Peace And Justice Of La Luz

Published on Sunday, August 8, 2010 by the Sunday Observer/UK War on Drugs: Why the US and Latin America Could Be Ready to End a Fruitless 40-year Struggle

Mexico’s president Felipe Caldéron is the latest Latin leader to call for a debate on drugs legalization. And in the US, liberals and right-wing libertarians are pressing for an end to prohibition. Forty years after President Nixon launched the ‘war on drugs’ there is a growing momentum to abandon the fight

by Rory Carroll and Paul Harris

The birthday fiesta was in full swing at 1.30am when five SUVs pulled up outside the house. Figures spilled from the vehicles and ran towards the lights. They burst into the house and leveled AK-47s. “Kill them all!” A shouted instruction, only three words, and the slaughter began. (more…)

Denise Lang & Ken Nicholson & Peace and Justice of La Luz invite you to visit our booth at the Otero County Fair off North White Sands Blvd. in Alamogordo, NM.

Wednesday August 11 from 5 pm to 9 pm,

Thursday August 12 from 5 pm to 10 pm,

Friday August 13 from 11 am to 10 pm,

Saturday August 14 from 11 am to 10 pm

…where we continue our discussion about the consequences of the ‘War on Drugs.’

Meet our guest speaker, Larry Talley, from Law Enforcement Against Prohibition!

Larry S. Talley served in the United States Navy from 1987-2007 as an intelligence specialist and was stationed at Naval Special Warfare Unit Eight in the Republic of Panama from 1991-1996. While stationed in Panama, Larry deployed frequently to various locations in Central and South America in support of counter-drug operations, where he formulated and implemented eradication strategy in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Agency and with many countries in the region.

About LEAP:

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition is made up of current and former members of law enforcement who believe the existing drug policies have failed in their intended goals of addressing the problems of crime, drug abuse, addiction, juvenile drug use, stopping the flow of illegal drugs into this country and the internal sale and use of illegal drugs. By fighting a war on drugs the government has increased the problems of society and made them far worse.

We’ll have materials from LEAP and from the clergy of the Interfaith Drug Policy Initiative

Questions? Comments? Contact Denise or Ken at 575-430-5704 or

http://pajoll.org or mail to:  pajoll@zianet.com

—PAJOLL at the fair 2009

High-Purity Mexican Heroin Spreads in U.S.
An ultra-potent form of heroin that sells for as little as $10 per bag has been making its way across the border from Mexico, the Associated Press reported May 24.

Improvements in poppy refinement by Mexican dealers have driven purity up and prices down. Heroin imported from Asia and the Middle East in the 1970s was around 5-percent pure; now federal agents report seizing drugs at purity levels of between 50 and 80 percent.

The potent heroin can kill unwary users almost instantly if they are accustomed to using weaker versions.

Independent smugglers are driving the new trade from Mexico. While the major cartels focus on marijuana and cocaine, smaller traffickers pay for access to the big cartels’ smuggling routes.

According to the DEA, heroin seizures along the border quadrupled from 2008 to 2009. According to the AP’s research, heroin deaths in the U.S. rose 20.3 percent between 2006 and 2008.

“We’re seeing [heroin] sometimes 80-percent pure,” said Oregon state medical examiner Karen Gunson. “If you’re using it every day, your chances grow and grow that it’s going to kill you.”