growing, selling, consuming and outlawing of illegal drugs around the world is a complex mix of economics, politics and world culture. There are silly conspiracies. Some folks believe that the moon landing was faked (those were close-up photos of oatmeal). Others believe that the Woodstock Festival never occurred (it was contrived by the media). Still others believe that Elvis Presley’ s death was fabricated (he’ s alive in Las Vegas, working as an Elvis impersonator). And surely there must be others who are convinced that militant vegetarian activists are responsible for Mad Cow disease. Sometimes silly conspiracists get results. In 1995, Indiana transportation officials were forced to alter the maintenance codes marked on the back of highway signs because some state residents were convinced that the markings were coded messages designed to assist invading UN troops. And there are serious conspiracies. Gasoline refiners conspire to limit supply and fix prices. The relationship between doctors and pharmaceutical companies is blatantly conspiratorial. Douglas Valentine wrote in 7he Phoenix Program (about the CIA’ s notorious terrorist campaign against Vietnamese villagers) that in 1968 the Army’ s 111th Military Intelligence Group kept Martin Luther King under 24-hours-a-day HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_015262