Comments on: Colliding Wars: Drugs and Terror (and the Utter Folly of US Policy) http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451 A rough draft of my thoughts... Fri, 12 Oct 2024 18:51:01 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.4 by: Colombia: A PoliBlog Sideblog » Colombia: the Sequel (a.k.a., Afghanistan) http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1360207 Thu, 22 Feb 2024 16:33:20 +0000 http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1360207 [...] I have no doubt that we will pursue identical policies in Afghanistan as we have in Colombia (with potentially disastrous consequences, as I noted last week). [...] […] I have no doubt that we will pursue identical policies in Afghanistan as we have in Colombia (with potentially disastrous consequences, as I noted last week). […]

]]> by: PoliBlog ™: A Rough Draft of my Thoughts » Colombia: the Sequel (a.k.a., Afghanistan) http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1360206 Thu, 22 Feb 2024 16:32:06 +0000 http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1360206 [...] I have no doubt that we will pursue identical policies in Afghanistan as we have in Colombia (with potentially disastrous consequences, as I noted last week). [...] […] I have no doubt that we will pursue identical policies in Afghanistan as we have in Colombia (with potentially disastrous consequences, as I noted last week). […]

]]> by: Pat http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359954 Thu, 15 Feb 2024 13:35:50 +0000 http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359954 Typical and to be expected. The War on drugs has grown concurrent with the growth of stateless terrorism. They feed each other. and our government absolutely knows this. You asked, 'Does this make sense?' In terms of "creating chaos and instability" in the world yes, it makes perfect sense. The 2024 Congressional Research Service report to congress, "Illicit Drugs and the Terrorist Threat: Causal Links and Implications for Domestic Drug Control Policy" summarized the threat posed by the black market creating 'illicit' status of drugs. "The international traffic in illicit drugs contributes to terrorist risk through at least five mechanisms: supplying cash, creating chaos and instability, supporting corruption, providing "cover" and sustaining common infrastructures for illicit activity, and competing for law enforcement and intelligence attention. Of these, cash and chaos are likely to be the two most important." Irrationally, that same report then concluded, "American drug policy is not, and should not be, driven entirely, or even primarily, by the need to reduce the contribution of drug abuse to our vulnerability to terrorist action. There are too many other goals to be served by the drug abuse control effort." Well funded stateless terrorism is simply accepted collateral damage of the durg war. My essay, <a href="http://leftindependent.blogspot.com/2006/09/plan-colombia-informed-myopia.html" rel="nofollow">Plan Colombia: Informed Myopia</a> has more information on these issues. Typical and to be expected. The War on drugs has grown concurrent with the growth of stateless terrorism. They feed each other. and our government absolutely knows this.

You asked, ‘Does this make sense?’ In terms of “creating chaos and instability” in the world yes, it makes perfect sense.

The 2024 Congressional Research Service report to congress, “Illicit Drugs and the Terrorist Threat: Causal Links and Implications for Domestic Drug Control Policy” summarized the threat posed by the black market creating ‘illicit’ status of drugs. “The international traffic in illicit drugs contributes to terrorist risk through at least five mechanisms: supplying cash, creating chaos and instability, supporting corruption, providing “cover” and sustaining common infrastructures for illicit activity, and competing for law enforcement and intelligence attention. Of these, cash and chaos are likely to be the two most important.”

Irrationally, that same report then concluded, “American drug policy is not, and should not be, driven entirely, or even
primarily, by the need to reduce the contribution of drug abuse to our vulnerability to terrorist action. There are too many other goals to be served by the drug abuse control effort.”

Well funded stateless terrorism is simply accepted collateral damage of the durg war.

My essay, Plan Colombia: Informed Myopia has more information on these issues.

