This Authorized DVD copy is intended for educational purposes only.DVD will come in a blank dvd case with written title — Over 4 years, 4 festival wins - Sold out screenings from California to Manchester England. — Angered b... more »y the death of several family members from the "legal Drugs" of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Pharmaceuticals - Texas filmmaker Kevin Booth delves into a world of deceit and corruption controlled by a drug dealing government who's only allegiance is to its corporate masters.« less
Some good points, but the movie-maker's hang-ups about his parents shine through and cloud this documentary. Repeatedly and needlessly bashing Republicans despite having US Rep Ron Paul and Gov Gary Johnson among other in the GOP supporting his position. Many good points and an angle on meth that I had not previously considered (that it is the modern-day moonshine) have lead me to consider advocating for the complete end to the War on Drugs rather than the much softer position I held previously. The connection between those who own the prisons and those who make the laws to fill the prisons is also another good point. Also explored was the CIA connection to both the heroin trade in Asia and the cocaine distribution in LA. Read both Dark Alliance and The Politics of Heroin to learn more of our government involvement in the proliferation of these drugs in the US.
Movie Reviews
It's not about morality
glashoppah | CA, USA | 04/09/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Understanding the "drug war" is all about understanding profit. Alchohol and tobacco cause problems that folks profit from - drug companies, hospitals, etc. Marijuana on the other hand, which anyone can grow in their backyard, has been shown to be effective in treating a wide range of illnesses that drug companies would like to charge thousands of dollars to treat. The decriminalization of drugs like pot would cut the profits of large industries by huge amounts. Those industries exert enormous political pressure, hence the drug war.
Don't ever think for an instant the Government has your well-being at heart. It cares only about money, and the drug companies line its pockets, both directly and with tax revenue. That's why there's a drug war. It's a war on competition."
This is a very serious movie and I volunteered to appear in
Robert D. Steele | Oakton, VA United States | 04/22/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I must disclose that I came into this movie at the very end when the brilliant producer realized I could provide a few bits that would bring it all together. I volunteered my time because I felt then--and I feel now--that this film was totally righteous. So I am listed as one of the "actors" but unlike some of them for whom file clips were used, I was taped speaking about this specific situation for this specific movie.
Our government is BROKEN. The civil servants and uniformed personnel are good people trapped in a bad system--a cesspool. Standing above them, hoarding the wealth, the power, and the personal privilege, are "elected" officials and their appointed cronies that have no business at all governing this great nation. They are inept and should be dismissed. We need a Constitutional Convention, an end to the Elctoral College, and deep Electoral, Financial, and National Security Reforms.
See also:
Vice: Dick Cheney and the Hijacking of the American Presidency
The Broken Branch: How Congress Is Failing America and How to Get It Back on Track (Institutions of American Democracy)
The Bush Tragedy
I have tagged this DVD with the word treason, because that is what CIA, DEA, the FBI, and the White House are guilty of when they protect drug wholesalers and allow entire neighborhoods to go down the crack drain, not because of Ricky Ross, but because of high crimes and misdemeanors all the way up the chain above him.
In my world, accountability is supposed to start and be enforced from the top down, not the bottom up. I hold John Deutch and later George Tenet accountable for failing to manage all five of the CIAs (the Wall Street CIA, the White House CIA, the front CIA, the paramilitary CIA, and the sodomy Safari Club CIA). I can only imagine the counterparts in DEA and the FBI and other elements of the government with the power to commit treason and get away with it while making a personal profit from the power We the People have assigned to them."
Brilliant
Lloyd G. | Sioux Falls, SD | 04/28/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"American Drug War: The Last White Hope
The subject of America's love for mind-altering substances (legal and illegal) is broad and deep enough to provide material for a dozen documentaries, but Kevin Booth does an excellent job of putting together a coherent two-hour film that takes on several aspects of the drug war. I got this movie two weeks ago in the mail and since then have been trying to make every friend and family member watch it.
That there are over a million non-violent people in jail and prison in this country because of the drug war is beyond absurd. But here we are. And there they are. And only a few politicians dare to question the rationality of criminalizing the very human impulse to feel good. Why? Among other reasons: The money that the prison-industrial complex and the alcohol, tobacco and pharmaceutical industries lavish on politicians ... and the cut of the action that Wall Street and the gov't takes from the illegal drug trade.
Go to YouTube to watch the trailer.
Then buy the movie."
A Documentary worth watching ......
William De Leon | 04/03/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The Booth bros. provide you with information that you believed might be true but until now you never knew how it was possible. This doc is very well made, you can tell this doc was created without bias and shown through the eyes of your every day American citizen. What is shown on the DVD is very disturbing and raises awareness in to the agendas of what our American Government is doing at the citizens expense.
I first saw this movie on showtime, because it sounded interesting but it was more then I bargained for. Very informative and powerful from the people interviewed for the doc to the people higher up who we trust to do the right thing but are just interested in their own agendas. It shows how people are affected by their own governments decisions. I really can't explain how this doc makes someone feel after they watch it but I will quote my girlfriend after she watched it
"American Drug War really shook me up. I think it changed the way I feel about living and breathing in this country and inspired me to act on things that I've always just thought about. It made me very sad in a way, but very enlightened and empowered too. Everyone needs to see this movie. It's affecting all of our lives and no one is talking about it.
It's people like the Booth brothers that can inspire us to become grassroots activists to help people that cannot help themselves. Our government is a big, mean dog and I thank them for being brave enough to stand up to it, and to do it in a way that deserves respect and attention.
I encourage anyone and everyone to purchase this movie."