Article

2003-12-07 Afghanistan

Russian Deputy Drug Czar: US soldiers becoming drug addicts in Afghanistan

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Posted by Steve White 2003-12-07 12:55:27 AM|| || Front Page|| [4 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 Steve, not only do they want to smear our troops, but they want to make their own mistakes during the debacle of the (Soviet) Russian war/takeover there look more "excusable."
Undoubtedly, more than one Russki soldier returned home from Aghanistan in the '80's addicted to horse.
Poor bastards.
Leave it to Drudge to feature this story, however.

Posted by Jennie Taliaferro 2003-12-7 1:19:48 AM|| [http://www.greatestjeneration.com] 2003-12-7 1:19:48 AM|| Front Page Top

#2 The young people I know that are doing service today are not druggie types, very uncool. And let me tell you I've known the problem. Let the ghosts go.

Posted by Lucky 2003-12-7 1:32:56 AM|| 2003-12-7 1:32:56 AM|| Front Page Top

#3 I doubt this story not.As a former US Army member
I dabbled in narcotics(Heroin,Opium)for the first
time while serving active duty in Germany.Drug use
was not uncommon even during the Reagan era when
random urine tests were first instituted on a
regular basis.Given the boredom and stress of duty
in the military combined with youthful curiousity,
availability of high grade heroin at cheap prices,
I'm not surprised if the Pravda story is true.

Posted by Anonymous 2003-12-7 1:38:54 AM|| 2003-12-7 1:38:54 AM|| Front Page Top

#4 Well, if the soldiers are on deployment, and beer isn't available due to "cultural sensitivity" or some such crap, then yeah, some soldiers might get thier fix elsewhere.

However, I doubt the problem is really widespread to the point where it's having an effect on discipline or operations. Ase Jennie said above, this smacks of projection a little.

Posted by Pete Stanley 2003-12-7 1:55:15 AM|| 2003-12-7 1:55:15 AM|| Front Page Top

#5 This strikes me as a "grain of truth" story. I agree with comments above...but are adequate random drug tests being performed? Better safe than very, very sorry.

Posted by B 2003-12-7 4:28:35 AM|| 2003-12-7 4:28:35 AM|| Front Page Top

#6 "several occurrences of drug addiction" implies "They donât have control of the situation". Yeah right.

Posted by Rafael 2003-12-7 7:08:11 AM|| 2003-12-7 7:08:11 AM|| Front Page Top

#7 Grrrrrrr. What a waste of time - but I can't just let it go by.

1) This is Pravda. P R A V D A. Remember? PRAVDA.

2) "several" occurrences is crap. Numbers or piss off. This the Beeb / NYT calculated vagueness - loaded with implication, utterly unproven and undocumented. What tripe.

3) Anonymous ("I doubt this story not.") - I believe you not, dood. The VAST majority of service men and women are intelligent clear-headed adults with personal ethics and values - an all-volunteer force. The doper mentality went the way of the adolescent pimple-ridden draftees. I pulled my time during the height of the draft - and saw them up close. And when the draft went away the transition to a professional corps came. The majority of the twits have weeded themselves out over time. There may be a few who lack an internal compass or become weak, but they are definitely the exception - which makes this vague broad indictment stink like road-kill. Don't paint these troopers with your brush - when you dabbled, you disgraced yourself. Your vacuous and lame self-justifications are an insult to hundreds of thousands of real men and women - honorable gutsy quality men & women. Time for your rehab meeting, man.

Posted by .com 2003-12-7 7:50:57 AM|| 2003-12-7 7:50:57 AM|| Front Page Top

#8 .com - you I completely agree with you. But what good does it do to get upset that the Beeb and Pravda are attempting to smear our troops? Even if it's a complete lie or if we are only talking about the possibility of "a few who lack an internal compass or become weak..."shouldn't the powers that be ask themselves if there could be some truth to this - even if on a tiny scale. The drugs are readily available and kicks are hard to find. All teenagers are young, impressionable and stupid...no matter how smart or professional they may be for their age. I don't find it incomprehensible that there could be a kernel of truth to this. Better for the brass to quietly address the possibility than to hide from it.

Posted by B 2003-12-7 11:49:24 AM|| 2003-12-7 11:49:24 AM|| Front Page Top

#9 When I was a Division Officer in the early 90's, I had several sailors fail urinalysis for THC. They were processed out for their bad decisions. I don't know whether they were the exception or the rule.

I do know that hair clipping tests are much harder to fake as long as the person taking the sample is not dirty. I hope we have upgraded to this method. I had my first hair test at my employment physical for GM - a big company that doesn't move to new technology unless it is generally accepted.

I doubt the Russians have the budget for drug screening - a definite problem. The Soviets certainly didn't during their Afghan War. In my day the drug prevention method the Soviets employed in their navy was to never let their sailors into foriegn ports. A six-month deployment for a Soviet ship was a six-month anchorage near a strategic chokepoint, for example, in the Gulf of Oman.

I am reaonably sure that our 18 year old kids will make some bad decisions even today, but as long as the zero toleratnce policy remains in effect, readiness will not suffer.

Remember also that the Soviet soldiers were drafted, low paid cannon fodder in the middle of an unpopular war. The took heavy casualties in an enviroment that resembled hell-on-earth. Their forces in Afghanistan ought to be used as an example to our media of what morale problems really look like.

Posted by Super Hose 2003-12-7 12:04:12 PM|| 2003-12-7 12:04:12 PM|| Front Page Top

#10 I remember reading reports that up to 40% of the people in some Russian units in Afghanistan had serious drug problems. These were military reports, with good sources and solid information. The Russians truly suffered "Vietnam" in Afghanistan. I also know that many otherwise fine young soldiers and airmen were summarily discharged for testing positive to THC. In Germany, I saw four CIVILIANS fired within six days of commanders getting the results of their drug tests. The US didn't - and still doesn't - fool around. There may be a problem. I doubt it's a SERIOUS problem, and it's one that has a well-established, fast, and effective solution. There are NO repeat offenders - the offenders are almost always out the first time.

PRAVDA is supposed to mean "Truth". Actually, the situation is more like a mirror image - anything they say is 180 degrees out from the truth!

Posted by Old Patriot 2003-12-7 12:26:37 PM|| [http://users.codenet.net/mweather/default.htm] 2003-12-7 12:26:37 PM|| Front Page Top

#11 PRAVDA is supposed to mean "Truth".

And Isvestia (sp?) means news.

Maybe the old Soviet Union era joke still applies. - Isvestia is rarely pravda, and pravda is rarely isvestia.

Posted by phil_b 2003-12-7 3:40:31 PM|| 2003-12-7 3:40:31 PM|| Front Page Top

#12 I wonder what the drug abuse stats are in the Russian military in the Chechnya theater of operations? Smear not, yet you yourself be smeared? So to speak...

Posted by Alaska Paul 2003-12-7 3:52:11 PM|| 2003-12-7 3:52:11 PM|| Front Page Top

#13 A six-month deployment for a Soviet ship was a six-month anchorage near a strategic chokepoint, for example, in the Gulf of Oman.

Ah, so you saw the 'rustbucket fleet' too.

O.P. is right - a lot of things tightened up, especially in the latter part of the Reagan era.

It's possible that Mikhailov has some semi-correct info, but I doubt it (then again -we are talking about the Army here ). Perhaps the Russian Deputy State Drug Controller would better spend his valuable time taking care of his own mess.

Posted by Pappy 2003-12-7 3:55:34 PM|| 2003-12-7 3:55:34 PM|| Front Page Top

#14 .com - indeed we are. On the bright side, this is the kind of stuff that just makes the Beeb/Pravda et al less credible every day. And BTW.. I also agree we need to keep calling them on it. Lies repeated often enough, without being challenged, quickly become The Truth(TM).

Posted by B 2003-12-7 4:04:06 PM|| 2003-12-7 4:04:06 PM|| Front Page Top

#15 The Russians weren't the only ones with a drug problem in Afghanistan. The Jihadis themselves were users (though probably not abusers) with the belief that opium (or whatever) would make you a fearless fighter. It probably did too. I bet when the Russians discovered this, they wanted to try it as well. But combined with bad tactics, the results were disastrous, whereas the Jihadis were atleast semi-successful (semi, because without the help from the US, who knows how it might have turned out).

Posted by Rafael 2003-12-7 4:41:11 PM|| 2003-12-7 4:41:11 PM|| Front Page Top

#16 I doubt the validity of this story, but there might be a tiny kernel of truth to drug use by some troops. However, it has nothing to do with heroin or opium.

Methamphetamine use by troops is sort of a dirty little secret, because it's actually issued to some troops that do some certain types of operations. There's a history of issuing speed to troops, it was part of rations for aircrews in WW2 (hence the meth angle to biker gangs), also to some infantry units and OSS types, SOG in Vietnam. Most likely the guys that are doing the same kind of missions now are probably using something to keep themselves 'alert' (i.e., they're speeding their balls off). I wouldn't be surprised if somebody picked up on it and is trying to smear it around.

Posted by Anonymous 2003-12-7 5:00:19 PM|| 2003-12-7 5:00:19 PM|| Front Page Top

#17 interesting that the above comment - glibly contending that our troops use speed much in the same way that I drink coffee - was signed by Anonymous. Makes me disbelieve it's merit.

