(2005-05-03) Lind Gangs Vs State

William Lind on Gangs and Guerilla vs the Nation-State. Meanwhile, drug smugglers and guerrilla forces like the FARC work together more easily than states do. The state system is old, creaky, formalistic and slow. Drug dealing and guerrilla warfare represent a Free Market, where deals happen fast. Several years ago, a Marine friend went down to Bolivia as part of the U.S. counter-drug (War On Drugs) effort. He observed that the drug traffickers went through Boyd Cycle or OODA Loop six times in the time it took us to go through it once... How long will it be before AlQaeda and other Islamic non-state forces make their own alliances with the drug gangs and people smugglers who are experts in getting across America's southern border? Or use the excellent distribution systems the drug gangs have throughout the United States to smuggle something with a bigger bang than the best cocaine?