To: The United States House of Representatives

A Trillion Dollar Injustice

The War on Drugs is an unjust conflict that illegally targets the poor and marginalized citizens of the United States. We ask the courts to award monetary compensation in the number of 1 Trillion dollars to the victims of this Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization.

Why is this important?

The US government finances drug dealers in the context of national defense. Ironically, the government incarcerates Americans for the same drugs their allies produced.

Leaders that sell illegal narcotics are sometimes better than rulers who oppose American business. For example, from the 1950’s until the 1970’s, America’s friends in Indochina produced 50 percent of the world’s illegal opium.[1]Then again, as rival expansion threatened US profits in the Middle East, America's allies in the Afghan/Pakistan region produced 70 percent of the world’s heroin. [2]

In a similar fashion, as communist expansion threatened South America, the United States aided anti-communist forces in Nicaragua.[3] These were the same individuals responsible for America’s cocaine problem.[4] This controversy was highly publicized in the media as the Iran-Contra scandal.[5]

To help the Contras export their product, US allies in Mexico facilitated the cocaine into America.[6] These operations set the precedent for Mexico's current state of affairs.[7] The gangs acting within this system of complicity are responsible for half of the 65 billion dollars’ worth of drugs entering the United States. [8] [9] [10]

Lastly, US allies in the Afghan/Pakistan region are being accused by major news circuits for being involved in the Heroin trade.[11] Modest estimates claim that 70 percent of the world’s heroin comes from this region currently.[12]

When you juxtapose the facts listed above with the actualities of the War on Drugs, a paradox is observed. The War on Drugs targets the small time dealer but never attempts to go after the king pins, and in summary, the war never ends. While the people who should be targeted are: paid informants who act with impunity, allies in foreign countries, or criminals who have paid off the oval office. These entities are allowed to escape justice because their objectives align with American foreign policy.

We are demanding equality in the judicial system. The civil forfeiture laws that apply to everyday citizens should apply to appointed officials. All funds generated from these asset forfeitures will be awarded to the Americans who were unfairly incarcerated.

*** More Research***The Great American Paradox: Drugs and Capitalism*** Approximately 1 hour reading time *****
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-Lc-8DPDlPXZjY2X1pwYzROb0U/view

[1] Alfred W. McCoy and Leonard P. Adams II, The Politics of Heroin in South East Asia at druglibrary.edu/library/books/McCoy/mccoy.pdf/ 86.
[2] Peter Dale Scott, “Drugs, Oil, and War: The United States in Afghanistan, Colombia, and Indochina( Oxford: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2003) 45.
[3] Committee on Foreign Relations United States Senate, Subcommittee on Terrorism, Narcotics and International Operations, Subcommittee on Terrorism, Narcotics and International Operations, December1988, (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1989) 36.
[4] The Office of the Inspector General, B. OIG Investigation Regarding Support of the Contras by Blandon and Meneses, THE CIA-CONTRA-CRACK COCAINE CONTROVERSY:
A REVIEW OF THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT’S INVESTIGATIONS AND PROSECUTIONS
http://www.justice.gov/oig/special/9712/ch04p2.htm
[5] “IRAN-CONTRA HEARINGS; The Testimony: On the Boland Amendment and the President” New York Times.com: Archives, 17July1987, http://www.nytimes.com/1987/07/17/world/iran-contra-hearings-the-testimony-on-the-boland-amendment-and-the-president.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm
[6] William La Jeunesse and Lee Ross, “US Intelligence Assets in Mexico reportedly tied to murdered DEA Agent,”Fox.news.com, 10October2013, http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/10/10/us-intelligence-assets-reportedly-played-role-in-capture-dea-agent-in-mexico/
[7] Aimee Rawlins, “Mexico's Drug War.” Council on Foreign Relations, http://www.cfr.org/mexico/mexicos-drug-war/p13689
[8] Jason McGahan, Chicago Magazine: “Why Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel Loves Selling Drugs in Chicago”, http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/October-2013/Sinaloa-Cartel/
[9] Susana Vera, “US Govt Struck Deal with Mexican drug cartel in Exchange for info-report,” Reuters News, http://rt.com/usa/sinaloa-drug-cartel-deal-dea-551/
{10} Richard A. Serrano and Washington Bureau, “Drug Lords Targeted by Fast and Furious were FBI Informants,” Los Angles Times.com, 21March2012, http://articles.latimes.com/2012/mar/21/nation/la-na-fast-furious-20120322
[11] James Risen, “Reports Link Karzai’s Brother to Afghanistan Heroin Trade,” The New York Times.com, 04October2008, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/05/world/asia/05afghan.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1& (accessed 02February2014).
[12] Rod Nordland, “Production of Opium by Afghans is Up Again,” The New York Times.com, 15April2013, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/16/world/asia/afghanistan-opium-production-increases-for-3rd-year.html (accessed 29June2014)