Table of Contents

Introduction
1. Intoxicating Substances in Historical Perspective
2. The Drift to Regulation and the Idea of Prohibition
3. From Regulation to Control
4. The Beginnings of International Drug Control
5. The Post War International Drug Control Regime
6. Trends in Drug Consumption
7. Trends in Cultivation and Production
8. Accounting for Failure: The Problem of Prohibition
9. Accounting for Failure 2: Institutions and Policy
10. The Political Impact of Drugs and Drug Control
11. HIV/AIDS and Intravenous Drug Use
12. International Drug Control and HIV/AIDS
13. Cultivation and Drug Production: The Environmental Costs
14. Anti-Drug Policies and the Environment: The Role of Chemical Fumigation
15. The New Magic Bullet: Bio-Control Solutions
16. A Note on Hemp

Promotional Information

Presents a critique of global policies of prohibition and the 'war on drugs'. Using well-known drugs, this book explains the political economy of narcotics production and consumption. It is useful for students with helpful maps, tables, and chapter bibliographies.

About the Author

Dr JULIA BUXTON teaches in the Department of Peace Studies at the University of Bradford. She is a specialist in conflict and Latin America and her books include The Failure of Political Reform in Venezuela (Ashgate, 2001).

Reviews

Julia Buxton's compelling book provides an account of the history and impacts of international drugs control, and argues that current prohibition policies not only fail, but are counter-productive.
*Neil Spicer, Druglink, May/June 2008*

Buxton presents a lucid, compelling critical analysis of the US policies regarding illegal drugs...Buxton provides a logical, rational analysis of America's longest war and the failure of US policy to control the narcotic drug trade. This volume should be mandatory reading for US drug policy makers and will be valuable for academics and social scientists as well.
*J.S. Robey, Choice*

The ambivalence and confusion surrounding drugs, what they are, what they do and why they are demanded and supplied needs open, democratic debate. Julia Buxton's The Political Economy of Narcotics sheds invaluable light, raising important issues for discussion which government and society ignore at our peril.
*Mike Davis, CHARTIST*

Buxton does a good job of undermining the case for prohibition. Excellent sources and extensive bibliography [in the book] is a credit to her clear analysis. Her style may be a little cool, but this is authoritative, provocative and just the kind of thing Sunday newspapers should be carrying on the news feature pages..
*Phil Chamberlain, Tribune*