5 ms·

I am very confused on why the US can't stop drugs entering the nation.

by lenkite 4y ago

andruby 4y ago
A lot of opiates are produced in the US.
- lenkite 4y ago
  This is minor compared to the hundreds of tonnes of drugs (possibly thousands) crossing the border of which only a small portion are seized. https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/drug-seizure-statistics https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/drug-seizure-statistics
- seanmcdirmid 4y ago
  The legal ones are produced in the USA. The illegal ones are mainly produced in China.
refurb 4y ago
Really? Singapore finds kilograms of smuggled heroin every month or so inside the country, not at border checks. And it’s an island country with only a single airport, a couple ports and 2 bridges into the country and the death penalty for smuggling. They throw a ton of resources at trying to stop it from coming in in the first place. If they cant stop it, i dont know how a country like the US with thousands of miles of undefended borders can.
- lenkite 4y ago
  If Singapore is only finding kilograms of smuggled heroin every month, then they are very, very successful even for a single city. Hell, thats an extraordinary achievement. Likely the best in the whole world I think by a wide margin. The U.S. is failing to stop multiple TONNES of drugs. (actually >100 tonnes if you look at DEA extrapolated figures). Border policy is clearly non-existent.
  - refurb 4y ago
    How much is Singapore NOT finding?
    - lenkite 4y ago
      "Singapore has one of the lowest rates of drug abuse in the world: 30 opiates abusers per 100,000 people, compared with 600 in the United States"
      - refurb 4y ago
        Source? Government estimates?
        lenkite 4y ago
        This claim was from WAPO https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/singapore-is-winning-the-war-on-drugs-heres-how/2018/03/11/b8c25278-22e9-11e8-946c-9420060cb7bd_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/singapore-is-winning... written by the Singapore ambassador. But I believe he claims rightly, since the statistics match for Singapore's population and drug abusers. Please note that Singapore also considers cannabis as drug abuse. Report: https://www.cnb.gov.sg/docs/default-source/drug-situation-report-documents/cnb-annual-statistics-2022.pdf https://www.cnb.gov.sg/docs/default-source/drug-situation-re...
        refurb 4y ago
        Singapore has a reputation to uphold so unlike US numbers that tend to be high, i assume Singapore is taking the low end. Not to say opioid abuse is less, but its way more than youd think considering the governments stance.
      - zamnos 4y ago
        You're missing the point. If even Singapore, where the problem of opiates being imported should be way easier to solve; if even they can't actually fix their problem and get that number to zero, what hope does the US have of fixing the problem? The US would end up spending trillions on border control and not actually fix the problem either, with less than nothing to show for it - several orders of magnitude increase in cost and wait times aren't going to be good for business or the county, and would end up costing us more money in lost business on top of the money spent on pointless expensive border upgrades, like a wall thats easily defeated.
rhaway84773 4y ago
The U.S. checks something like 1% of the cargo entering it’s shores. Sure, the US could check 50% of it. But are you willing to pay 10-20% more in the cost of everything due to the subsequent inflation?
- lenkite 4y ago
  Hah, if the U.S. spent a tiny fraction of the money being spent on the Ukraine war on border security, one would get far better outcomes. No fear of inflation at all of-course - to print endless money to wage more war. But spending on the border ? Oooh - that's bad!
  - oneshtein 4y ago
    Tiny fraction of few billions. Are you talking about THOUSANDS of dollars?
    - lenkite 4y ago
      Oh please. "The United States has appropriated approximately $115 billion in emergency funding to support Ukraine since February 24, 2022." The Trump border wall cost is $12 billion. I think ~1/9th is a tiny fraction right ? I don't mean milli-fractions or micro-fractions, just tiny. And btw, that $115 billion towards Ukraine is expected to grow quite a bit further in 2023/24. Who knows - it might become a milli-fraction or micro-fraction eventually.
      - oneshtein 4y ago
        > "The United States has appropriated approximately $115 billion in emergency funding to support Ukraine since February 24, 2022." Ukraine received about $7b in 2022. $12b does not look like a tiny fraction of $7b.
        lenkite 4y ago
        Can you please provide the source for your just $7 billion figure ? I am not sure where you quoting from. A fairly conservative source is here: Bilateral aid to Ukraine between January 24, 2022, and January 15, 2023 https://www.cfr.org/article/how-much-aid-has-us-sent-ukraine-here-are-six-charts https://www.cfr.org/article/how-much-aid-has-us-sent-ukraine... . This by itself $76.8 billion in committed aid and does not include all U.S. spending related to the war. And newer appropriations made just after Jan 2023 The non-conservative estimate: https://www.crfb.org/blogs/congress-approved-113-billion-aid-ukraine-2022 https://www.crfb.org/blogs/congress-approved-113-billion-aid... which adds upto $113 billion in 2022.
imwithstoopid 4y ago
[flagged]
chasd00 4y ago
controlling the border is a hot button political issue in the US. It comes up constantly in election season. The right wants more the left therefore wants less. It would be better if the state's were allowed to do more on their own borders but it's a federal thing and therefore impossible. Texas has the money and will to do a lot of border enforcement on its own but it's prohibited by law.

