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Surveys the history, structure, and current functions of the Drug Enforcement Administration and describes its influence on modern society. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (9)

It ain't like the movies!
The problem with this book is the same as with all Charles Bowden books, they read like maybe a bad acid trip but you know it was just one of his typical jaunts.You can read it but if you think about it, it will scare you to death knowing it is all true.

Bowden writes in a style I keep wanting to call "straight news poetry." It sometimes seems a tad hard to follow but you eventually realize that is the nature of his subject matter. He does a very good job of conveying the impact of an event without resulting to superlatives, over-hype or trick ponies.The man strings his words together with great skill but I suspect his greater skill is going where others dare not tread, investigating in detail events which frighten away even the state police and he comes back alive to tell it all.
If you can handle the truth about arguably thenastiest business on Earth, step into this book and look through the eyes and mind that spent more than 20 years living not "on the edge" but far beyond.
It is all true with no glitz, no smoke, mirrors or other tricks, no lectures or flashing lights.
Just the facts.
And hard to put down once you get started.

Undercover with a reverse twist
Very well written, if somewhat uneven, this "non fiction novel" traces the career of a master undercover "nark" who slowly comes to realize that the "honor among theives" of the criminals he pursues is to some extent more worthy than the duplicitous code of the cops. Along the way, we are treated to a fascinating tour of the high-stakes underworld of the big time dealers. Very poetic in parts, and leaves one pondering the moral ambiguities of the "war on drugs."

haunting true story of u/c narcotics officer
As he did in Down by the River, Charles Bowden takes the reader deep into the shadow world that is the war on drugs. This book reads like a well crafted literary mystery novel - think Graham Greene or Scott Turow -except it's true.If you read both River and Shadow, you'll get some idea of the personal toll the drug war takes on the cops and their families, and also wonder how they can go out and fight this evil day after day and year after year. Especially since the street agents are the ones who pay the biggest price, while the "suits" play the career game.Joey O'Shea could be the model for Sonny Crockett in Miami Vice.

It ain't a pretty world
I'm an unabashed Bowden fan -- I'd read his grocery list if he published it.This isn't his best book (that honor would lie, in my mind, with either "Blood Orchid" or "Down by the River") and he does things a little differently here, such as using more traditional storytelling devices, such as suspense. That said, I read it straight through, hanging on every word.This is a dark and depressing book -- the kind that made me question not only what kind of world we live in, but also what I even know about the world today.Throughout his entire career, Bowden has worked hard, finding characters such as Joey O'Shay, the undercover drug "warrior" in this book-- and I get the impression that he devours their insanity, insecurities and internal demons and can only try and purge that burden by writing books that the rest of us will then wonder about long after we've finished reading them.There are two main reasons to read this book:One, because it's really good. And two, because smart journalists and great writers such as Bowden are a rarity and deserve to be supported whenever they share their thoughts and experiences with the rest of us.

A Shadow in the City:Confessions of an Undercover Drug Warrior
In the beginning chapters I judged the style as a bit aloof. It does not take long, however for Charles Bowden's wordcraft and narrative style to hook you into the surreal life Joey O'Shay leads.
A Lone Efficient Wolf, down a long hall....in an office, deep inside the belly of the DEA. The Eagle Scout agents will not even walk past his door. It does ones spirit good to know they are not all twisted right wing suits.
I highly recommend this book for those who think they lead a strange life. O'Shay lives in a dimension all his own, and one largely of his own careful making.
I hope he allows us more when he retires. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library's large-scale digitization efforts. The Library seeks to preserve the intellectual content of items in a manner that facilitates and promotes a variety of uses. The digital reformatting process results in an electronic version of the original text that can be both accessed online and used to create new print copies. The Library also understands and values the usefulness of print and makes reprints available to the public whenever possible. This book and hundreds of thousands of others can be found in the HathiTrust, an archive of the digitized collections of many great research libraries. For access to the University of Michigan Library's digital collections, please see http://www.lib.umich.edu and for information about the HathiTrust, please visit http://www.hathitrust.org ... Read more

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This is an inside account of the US Drug Enforcement Agency's struggle to devise effective strategies as it fights the war against drugs. The author, a former New York City prosecutor, takes two of the DEA's top priority operations - Operation Snowcap in Bolivia, where DEA agents dressed and armed like soldiers raid cocaine laboratories in the Amazon jungle and lead paramilitary assaults on traffickers' havens; and Operation Calico, whose target is the Cali Cartel, the most powerful of Colombia's cocaine distribution organizations, accounting for more than half of the US and European consumption. The book portrays the life of the special agent; the excitement, determination and achievements, as well as - more frequently - the frustration, dangers and failures. ... Read more

