Afghanistan produces 92% of the world’s opium according to the head of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. Antonio Marie Costa states that “the disease – a fungus – is thought to have infected about half of the country’s poppy crop.” Mr. Costa also states that the cost of opium has gone up about 50% which affects the revenue on insurgent groups like the Taliban who have large stockpiles of the crop. The fungus attacks the root of the plant and climbs through the stem causing the opium capsule to wither away. “It was affecting poppies in the provinces of Helmand and Kandahar, the heartland of opium cultivation and the insurgency in Afghanistan.”
Heroin is derived from the opium plant which has morphine as the principle ingredient of the opium poppy seed. “Heroin is a semi-synthetic drug. This means that it is neither entirely natural nor entirely man-made; it is instead a chemically engineered amalgamation of both natural and synthetic substances. The “natural” part of heroin is derived from morphine, a potent psychoactive narcotic whose main ingredient is opium.”
In the United States, heroin, also known as “black-tar“, comes mostly from South American countries such as, Columbia. The fact that the Taliban has an interest in opium production and distribution which helps finance their cause of prom0ting and executing terrorism throughout the world, more than likely has connections with drug cartels in South America. With these alliances, the United States is left vulnerable for attack. “Much as the Taliban tapped Afghanistan’s heroin for money, U.S. officials say the vast profits available from Latin American cocaine could provide al-Qaida and others with a ready source of income,” this according to a 2008 report from the Homeland Security office.
Heroin, a highly addictive drug which can be snorted, smoked or mostly commonly injected, has caused national and worldwide deaths to number in the tens of thousands. A large portion of heroin users who are being helped through addiction treatment, come mostly from the Baltimore, Maryland and Washington, D.C. area which serves as a major heroin trafficking thoroughfare.
With the daily threat of terrorism, and the constant handling of drug addiction, it is plain to see that an all out war on drugs is needed and is provided through the education and services of drug rehab facilites worldwide.
If you, or someone you know, is suffering from heroin addiction or battling abuse with any legal or illegal substance, referral specialist are availble to help guide you to an addiction treatment center best suited to meet your needs. Call today and regain control of your life and give empowerment to the lives of your family, friends and the national and worldwide communities.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8679203.stm
http://www.nationalterroralert.com/updates/2008/10/09/us-officials-worry-terrorists-could-align-with-drug-cartels/
http://www.drug-rehab-tennessee.com
