Sugar cane farmers from a tiny Mexican county use savvy marketing and low prices to push black-tar heroin in the United States. Immigrants from an obscure corner of Mexico are changing heroin use in many parts of America. Full Story »
Posted by Kaizar Campwala - via LA Times (Most Emailed)
This is a great piece of work from the LA Times. Gritty stories like this are hard to resist, anyway, but Quinones really did his homework for this one. Very interesting treatment of the heroin business model. That this new trade is NOT tense or violent is almost more disturbing.
This is a fascinating, hard-to-ignore story. Since drug use of one kind or another is nearly universal among humans (caffeine, nicotine, coca tea, alcohol, cannibus, areca nuts, amphetamines, opiates, MDMA, LSD, psilocybin, cocaine, peyote, ayahuasca, etc.) it is perhaps time to develop a comprehensive approach that focuses exclusively on harm reduction. As this story demonstrates, our current approach--which is a patchwork of educational efforts, criminal prosecution, and treatment protocols--has proven largely ineffective. The Xalisco entrepreneurs featured in this story capitalize on one simple fact: Most humans wish to selectively alter their perception of the world through the use of various drugs, some more harmful ... More »
mmigrants from Xalisco in the Pacific Coast state of Nayarit, Mexico, they have brought an audacious entrepreneurial spirit to the heroin trade. Their success stems from ... More »
Quinones' series and the accompanying video presentation, illustrating the life of addiction led by one young U.S. couple, work together powerfully. The impression is indelible, and I expect the series should leave most readers quite interested in further information about black tar heroin trafficking and addiction, both south and north of the U.S.-Mexico border.
This riveting LA Times series includes a powerful and intimate video slide presentation. Sam Quinones writes in a straightforward, convincing style, about powerful "black tar" heroin marketed from Xalisco, Mexico at lowball prices to U.S. users who could otherwise be classed as typical Wal-Mart shoppers. The marketing operation emphasizes customer service and attempts to steer clear of populations and neighborhoods that might draw elevated attention from law enforcement. Quinones ... More »
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