Talk:Illegal drug trade in the United States

Material removed

Regarding: Acclaimed investigator and former DEA agent Michael Levine has alleged that the CIA participated in orchestrating the 1980 Cocaine Coup in Bolivia to install an Operation Condor military government, in place of the pre-coup civilian government. The pre-coup government had collaborated with the DEA in bringing leaders of the Roberto Suarez cartel to justice, and Levine alleges that the CIA not only intervened judicially to release the extradited cartel leaders and allow their flight to Bolivia, but also enabled them to collaborate with right-wing military factions in overthrowing the civilian government that had collaborated with the DEA. The drug links of the coup government were obvious to the international community, which led to the coup becoming termed "the Cocaine Coup" by historians. Levine alleges that one of the CIA agents who participated in the coup was Klaus Barbie, the former SS Nazi known as the "Butcher of Lyon," who had previously collaborated with the CIA in Bolivia during the capture and execution of Che Guevara.

This material reflects one person's claim that the CIA had a hand in the 1980 Bolivian Coup and that it conspired with someone for the release of cartel leaders. Uncited or not, the material fails WP:REDFLAG. -Location (talk) 22:56, 25 March 2022 (UTC)

Regarding: Contrary to its official goals, the US has suppressed research on drug usage, although the CIA researched regardless during MKULTRA. For example, in 1995 the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) announced in a press release the publication of the results of the largest global study on cocaine use ever undertaken. However, a decision in the World Health Assembly banned the publication of the study. In the sixth meeting of the B committee the US representative threatened that "If WHO activities relating to drugs failed to reinforce proven drug control approaches, funds for the relevant programmes should be curtailed". This led to the decision to discontinue publication. A part of the study has been released. Several government-sponsored reports by commissioned experts have pointed to public substance abuse treatment as opposed to criminalization as the only effective way to battle the public health crisis caused by drugs; these recommendations have been mostly ignored by US government officials, and in some cases suppressed.

The material provided does not support that claim that "the US has suppressed research on drug usage". The quote noted above can be found in full context on page 229 of the 1995 World Health Assembly report HERE. Neil Boyer (who under President Carter was the Director of the Health and Narcotics Programs, Bureau of International Organizations, Department of State) indicated that the US was surprised to note that the press release made a case for the positive uses of cocaine, that it "undermined the efforts of the international community to stamp out the illegal cultivation and production of coca, inter alia through international conventions", and that the "study was not in conformity with WHO's basic and rigorous standards on the conduct of research projects, and he hoped that some way could be found for it to undergo a peer review by people recognized as genuine experts in research, and in conformity with WHO's rigid research procedures". The report was not "banned" by Boyer's comments. Anthony Piel replied to Boyer stating that the "WHO was making its position clear, and because of the wording of the study, which could lead to misunderstanding, was not intending to publish the report as such." (Note that the quotes are the minutes that were provided and neither Boyer or Piel was actually quoted verbatim.) -Location (talk) 22:56, 25 March 2022 (UTC)

Regarding: Despite the US government's official position against the drug trade, US government agents and assets have been implicated in the drug trade and were caught and investigated during the Iran-Contra scandal, implicated in the use of the drug trade as a secret source of funding for the USA's support of the Contras. Page 41 of the December 1988 Kerry report to the US Senate states that "indeed senior US policy makers were not immune to the idea that drug money was a perfect solution to the Contra's funding problem."

Page 41 of the Kerry report states that DEA officials testified that Oliver North was the one who suggested the idea of confiscating $1.5 million in Cartel money to give to the Contras, but the idea was rejected. The fact that one person brought up a bad idea which was rejected by others does not mean there was hypocrisy in the official government position. - Location (talk) 18:29, 27 March 2022 (UTC)

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