Let the blogging begin.

Ah my first post! I rub my hands in glee. What shall I blog about, hmmm.... Lack of inspiration today.
Okay! Let's have something international. 'US intercepts narco sub', May 17 2009 of the Straits Times. Don't mind if i paste the whole article here, it's not long.




WASHINGTON - A US warship intercepted a submersible believed to be linked to the drug trade off Colombia's Pacific coastline, Colombian officials said on Saturday.
The USS Simpson, a guided missile frigate, immobilized the craft and detained four men aboard, the Colombian Navy said in a statement.
The move was authorised as part of an agreement interdicting sea crafts transporting drugs signed between Bogota and Washington.
The four Colombians aboard the 'narco sub' opened the valves when they saw the Simpson and sank their vessel, the statement read, noting that such crafts can transport up to 12 tonnes of cocaine.
The Colombian Navy has intercepted, sometimes with help from other countries, 39 submersibles, including six in 2009, thwarting 'the transportation of more than 30 tonnes of cocaine abroad.'
Security officials report an increase in the use of locally-built submersibles which can be at sea for up to 14 days and have a range of up to 3,200km.
The vessels, often made of fiberglass, glide under the ocean surface with only the cockpit and the exhaust tubes extending above the water and are difficult to detect with radar or sonar. -- AFP



Look at that, a nice little narco sub can transport TWELVE tonnes of cocaine. 12,000 kg. Of cocaine. Valued at probably... $60 million?! Holy shit. Look at that, nowonder those drug cartels are so stinkin' rich. Then again, they would'nt send it over if it could'nt be sold.

Aside from dealing with foreign powers and fighting their wars wherever they like, the US army/navy/air force etc have to contend with the war on drugs (and arms) at home. They certainly are busy.. But it's been an age old problem which the US has tried to solve, to no avail. The amount of drugs coming into the US through land and sea has steadily increased over the years since the 1930's and 40's. More and more money has been spent on combatting this problem but yet nothing seems to work. Why? Perhaps the war needs to be fought at home, instead of interdiction over land and sea, and destroying the poppy crops of poor Colombian farmers who need to feed their 3 wives and 32 kids. The Cartels now are in possession of such advanced modes of transportation, making it even harder for the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) to intercept shipments. It is apparent, given the evidence of the last 50 or so years, that whatever the efforts of the authorities, the smugglers try even harder.

"According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH, 2004), 34.15 million Americans ages 12 and older (14.7% of this age group) had used cocaine once in their lifetime and 2.0 million were current users of cocaine in 2004." Ah. There it is, looks like the problem needs to be fought at home, with the obese drug-abusing Americans rather than the poor hardworking Mexican mules. Many things have been tried, from public-address messages to anti-drug counselling in school. Obviously, none of these work. What then, does? A point to ponder, I suppose.





wei leang is going to buy a nice little narco-sub when he wins top prize in toto tmr. whoo!