by David Young

Created on: October 01, 2008

It has been said that the United States has never lost a war unless you count the debacle that was Viet Nam. During that period, another corresponding, surreptitious war was being waged in Southeast Asia, this one involving opium and illicit drug trafficking. The region known as the "Golden Triangle" encompassed Laos,
Thailand and Burma and was responsible for two thirds of the world's opium production. The heroin it rendered called "China White" was so pure our soldiers would smoke it laced in a joint or a cigarette. Indigenous drug lords controlled the poppy farms and distribution networks and the United States

government supplied them with weapons and supplies in an attempt to keep them from siding with the communists. We probably lost both wars just as were losing another one; today's version of "The War on Drugs." It is a battle we cannot win and as with Viet Nam, it is a fool's errand and we'd be better served just to declare we have found a better strategy and call it quits.

Before 1900, for all intents and purposes, it was legal to buy and possess most any drug in the United States. Snake oil salesmen hawked opium and cocaine spiked elixirs at carnivals and side shows exclaiming that their potions would cure anything from rheumatism to pattern baldness. The original formula for the soft drink Coca Cola contained just what the label implied; cocaine.

Alcoholism was then, as it is now a nagging problem which became more visible with the emerging industrial age, urban expansion and crowded cities. There was also a strong suffrage movement sweeping the country and politicians began to take note of and consider the power of an organized woman's voting block. The legions of drunken husbands became an issue for demagogues to exploit and legislation recommending prohibitions on alcohol and other intoxicants were debated on congressional floors. Soon after, the courts began to hear cases weighing the constitutionality of regulation. Female dominated temperance leagues became ever more significant, visible, and militant and elected officials began to listen.

In 1914 the United States Congress enacted the Harrison Anti-Narcotics act mandating federal regulation and oversight of all opiates, cannabis, cocaine and their derivatives. The legislation was encouraged, supported and bankrolled by a powerful liquor industry lobby and some of the arguments used to move the bill forward would seem laughable today. Testifying before the congressional body, Dr. Christopher Koch

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• Next Page >>