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Beyond the War on Drugs
Overcoming a Failed Public Policy
Wisotsky, Steven Publisher: Prometheus Books, New York, USA
Year Published: 1990
Pages: 271pp Price: $15.95 ISBN: 0-87975-587-3
Library of Congress Number: HV5825.W548 Dewey: 363.4'5
Resource Type: Book
Beyond the War on Drugs argues persuasively for a fundamental reassessment of drug control policy. The thrust of the book is simply that the 'war on drugs' cannot be won by trying to dry up the source, since there will always be demand to create supply.
Abstract: Written by a professor of legal studies, Beyond the War on Drugs argues persuasively for a fundamental reassessment of drug control policy. The thrust of the book is simply that the 'war on drugs' cannot be won by trying to dry up the source, since there will always be demand to create supply.
Wisotsky argues that the `war on drugs' has been a tragic waste and our energies should be concentrated on making the individual drug user take responsibility for his or her addiction. Too much time, money, and resources are being used in a futile attempt to stop the flow of drugs; not enough attention is being paid to the effects of those drugs.
This is a lengthy book, its facts derived from a prodigious bibliography of books, articles, and government documents. The tone is serious, although occasionally lightened by an example of an absurd drug control procedure carried out in the States. The Florida Highway Patrol, for instance, used a drug courier profile that cautioned troopers to be suspicious of rental cars, "scrupulous obedience to traffic laws," and drivers wearing "lots of gold," or who do not "fit vehicle," and "ethnic groups associated with the drug trade."
Topics covered in Beyond the War on Drugs include: the rise, economic impact, and structure of the cocaine industry; the current battle plan and why it is wrong; the attempts of police and other law enforcement agencies to control drug flow; and the implications of legalization and what the future holds.
Table of Contents
Figures and Tables
Foreward by Thomas Szasz
Preface to the 1990 Edition
Preface
Acknowledgements
Acronyms
PART ONE: LOSING THE WAR ON DRUGS
Introduction: Declaring War on Drugs (Again)
1. The Black Market in Cocaine
The Rise and Fall and Rise of Cocaine in the United States
Measuring the Black Market in Cocaine
The "Effects" of Cocaine
2. The Economics of the Black Market in Cocaine
3. The Structure of the Black Market in Cocaine
Production in Latin America
Importation and Distribution
Money Landering
4. International Law Enforcement: The Futile Quest for Control of Coca and Cocaine at the Source
5. The Federal Drug Police: The U.S. Law Enforcement System
Interdicting Cocaine
Busting the Trafficker
Financial Controls
6. Escalating the War on Drugs: No Light at the End of the Tunnel
The Interdiction Network: From Miami Task Force to National
Norcotics Border Interdiction System
The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program
7. The Pathology of the War on Drugs: The Assault on Justice and Civil Liberties
The Assault on Justice
The Growth of Big Brotherism
8. The Pathology of the War on Drugs: Corruption and Violence in the Black Market
Tax Evasion
Corrosion of the Work Ethic
Corruption of Public Officials
Violence
Disrespect for the Law
9. The International Pathology of the War on Drugs: Corruption, Instability, and Narco-Terrorism
Corruption and Narco-Destabilization
Narco-Terrorism
PART TWO: BREAKING THE IMPASSE IN THE WAR ON DRUGS
10. Sources of the Impasse
11. Beyond the War on Drugs: Creating a New Context
12. Drugs in the Future
Notes
Appendix 1. The War on Drugs (Cocaine) - An Overview
Appendix 2. Chronology of Milestones in the War on Drugs
Afterword: An Agenda for Study and Action
Bibliography
Index
Topics
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