Fungus hits Afgan Opium Poppies Driving up Prices

[Boompa]

Originally Posted by lifelongMOgal

Napalm would have been quicker and freed up our soldiers from gurading the drug fields.

and got everyone within miles stoned

[lifelongMOgal]

Originally Posted by Boompa

and got everyone within miles stoned

Temporary condition and a good use of "predator drones" rather than US soldiers standing guard of poppy fields. A cut to the throat of Taliban funding by putting the heroin trade up in smoke, IMO.

[Boompa]

Originally Posted by lifelongMOgal

Temporary condition and a good use of "predator drones" rather than US soldiers standing guard of poppy fields. A cut to the throat of Taliban funding by putting the heroin trade up in smoke, IMO.

This war is about the poppy fields, when we backed the "Northern Alliance" against the Taliban we knew they were a drug cartel that made the Mexicans look like Boy Scouts

[cuebald]

Originally Posted by mwruckman

I saw this little nugget in the BBC web site and I find it a little bit curious.
Apparently a new type of fungus is ravaging the Afgan opium poppies and cutting opium supply. Biological warfare is banned by UN treaty but does an attack against a plant constitute a breach of the treaty? Another question is do we have the technology to make a designer fungus with our ability to map plant genetics and modify the genome? I think so. Chalk up another one for DARPA or the CIA.

Swords have two edges and cut both ways.

If the opium supply is severely reduced and the street price of heroin goes sky-high, and average addict is going to have to steal and fence X number of times as much merchandise as he does now to support his habit. Look for an uptick in other crimes as a direct result of this.

And no, an addict does not simply "just say no", any more that you can hold your breath until you die. Opiate addiction doesn't work that way.

[Yeledaf]

I think the first five words of the thread title, with one elision, should be adopted by California for its state motto.

"Fungus hits Opium Poppies"

Ring-a-ding-ding. It swings.

(Sure there's a clunk: I mean, "fungus?" Like, fer sher.

But some swinginess, as well, n'est ce-pas?)

Plus, Ah-nold gets to say it. Like this: "Attenshun! Attenzhun! Vungus hitz da OH pyum BOP ees. Like uhrrreally uhrrreally HAHT!!"

[Boompa]

An Agent Orange for the 21st century

[ergohead]

Originally Posted by cuebald

Swords have two edges and cut both ways.

If the opium supply is severely reduced and the street price of heroin goes sky-high, and average addict is going to have to steal and fence X number of times as much merchandise as he does now to support his habit. Look for an uptick in other crimes as a direct result of this.

And no, an addict does not simply "just say no", any more that you can hold your breath until you die. Opiate addiction doesn't work that way.

Insurance rates will skyrocket.

[cuebald]

Originally Posted by ergohead

Insurance rates will skyrocket.

But that's good for Wall Street.

Are they the ones behind poppy eradication?

[ergohead]

Originally Posted by cuebald

But that's good for Wall Street.

Are they the ones behind poppy eradication?

I don' know.

Can Wall Street take the Fed down, and survive?