CIAO DATE: 04/03

Lessons of the “War” on Drugs for the “War” on Terrorism

Abstract

Efforts to prevent repetitions of the September 11 incidents have begun to be called “the war on terror.” This suggests analogies to the “war on drugs,” and there have been attempts to use these comparisons to draw conclusions about the appropriate shape and likely success of the anti-terrorism campaigns. Making new problems seem familiar by seeking out analogies is both a natural psychological response and a rational analytical strategy.

In this paper, we argue that the similarities between the problem of illicit drug distribution and the problem of foreign-based terrorist activity go deeper than the “war” metaphor. In each case, the problem is both important and somewhat inchoate. In each case, the problem has both domestic and transnational aspects. In each case, law enforcement is indispensable but not itself a complete solution. In each case, there is great reluctance to accept an ongoing high level of damage but great difficulty in formulating a strategy to bring that damage down to a level that seems acceptable. In each case, the tendency to think that “tougher is better” may not be justified by results. In each case, coordinating efforts across governments, across levels of government, across agencies, among disciplines, and across the public, private, and civic sectors is both highly important and very difficult.

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