Like the never-ending war on
terror, the drugs war is a multi-billion-dollar industry that won’t
go down without a fight. Pills, Powder, and Smoke
explains why.
The
war on drugs has been official American policy since the 1970s, with
the UK, Europe, and much of the world following suit. It is at best a
failed policy, according to bestselling author Antony Loewenstein.
Its direct results have included mass incarceration in the US,
extreme violence in different parts of the world, the backing of
dictatorships, and surging drug addiction globally. And now the Trump
administration is unleashing diplomatic and military forces against
any softening of the conflict.
Pills,
Powder, and Smoke
investigates the individuals, officials, activists, victims, DEA
agents, and traffickers caught up in this deadly war. Travelling
through the UK, the US, Australia, Honduras, the Philippines, and
Guinea-Bissau, Loewenstein uncovers the secrets of the drug war, why
it’s so hard to end, and who is really profiting from it.
In
reporting on the frontlines across the globe — from the killing
fields of Central America to major cocaine transit routes in West
Africa — Loewenstein reveals how the war on drugs has become the
most deadly war in modern times. Designed and inspired by Washington,
its agenda has nothing to do with ending drug use or addiction, but
is all about controlling markets, territories, and people. Instead,
Loewenstein argues, the legalisation and regulation of all drugs
would be a much more realistic and humane approach. The evidence
presented in this book will persuade many readers that he's right.