Prohibition - International Drug Issues

Need for Speed -- Methamphetamine - Asia's drug of choice. Time

Mexico's narco-political corruption -- A report on the rise and fall of Carlos Salinas and Raul Salinas. PBS

Ground zero in the Colombian drug war -- The US backed Plan in Colombia touches down in a region battered by civil war and reliant on the cocaine trade. Salon

Guilty until proven useful -- Peruvian President Fujimori's desire for legitimacy and the promise of US drug war money has helped prompt a retrial for convicted American terrorist Lori Berenson. Salon

Smoke signal -- Police in London's gritty Brixton neighborhood are losing the war on drugs, so the police chief is experimenting with not enforcing cannabis laws. Salon

Belgium legalizes personal pot use -- The Guardian Governments in Europe are under pressure to decriminalize cannabis after Belgium's decision to legalize the personal use of hash for anyone over the age of 18. Under plans approved by the cabinet, it will be legal to grow, import and consume potentially unlimited amounts of pot for personal use in Belgium. "Any possession of cannabis for personal consumption will no longer provoke a reaction from the justice system unless its use is considered to be problematic or creates a social nuisance," the health minister, Magda Aelvoet, said. Guardian Unlimited

Good morning, Colombia -- Turning loose a force of heavily armed mercenaries in the middle of a bloody civil war in the name of America's war on drugs is more than a misguided policy it's utter insanity. Salon