-
Fentanyl caused the worst drug epidemic in history, claiming the lives of roughly half a million Americans between 2015 and 2025 alone. Yet before it erupted, ten years earlier, the same fentanyl disaster briefly occurred on a smaller scale, caused by one small Mexican trafficking organization. Although its actions led to the deaths of many people, it also provided the world with valuable insights into the tragic dangers of drug prohibition laws. In vain.
-
On September 28, 1989, U.S. authorities found 21.38 tons of cocaine in a warehouse in a Los Angeles suburb. But as is so often the case in the war on drugs, even what was then the largest cocaine bust in the world produced nothing but a crowd of losers—on both sides.
-
When it comes to illegal addictive substances, most people probably think of the “big four”: marijuana, methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin. The world of drugs, however, is far more diverse and complex, which is precisely one of the reasons why the war against them is utterly futile.
-
A stay in a Mexican prison usually doesn’t force Mexican drug lords to change their lifestyle, because even behind bars they can indulge in wild parties featuring prostitutes or live bands. But all the fun ends the moment they are extradited to the United States. That’s when the hard times begin.
-
In 2012, the process of legalizing marijuana began, eventually affecting dozens of U.S. states. Absurd drug laws—under which possession of cannabis products (unlike far more dangerous alcohol) was punished—finally began to change. While some expected enormous changes, others assumed nothing would change at all. Everyone was right.