Posted by B 2003-12-7 6:39:55 PM|| 2003-12-7 6:39:55 PM|| Front Page Top

#18 Yeah, "B" is such a unique identifier, it lends you so much credibility. Whatever. In any case, it's not my job to cure you of your ignorance. I suggest you go read something like The Raid and pull your obnoxious head out of your ass. If Simons says some of his guys would use dexadrine during ops, I would tend to believe him.

Posted by Anonymous 2003-12-7 6:50:39 PM|| 2003-12-7 6:50:39 PM|| Front Page Top

#19 Except that "B" has been posting here for a while, and has a consistent writing style. In other words, he has a rep.

Posted by Robert Crawford 2003-12-7 7:22:17 PM|| [http://www.kloognome.com/] 2003-12-7 7:22:17 PM|| Front Page Top

#20 Speed abuse is an interesting idea, if we are still issuing it we need to stop. I think anyone who has neglected a term paper and done an allnighter with Nodoze will attest that coherent thought is not a charecteristic of "speeding."

"Alert" does not imply capable of making intelligent decisions. The Spec Ops boys demonstrate too much restraint with thier target differentiation to be speed freaks.

Posted by Super Hose 2003-12-7 7:47:52 PM|| 2003-12-7 7:47:52 PM|| Front Page Top

#21 RE:Comment # 7
1)Hey just imagine that,a newspaper that would go
so far as to sensationalize a story to sell more
copies.I am just shocked! You are so astute,.com.

2)I'd like to see numbers,too.

3)I've nothing better to do with my time than make
up fictionalized accounts of drug use in the U.S.
military.Whether you believe me makes not a tiny
bit of difference.If anything,I've soft soaped my
post on drug use upon military bases. Hashish was
readily available and was commonly smoked by the
enlisted men & women I knew,from E-2's through
E8's.Mandrax(a British form of Quaalude)was quite
common in the off base bars and discos frequented
by soldiers.Several other varieties of cannabis
other than hashish were also readily available.
Heroin,Opium & Cocaine were less visible but they
were nonetheless quite available both on and off
base.The Germans and the Turks who did most of
the selling of these aformentioned illegal drugs
were regulars & well known by both servicemen and
civilian employees on my base in Augsburg,West
Germany(Flak Kaserne)as well as on Reese and on
Sheridan Kaserne,the other two main bases in town.
Listen up,I am not condoning nor condemning drugs
or the use of them.I'm not as morally superior as
you think you most obviously are,.cum.If you had
read my post clearly,then you'd see that I am not
isssuing any sort of broad,sweeping indictment but
simply saying that the possibility does exist that
some US servicemen just may be using drugs.SHOCK! SHOCK! The USA is the worlds largest consumer of illegal drugs,ya know.Check it it's a fact jack.
You are right(even though this pains me to admit
that anything you say could possibly be right),
that the majority of servicemen and women are
clearheaded,upstanding individuals.However,much to
your dismay,.scum,some of these good people have
used,will use or are using drugs of one sort or
another,alcohol included ,just as I myself did and
was honest enough to admit.Chalk it up to simple
youthful folly or just plain stupidity,basically
I think those are one and the same.As far as me
disgracing myself,I hardly think so,.crum.If this
is the case a large part of this country is along
for the ride.I went to college after serving my 4 years active duty,graduated,have gone on to enjoy
a well paying job & career,gotten married,had a
couple kids,do volunteer work with kids from less
than fortunate backgrounds and generally lead a
quite happy and well balanced existence.As far as
the drugs go,I haven't done any since the junior year of my college days(Imagine that smoking pot in college,oh my!).Oh yeah by the by, my vacuous
(Ooooooh,you got a thesaurus!)self justifications
are none of the kind.I did what I did because I
wanted do.I accept full responsibility for all of
my own behavior.Period.The next time that you read
read with your brain,you cretin and don't you ever
call me "dude" again......

Posted by David H.James 2003-12-7 11:14:48 PM|| 2003-12-7 11:14:48 PM|| Front Page Top

#22 Passion, bitter passion. What came before is not what is today.

Posted by Lucky 2003-12-8 12:16:35 AM|| 2003-12-8 12:16:35 AM|| Front Page Top

00:43 Rex Mundi
00:26 Rex Mundi
00:25 tu3031
00:22 TPF
00:16 Lucky
00:09 Rex Mundi
23:59 Rex Mundi
23:50 Lucky
23:35 Lucky
23:34 snellenr
23:25 PBMcL
23:14 David H.James
23:08 Cyber Sarge
23:00 snellenr
22:54 flash91
22:54 NotMikeMoore
22:49 Glenn (not Reynolds)
22:42 NotMikeMoore
22:40 snellenr
22:35 snellenr
22:30 NotMikeMoore
22:29 Glenn (not Reynolds)
22:13 .com
22:10 Super Hose