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The illicit drug trade touches millions of lives in both developed and developing countries, with its most negative impact concentrated among the more vulnerable and marginalized of our societies. Indeed, the United Nations estimates that 180 million people worldwide were consuming drugs in the late 1990s. Economic reliance on the drug trade and drug addiction not only leaves many individuals open to exploitation by criminals and criminal organizations, but also threatens lives, the rule of law, and ultimately, the vitality and strength of our communities. In this Report, the United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention describes and explains the extent and development of this complex problem and the important progress that has been made in recent years. Illustrated with numerous maps, graphs, charts, and tables, it provides unique insight into the realities of the international drug problem and reveals the most complete picture of the extent of the problem. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library's large-scale digitization efforts. The Library seeks to preserve the intellectual content of items in a manner that facilitates and promotes a variety of uses. The digital reformatting process results in an electronic version of the original text that can be both accessed online and used to create new print copies. The Library also understands and values the usefulness of print and makes reprints available to the public whenever possible. This book and hundreds of thousands of others can be found in the HathiTrust, an archive of the digitized collections of many great research libraries. For access to the University of Michigan Library's digital collections, please see http://www.lib.umich.edu and for information about the HathiTrust, please visit http://www.hathitrust.org ... Read more

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Outspoken, no-nonsense, and eminently fascinating, Joseph M. Arpaio captured the public's imagination from his first day as sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona, in 1992.He has become an icon, not only in his own state, but all over the world. For 15 years, he has maintained an unprecedented 80% approval rating. Famous for his "get smart and get tough" approach to jails, "Sheriff Joe," as he is universally known, conceived The Tent City Jail where he houses his inmates in surplus army tents left over from the Korean War. Known as the "Alcatraz of Arizona," the jail features chain gangs and stringent discipline. By eliminating all comforts for his inmates, he has managed to shave $500,000 annually from the cost of keeping prisoners. But he also offers a wide range of educa­tional and therapeutic courses for inmates. To his ardent followers, he is a hero for both his toughness on crime and his sense of humanity. While his opponents decry him for his iron-fisted approach, no one can deny that Sheriff Joe is one of the country's most respected elected officials. Joe's Law is an uncensored look by "America's Toughest Sheriff" at some of the most important and difficult issues facing America today. As the first law enforcement official in the country to arrest illegal immigrants, Arpaio tackles illegal immigration head on--how it intertwines with drug traffick­ing, taxes, and crime, and how it impacts health care and education as well. Arpaio offers innovative and fair ways to solve this dilemma and many others, not only in his own state but throughout the country.Compelling and courageous, this is a candid take on some of America's most pressing social prob­lems, and one man's revolutionary vision for eliminating them. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (42)

Nothing more than a RACIST
Please don't buy this book. If you do you are going to help a RACIST !!

Joe Arpaio has not read his own book, why should you?
If you go to Utube and look up Joe's Law...you'll stumble upon a hearing in which he admits to not knowing the contents of the book, in addition, he states that he has not read his own book.Then he goes on to say that the views reflected on the book are not his own.However he states in the very beginning that he is the main writer of this book.I'd like to see his own review of the book before I buy it myself...he should read his own book right?
[...]

Nativist, racist propaganda
Evil, evil bigot. Hatred for immigrants, stupid on drug policy and downright power hungry. He reminds me of the political bosses prevalent from the earlier part of the 20th century. Shame on you, Joe. Your uniformed fans will perish and your legacy as a racist, nativist, and corrupt "leader" will persist far after your death.

Great service!
I was very pleased with the condition of the book and the speed at which I received it.
Great job! Thanks!

Since Arpaio didn't read this book, You won't want to read it either
Self-promoting politician Joe Arpaio admitted in a deposition on Dec. 16, 2009 that he hasn't read the book, Joe's Law and doesn't agree with everything in it.If you believe in the Bill of Rights, you won't agree with the book either.It's no surprise Joe Arpaio is distancing himself from the jingoistic, nativist rhetoric in the book, since he is being sued for racial profiling. He is also under grand jury investigation for abuse of power.The publisher should change the title to Joe's Law: America's Most Illegal Sheriff Abuses the Rights of Immigrants, and Whoever Else Threatens His Bogus Media Image. ... Read more

Product Description
Over 180 color photos of illicit street drugs including GHB, Rohypnol, ecstasy and jimson weed. It also includes drug paraphernalia, symptoms of influence, effects, duration, methods of ingestion, overdose symptoms, field drug testing procedures, gateway drugs, street slang glossary and more.
224 ... Read more

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The mean streets of Boston in the 1970s played host to a nefarious underworld of pimps, pushers, and addicts, and Paul "Sully" Doyle was there. From Kenmore Square hippies to South Boston junkies to Combat Zone prostitutes, this undercover operative with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration met every type of unsavory character in town in his fight to bust violent rings of dope, coke, and smack dealers during a turbulent era in the city's history.