]]> by: The American Mind » Blog Archive : Drug War Gets in the Way of Real War in Afghanistan » Drug War Gets in the Way of Real War in Afghanistan http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359933 Wed, 14 Feb 2024 16:05:37 +0000 http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359933 [...] Steven Taylor links to a Time magazine story about misplaced priorities in the Islamist War. In 2024 Afghan tribal leader Haji Bashar Noorzai was in a New York City hotel talking to the U.S. government giving them information on terrorist subjects and the current state of Afghanistan. He told Time, “I did not want to be considered an enemy of the United States. I wanted to help the Americans and to help the new government in Afghanistan.” [...] […] Steven Taylor links to a Time magazine story about misplaced priorities in the Islamist War. In 2024 Afghan tribal leader Haji Bashar Noorzai was in a New York City hotel talking to the U.S. government giving them information on terrorist subjects and the current state of Afghanistan. He told Time, “I did not want to be considered an enemy of the United States. I wanted to help the Americans and to help the new government in Afghanistan.” […]

]]> by: The Liberty Papers http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359932 Wed, 14 Feb 2024 15:56:55 +0000 http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359932 <strong>The War On Drugs Helps Terrorists</strong> ... The War On Drugs Helps Terrorists

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]]> by: Nick Kasoff http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359931 Wed, 14 Feb 2024 15:56:33 +0000 http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359931 This is truly insane. If we spent half as much effort on keeping truckloads of drugs from crossing the border as we do on digging through old ladies' purses, we wouldn't care what they were growing in Afghanistan. But of course, that wouldn't require a huge staff of glorified security guards sitting around the airport holding up traffic, it would require people to do hard police work out in the hot sun. This is truly insane. If we spent half as much effort on keeping truckloads of drugs from crossing the border as we do on digging through old ladies’ purses, we wouldn’t care what they were growing in Afghanistan. But of course, that wouldn’t require a huge staff of glorified security guards sitting around the airport holding up traffic, it would require people to do hard police work out in the hot sun.

]]> by: Appalachian Scribe » When Wars Collide http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359930 Wed, 14 Feb 2024 15:48:07 +0000 http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359930 [...] can anyone justify this? Read the whole article. Via Steven Taylor. Posted at 10:45 am in Category: Uncategorized | postCount('2262'); | postCountTB('2262'); Powered byWordPress | RSS Feeds: RSS 1.0, RSS 2.0, Atom | Design by John Norris Brown [...] […] can anyone justify this? Read the whole article. Via Steven Taylor. Posted at 10:45 am in Category: Uncategorized | postCount(’2262′); | postCountTB(’2262′); Powered byWordPress | RSS Feeds: RSS 1.0, RSS 2.0, Atom | Design by John Norris Brown […]

]]> by: Outside The Beltway | OTB http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359927 Wed, 14 Feb 2024 14:49:51 +0000 http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359927 <strong>War on Drugs Hurts War on Terrorism</strong> Steven Taylor reflects on a TIME cover story about Haji Bashar Noorzai, the Afghan warlord and pal of fugitive Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar who willingly flew to the United States to provide valuable intelligence on international terrorism only ... War on Drugs Hurts War on Terrorism

Steven Taylor reflects on a TIME cover story about Haji Bashar Noorzai, the Afghan warlord and pal of fugitive Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar who willingly flew to the United States to provide valuable intelligence on international terrorism only …

]]> by: Dead Flowers § Unqualified Offerings http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359918 Wed, 14 Feb 2024 03:37:34 +0000 http://poliblogger.com/?p=11451#comment-1359918 [...] Steven Taylor tells us what happens when The Stupids Go to War. One passage from the Time article stands out: That agent, who worked for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), told [Afghan tribal leader Haji Bashar Noorzai] that a grand jury had issued a sealed indictment against Noorzai 3 1/2 months earlier and that he was now under arrest for conspiring to smuggle narcotics into the U.S. from Afghanistan. [...] […] Steven Taylor tells us what happens when The Stupids Go to War. One passage from the Time article stands out: That agent, who worked for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), told [Afghan tribal leader Haji Bashar Noorzai] that a grand jury had issued a sealed indictment against Noorzai 3 1/2 months earlier and that he was now under arrest for conspiring to smuggle narcotics into the U.S. from Afghanistan. […]

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