witness said: "Certainly in the Golden Triangle we > have some of the best products, but we never ask the principle of > free trade to govern such products. In fact we suppressed [them]." > Critics recalled the Opium War 150 years earlier, when the British > government compelled China to open its doors to opium from British > India, sanctimoniously pleading the virtues of free trade as they > forcefully imposed large-scale drug addiction on China. > > Here we have the biggest drug story of the day. Imagine the > screaming headlines: "US government the world's leading drug > peddler." It would surely sell papers. But the story passed > virtually unreported, and with not a hint of the obvious > conclusions. > > Another aspect of the drug problem, which also received little > attention, is the leading role of the US government in stimulating > drug trafficking since World War II. This happened in part when the > US began its postwar task of undermining the anti-fascist resistance > and the labor movement became an important target. > > In France, the threat of the political power and influence of the > labor movement was enhanced by its steps to impede the flow of arms > to French forces seeking to reconquer their former colony of Vietnam > with US aid. So the CIA undertook to weaken and split the French > labor movement -- with the aid of top American labor leaders, who > were quite proud of their role. > > The task required strikebreakers and goons. There was an obvious > supplier: the Mafia. Of course, they didn't take on this work just > for the fun of it. They wanted a return for their efforts. And it > was given to them: they were authorized to reestablish the heroin > racket that had been suppressed by the fascist governments -- the > famous "French connection" that dominated the drug trade until the > 1960s. > > By then, the center of the drug trade had shifted to Indochina, > particularly Laos and Thailand. The shift was again a by-product of > a CIA operation -- the "secret war" fought in those countries during > the Vietnam War by a CIA mercenary army. They also wanted a payoff > for their contributions. Later, as the CIA shifted its activities to > Pakistan and Afghanistan, the drug racket boomed there. > > The clandestine war against Nicaragua also provided a shot in the > arm to drug traffickers in the region, as illegal CIA arms flights > to the US mercenary forces offered an easy way to ship drugs back to > the US, sometimes through US Air Force bases, traffickers report. > > The close correlation between the drug racket and international > terrorism (sometimes called "counterinsurgency," "low intensity > conflict" or some other euphemism) is not surprising. Clandestine > operations need plenty of money, which should be undetectable. And > they need criminal operatives as well. The rest follows. > ---------------------  [ This URL: http://www.pdxnorml.org/CHOMSKY ]