August 24, 7:54 AMPortland Drug Policy ExaminerJohn English “Whether it’s pot, heroin or meth, young entrepreneurs, drug dealers, have used student loan money to purchase drugs to so they can finance their expenses and maintain a high lifestyle while in college.” http://www.examiner.com/x-11932-Portland-Drug-Policy-Examiner~y2009m8d24-Drug-offenders-to-get-student-loans–again

CNN “LOS ANGELES, California (Aug. 17) – A weeklong blaze that has charred more than 84,000 acres in southern California was started by a cooking fire in a drug trafficking operation, investigators said. The La Brea fire originated at an illegal marijuana camp believed to be run by a Mexican drug organization, the Santa Barbara…

August 18, 2009By BRIAN STANLEY “Health officials, narcotics agents and the coroner agree: We are in the midst of a heroin epidemic. “We have 20 confirmed deaths so far this year,” Will County Coroner Patrick O’Neil said. Last year there were 16 fatal heroin overdoses in all and 15 the year before that.” www.heraldnewsonline.com

U.S. Says Drug Trade Is Booming as Morales’s Plan to Encourage Legal Products From Leaves Backfires By ANTONIO REGALADO “Now Bolivia’s coca production is up, according to the United Nations — but so is its cocaine trade. Cocaine production is potentially up as much as 65%, U.S. law-enforcement officials say, as Colombian and Mexican traffickers…

Story from BBC NEWS: “Methamphetamine, aka crystal meth or a host of other names, gives dizzying highs but is acutely addictive and wrecks the body. So why do people do it, asks Louis Theroux.” http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8190120.stm

KABUL, Afghanistan, Aug. 7, 2009Vast Supply of Opium is Problem for Entire Families “She started giving it to her children to keep them from shivering in the winter. They’ve all had treatment before, but poverty lead them back to drugs. Najiba says opium, which she boils as a tea to suppress hunger pains, is cheaper…

“Although heart disease was the declared cause of death, the report did conclude that his use of cocaine was a contributor. Mays also had evidence of other drugs in his system, including xanax, valium, hydrocodone, oxycodone and tramadol, some of which were being used to treat a knee-condition.” http://tv.rightcelebrity.com/?p=3025

By MARTHA MENDOZA (AP) – 58 minutes ago “In a surprising public acknowledgment, Mexican President Felipe Calderon said last week that drug cartels have extended their operations into the theft of oil, Mexico’s leading source of foreign income which finances about 40 percent of the national budget.” http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ggJLvfhq53pAp9qB_JK7_7Vs3uAAD9A06TGG3

The New York TimesAugust 10, 2009 ” Fifty Afghans believed to be drug traffickers with ties to the Taliban have been placed on a Pentagon target list to be captured or killed, reflecting a major shift in American counternarcotics strategy in Afghanistan, according to a Congressional study to be released this week. “ View Article:…