Six degrees of al Qaeda

There has been a revival of the "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon game," except a few rules have been modified. No longer is the object to relate celebrities to America's amiable star of Friday the 13th -- the first one. The new game allows many more degrees of separation and is much more challenging: Take any arbitrary social issue the right-wing deems threatening, and connect it to terrorism.\nThe Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) barely waited for the storm of the Sept. 11 tragedy to subside before it bombarded the public with ridiculous propaganda, asserting that drug-using citizens are toking up the bill for al Qaeda, Taliban and any other potential "evil-doers." Yet with a projected audience of today's adolescents, the new anti-drug campaign serves more as an insult to American teenagers' intelligence rather than an effective scare tactic able to prevent them from getting high.\nThe first gimmick contrived by the ONDCP featured the "confessionals" of young adults veiled in guilt with the help of dramatic close-up camera shots; they said because they smoked marijuana, they "helped blow up a building." One said, "Yesterday afternoon, I did my laundry, went for a walk, and helped torture someone's dad." The most recent shows two men playing the neo-Kevin Bacon game in a discussion of drug war terrorism. The young, unsure man said that it's a rather complicated issue, but he is quickly put in his place when the older, informed adult corrects, "Not that complicated."\nIt's not that clever of a campaign.\nBut wait. Before condemning the utilization of our national grievance to gain support for drug prohibition, one might first speculate: Is any evidence favoring his claim? It is difficult to say just how much profit terrorist groups make from black market drug trades; while the Bush administration is quick to shake their fingers in the faces of American pot-smokers, insisting they are to blame for the deaths of thousands of fellow Americans (nevermind Osama bin Laden), the finger-pointers fail to recognize their own role in aiding the "evil-doers." \nThe U.S. government has been on a mission, trying to convert other nations to prohibit drugs. So when in May 2001 Afghanistan's Taliban government decided to enforce a ban on growing opium poppies, like a proud parent, Secretary of State Colin Powell represented the United States in awarding Afghanistan a $43 million grant. But nevermind the blatant patronage.\nIn an effort to misdirect blame, the administration, as well as supporters of George W. Bush, continues to advocate the campaign. The Drug Enforcement Administration Museum opened an exhibit which will be featured through April 1, 2003, explaining away the degrees of separation between Mr. Average Joe and Ms. Average Mary Jane Pothead and terrorism. At the opening, former Mayor Rudy Guiliani said, "The terrorist threat comes not just from the Taliban and al Qaeda, but also from the money Americans themselves pay for illegal drugs that help fund international terrorism."\nThis brings up an excellent point. There is no denying that the international trafficking of illegal drugs has instigated violence, or that it even has ties with terrorist groups. \nSo why don't we just cut out the middle man? \nU.S. citizens won't hear Bush supporters advocating legislation to legalize drugs, or better still, an FDR-style presidency, encouraging civilians of this country to plant victory gardens of marijuana in our own backyards. \nLegalized drugs cuts out the drug dealers. Cutting out the drug dealers cuts out the profit. Cutting out the profit cuts out the terrorists. \nIt's just not that complicated.