Another Reason to Lay Off the Cocaine

Staff / Truthdig Jun 2, 2010 Although it has enjoyed a seemingly unrelenting resurgence since, say, the late ’90s, cocaine could fall from druggie glory if more people were hip to one particularly distressing potential side effect (continued). Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Junk Food Is the New Crack

Staff / Truthdig Mar 29, 2010 Those who have ever suspected, after apparently taking leave of their reason in the face of their favorite junk food, that their guilt-inducing pleasure contained some highly addictive substance may not be too far off the mark, according to a new study. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Is the ‘War on Drugs’ Ending?

Staff / Truthdig Sep 6, 2009 Mexico and Argentina's recent decisions to decriminalize the personal use of drugs mark a growing trend across Latin America to reject the now-40-year-old, U.S.-led, Nixon-founded "war on drugs" as both harmful and ineffective. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Drugs Are Sick

Staff / Truthdig Jun 24, 2009 U.N. drug chief Antonio Maria Costa believes drug use should be treated as an illness and not criminalized. Costa says international law enforcement should shift focus to traffickers rather than users, an intriguing (look at the U.S. prison population) but problematic (look at Mexico's drug war death toll) strategy. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Move Over, Drug Mules

Staff / Truthdig Jun 17, 2009 Here come the drug sharks. The Mexican navy has discovered more than a ton of cocaine packed into frozen shark carcasses, demonstrating the creativity of smugglers trying to deliver their drugs into the U.S. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Study: Red Bull Cola Gives You … Cocaine

Staff / Truthdig May 26, 2009 Turns out that Red Bull Cola gives you more than just "wings," according to scientists at The Health Institute in Germany's North Rhine Westphalia who recently discovered that the fizzy drink contains small amounts of cocaine -- very, very small amounts, in fact, but enough to cause a handful of German states to ban the beverage. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Drugs, Guns and Reality

Eugene Robinson / Truthdig Mar 27, 2009 It's an indictment of our fact-averse political culture that a statement of the blindingly obvious could sound so revolutionary. Nevertheless, Hillary Clinton deserves high praise for acknowledging that the U.S. bears "shared responsibility" for the drug-fueled violence sweeping Mexico. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Mexican Drug Wars Claim 5,000 Lives in 2008

Staff / Truthdig Dec 5, 2008 It's been a creeping tragedy that has escaped serious attention by many major media outlets, but the recurring waves of drug violence in Mexico have taken the lives of about 5,000 people in 2008. In response, the Mexican government has deployed more than 40,000 troops, though corruption within the state's security forces remains a grave problem. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

A View From the South

Amy Goodman / Truthdig Nov 20, 2008 Evo Morales knows about "change you can believe in." He also knows what happens when a powerful elite is forced to make changes it doesn't want. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Bolivia Puts DEA on Hold

Staff / Truthdig Nov 2, 2008 Bolivian President Evo Morales on Saturday made another move to signal his administration's displeasure with the United States, announcing that he is "indefinitely" halting all activities of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency within his country. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

So Much for the War on Drugs

Staff / Truthdig Jul 2, 2008 Despite spending countless billions and passing draconian laws, the United States is anything but a drug-free zone The percentages of those in the US who have tried marijuana or cocaine are greater than the percentages of any other country surveyed, according to a new study The Netherlands, which has notoriously lax drug policies, had less than half the percentage of marijuana users and an even lower level of cocaine dabblers relative to the U. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

War on Drugs a Bust

Staff / Truthdig Jan 8, 2008 How will we know if the war on drugs is ever won? When all the kingpins are locked up or dead? That was once the prevailing idea among those on the front lines of the much-ballyhooed "war," which Rolling Stone scribe Ben Wallace notes has now gone on for over three decades and, in his view, is an utter failure. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )