The "War on Drugs" is linked to many intelligence and 4GW efforts. Note that it isn't the same war, except in some cases like FARC (and the IRA) in Colombia.

Sometimes, too, the links are problematic. Intelligence agencies often work with drug traffickers in various contexts, and some of the congressional legislation that restricted whom the CIA could deal with came about as a result of that.

For most of us, however, the anti-drug "war" is fought in our cities by police. As usual, reality and the portrayal of that reality aren't the same thing. Blogger Justin Sodano pointed me to this interview of David Simon, creator of "Homicide" and now "The Wire". Here's the plot for "The Wire":

"Forced to do damage control, the deputy commissioner orders a joint task force to infiltrate Barksdale's operation in a move that's more P.R.-minded than anything else. Hamstrung by a half-assed investigation, McNulty doggedly pursues the Barksdale crew on his own -- putting his career at risk in the process. Even while his P.R.-minded superiors are content to sweep the case away, McNulty persists and eventually opens up a Pandora's box of bureaucratic intransigence, red tape and possible corruption within the department."

Shades of FBI Agent Rowley. Apparently, Simon says this isn't too far from the actual situation in Baltimore during the late 80s-early 90s.

Aside from these parallels, the other thing I found interesting was Simon's take on the drug war situation, which he sees as an unwinnable effort whose protagonists don't have the motivations you think they do... it's very businesslike or ego-driven, not idealistic.

While I acknowledge that TV producers often have a liberal slant, Simon has done on the ground research here and deserves to be listened to. It's not a view that will go down well with some of you, but this is exactly why we put people on the ground. A Wiretap will never tell you things like this. But someone on the street might.