History

Ibiza: Capital of Rave, Sex and Ecstasy

Spain (and Europe) turn a blind eye to MDMA central; it's good for business

Jul 10 •

Cartel Propaganda Videos - A History

They evolved from splatter movies on VHS to gunmen celebrating Easter on TikTok

Apr 24 •

MS-13: From L.A. Stoners to "Foreign Terrorists"

The Mara Salvatrucha has a crazy bloody history. Is this its final chapter?

Apr 2 •

The True Story of "The French Connection"

Milou worked with the Marseilles mafia to supply Americans with heroin. So did government agencies.

Jan 4 •

Did The U.S. Army Use Sinaloa Dope?

Evidence is confusing on the alleged World War II pact between Washington and Culiacán

Jun 24, 2024 •

When "Los Palillos" Dissolved Bodies in California

The Tijuana Cartel breakaway used a honey trap to seduce victims for their gruesome U.S. murder trail

Mar 15, 2024 •

Cartels As Protection Rackets

How Mexican mobs took over the government’s shake-down industry

Feb 26, 2024 •

Benjamin T. Smith

Mexico's Worst Narco Massacres

Mexico has suffered slaughters like war zones. How do we reckon with them?

Nov 15, 2023 •

How the CIA Promoted Magic Mushrooms

The weirdest story in the drug war connects psychedelics, a Mexican healer, Life magazine and U.S. espionage

Oct 20, 2023 •

America's First Drug Cartel Was Not Colombian or Mexican; It Was The Italian-Jewish Mob

The image of the U.S. mafia shunning drugs is pure Hollywood. Lucky Luciano and Arnold Rothstein built America's narco network.

Sep 11, 2023 •

Chalino, King of the Drug Ballad

I dig deeper into the life of the Sinaloan icon

Jul 21, 2023 •

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