I am very confused on why the US can't stop drugs entering the nation.

andruby 4y ago

A lot of opiates are produced in the US.

lenkite 4y ago
This is minor compared to the hundreds of tonnes of drugs (possibly thousands) crossing the border of which only a small portion are seized. https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/drug-seizure-statistics https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/drug-seizure-statistics
seanmcdirmid 4y ago
The legal ones are produced in the USA. The illegal ones are mainly produced in China.

refurb 4y ago

Really? Singapore finds kilograms of smuggled heroin every month or so inside the country, not at border checks. And it’s an island country with only a single airport, a couple ports and 2 bridges into the country and the death penalty for smuggling. They throw a ton of resources at trying to stop it from coming in in the first place. If they cant stop it, i dont know how a country like the US with thousands of miles of undefended borders can.

lenkite 4y ago
If Singapore is only finding kilograms of smuggled heroin every month, then they are very, very successful even for a single city. Hell, thats an extraordinary achievement. Likely the best in the whole world I think by a wide margin. The U.S. is failing to stop multiple TONNES of drugs. (actually >100 tonnes if you look at DEA extrapolated figures). Border policy is clearly non-existent.
- refurb 4y ago
  How much is Singapore NOT finding?
  - lenkite 4y ago
    "Singapore has one of the lowest rates of drug abuse in the world: 30 opiates abusers per 100,000 people, compared with 600 in the United States"
    - refurb 4y ago
      Source? Government estimates?
      - lenkite 4y ago
        This claim was from WAPO https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/singapore-is-winning-the-war-on-drugs-heres-how/2018/03/11/b8c25278-22e9-11e8-946c-9420060cb7bd_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/singapore-is-winning... written by the Singapore ambassador. But I believe he claims rightly, since the statistics match for Singapore's population and drug abusers. Please note that Singapore also considers cannabis as drug abuse. Report: https://www.cnb.gov.sg/docs/default-source/drug-situation-report-documents/cnb-annual-statistics-2022.pdf https://www.cnb.gov.sg/docs/default-source/drug-situation-re...
        refurb 4y ago
        Singapore has a reputation to uphold so unlike US numbers that tend to be high, i assume Singapore is taking the low end. Not to say opioid abuse is less, but its way more than youd think considering the governments stance.
    - zamnos 4y ago
      You're missing the point. If even Singapore, where the problem of opiates being imported should be way easier to solve; if even they can't actually fix their problem and get that number to zero, what hope does the US have of fixing the problem? The US would end up spending trillions on border control and not actually fix the problem either, with less than nothing to show for it - several orders of magnitude increase in cost and wait times aren't going to be good for business or the county, and would end up costing us more money in lost business on top of the money spent on pointless expensive border upgrades, like a wall thats easily defeated.

rhaway84773 4y ago

The U.S. checks something like 1% of the cargo entering it’s shores. Sure, the US could check 50% of it. But are you willing to pay 10-20% more in the cost of everything due to the subsequent inflation?

lenkite 4y ago
Hah, if the U.S. spent a tiny fraction of the money being spent on the Ukraine war on border security, one would get far better outcomes. No fear of inflation at all of-course - to print endless money to wage more war. But spending on the border ? Oooh - that's bad!
- oneshtein 4y ago
  Tiny fraction of few billions. Are you talking about THOUSANDS of dollars?
  - lenkite 4y ago
    Oh please. "The United States has appropriated approximately $115 billion in emergency funding to support Ukraine since February 24, 2022." The Trump border wall cost is $12 billion. I think ~1/9th is a tiny fraction right ? I don't mean milli-fractions or micro-fractions, just tiny. And btw, that $115 billion towards Ukraine is expected to grow quite a bit further in 2023/24. Who knows - it might become a milli-fraction or micro-fraction eventually.
    - oneshtein 4y ago
      > "The United States has appropriated approximately $115 billion in emergency funding to support Ukraine since February 24, 2022." Ukraine received about $7b in 2022. $12b does not look like a tiny fraction of $7b.
      - lenkite 4y ago
        Can you please provide the source for your just $7 billion figure ? I am not sure where you quoting from. A fairly conservative source is here: Bilateral aid to Ukraine between January 24, 2022, and January 15, 2023 https://www.cfr.org/article/how-much-aid-has-us-sent-ukraine-here-are-six-charts https://www.cfr.org/article/how-much-aid-has-us-sent-ukraine... . This by itself $76.8 billion in committed aid and does not include all U.S. spending related to the war. And newer appropriations made just after Jan 2023 The non-conservative estimate: https://www.crfb.org/blogs/congress-approved-113-billion-aid-ukraine-2022 https://www.crfb.org/blogs/congress-approved-113-billion-aid... which adds upto $113 billion in 2022.

imwithstoopid 4y ago

[flagged]

chasd00 4y ago

controlling the border is a hot button political issue in the US. It comes up constantly in election season. The right wants more the left therefore wants less. It would be better if the state's were allowed to do more on their own borders but it's a federal thing and therefore impossible. Texas has the money and will to do a lot of border enforcement on its own but it's prohibited by law.