Background Over the past decade, the United States has not been very successful in reducing the amount of illicit drugs smuggled across our borders. With an estimated 19 million Americans participating in recreational drug use each month and spending over $60 billion on the fragmented criminal drug market annually, the international drug trade is becoming a larger threat to national security. Additionally, the U.S. drug market generates billions of dollars in profits, providing international drug trafficking organizations with resources to evade law enforcement, to penetrate legitimate economic structures, and to challenge the authority of national governments.
Drug production and sales have dramatically increased in the past decade. Opium and marijuana …show more content…
Use the newly acquired land in southwestern Afghanistan to support their legal exports including (but not limited to) fruits and nuts, wool, cotton, and hides HAVEN’T WE TRIED THAT?
i. ? Mention the beautiful Afghan rugs? SURE BUT HAVE TO TRAIN THEM TO WEAVE
c. The State Department even admitted…
i. "No commodity is so widely available, so cheap to produce, and as easily renewable as illegal drugs. They offer dazzling profit margins that allow criminals to generate illicit revenues on a scale without historical precedent." ii. Fight back by importing more goods from Afghanistan and encourage a more robust (and legal) economy to hasten development and even bolster our interests in the region
III. Reduce the demand for mind-altering drugs in the Western world to diminish the amount of production in Afghanistan.
a. The UNODC says roughly 315 million people use illicit drugs around the world
b. Today, western cultures are straying away from the prohibition of illegal drugs and leaning more towards liberty
i. Until we can enforce and encourage neighbors [? IE? NOT HERE IN US?] to pursue a more paternal approach to drug use, the opiate and cannabis production in Afghanistan will continue to flourish and
Drug production and sales have dramatically increased in the past decade. Opium and marijuana …show more content…
Use the newly acquired land in southwestern Afghanistan to support their legal exports including (but not limited to) fruits and nuts, wool, cotton, and hides HAVEN’T WE TRIED THAT?
i. ? Mention the beautiful Afghan rugs? SURE BUT HAVE TO TRAIN THEM TO WEAVE
c. The State Department even admitted…
i. "No commodity is so widely available, so cheap to produce, and as easily renewable as illegal drugs. They offer dazzling profit margins that allow criminals to generate illicit revenues on a scale without historical precedent." ii. Fight back by importing more goods from Afghanistan and encourage a more robust (and legal) economy to hasten development and even bolster our interests in the region
III. Reduce the demand for mind-altering drugs in the Western world to diminish the amount of production in Afghanistan.
a. The UNODC says roughly 315 million people use illicit drugs around the world
b. Today, western cultures are straying away from the prohibition of illegal drugs and leaning more towards liberty
i. Until we can enforce and encourage neighbors [? IE? NOT HERE IN US?] to pursue a more paternal approach to drug use, the opiate and cannabis production in Afghanistan will continue to flourish and