Now Special Agent Doyle bluntly chronicles the riveting, true stories from his years on the inside. Known on the street by his alias, "Paulie Sullivan," he recalls his rookie days, trying to infiltrate the criminal drug world under the tutelage of his veteran partner, through his coming of age as an experienced narc-sharing his keen observations on ruined lives, personal peril, and government red tape along the way. A former prizefighter not at all shy about punching his way out of trouble, the author divulges a candid, worm's-eye-view of the drug war with all its blemishes and glories. With abiding humanity and graphic detail, the memoir richly describes exploits with junkie stool pigeons and hooker informants, college burnouts and Chinatown mobsters, ghetto pimps and violent thugs, bureaucratic obstacles and uncooperative foreign governments, successful busts and brushes with death. Marijuana, cocaine, heroin, amphetamines, LSD-no illegal substance failed to tempt those seeking the ultimate high, resulting in the long nights, sudden danger, and uncertain outcomes that faced Sully and his partners.

Combining gripping action with perceptive commentary, this unvarnished snapshot of one agent's experiences undercover adeptly captures the violence, futility, and endless frustration of the war on drugs. As engrossing as a fiction thriller, Hot Shots and Heavy Hits provides a rare glimpse into a harsh world unknown to most of us. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

Review
I read a ton of books but I it's rare that I am complled to write a review. I read this book pretty much straight through and totally enjoyed it. The experiences that Doyle had as an undercover agent are told in exciting and passionate fashion. The book is filled with great incite and depth into the life of an undercover agent in the 70's. I think what is important to remember here is that the book is about experiences of an undercover agent in the 70's. While reading I couldn't help but feel that Paul and company were doing their jobs the only way they knew how. The reader has to be cognizant that the DEA was in its infancy and they were making
the rules as they went. We often look at our servicemen and women as hero's, as we should, but remember people like Paul are just as important fighting a war here at home. The only thing the books fails to really delve into is how Paul continued to deal with his fatal encounter and how it effected his family and fellow agents.

Dolye does speak a considerable amout about the where his mind was at immediatly after the shooting but the reader never really finds out how it effected his marriage or his wife's feeling about his job. As far as the other stories in the book and what Paul lead
the reader to believe he was becoming, it's par for the course. There is so much evil in the world and only a few brave men and women that choose to combat it. Paul Doyle is just a man...but a man others that choose his path that will sacrifice personal relationships, their health, and their mortality for the benifit
of the greater good.

Great book
This book is one of the best books I have read in the field of undercover drug work. The book is a very easy read and shows the sacrifice that so many make and never get recognition for. I would strongly recommend this book.

The Fine Line
Paul Doyle shows what a fine line it is law enforcement people have to walk between dealing with the bad guys while not becoming one of them. They must step into a seedy and dangerous world in order to protect the rest of us. Mr. Doyle shows how this can be done while retaining retaining a moral compass. It takes guts and a very strong will do do what this guy has done, and we are all the better for it.
A note on the writing style: This book is an exciting read with a touch of Raymond Chandler's style of prose. Once you begin reading it you will not want to stop, but you will be disappointed there isn't more.

Great book, so realistic!
So far, this book is such an easy read. I really enjoy the author's honesty and his ability to put the reader into the story, right on the streets of Boston. I would absolutely recommend this book.

Kept waiting for the excitement
While the story chapters in the book are individually interesting, they somehow don't make a whole.The book feels choppy, as if it needed additional narrative to make if flow more smoothly.I expected, based on other reviews, to become immersed in the life of a narcotics officer.Just a average read. ... Read more

Product Description
A former DEA chief and a crime journalist present a provocative expose+a7 that explains why federal anti-drug programs have failed, revealing the political machinations and corruption that have undermined anti-drug efforts. 40,000 first printing. $40,000 ad/promo. Tour. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great book
This is a very well-written book that shows both the street work and administrative work done in the DEA. I would strongly recommend this book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is a comprehensive review of information and interventions available in drug misuse to inform local drug policies. In keeping with the policy documents in both Scotland and England, the volume covers the breadth of possible interventions, rather than health care alone. Each chapter dealing with interventions reviews the evidence of effectiveness of competing methods and uses a standard method to indicate the strength of evidence, thereby making comparisons very easy. Although there are specialist textbooks on all aspects of addiction, this book brings together information in the framework used in the policy documents in the UK. ... Read more

Product Description
This manual has been prepared by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Office of Diversion Control, to assist practitioners (physicians, dentists, veterinarians, and other registrants authorized to prescribe, dispense, and administer controlled substances) in their understanding of the Federal Controlled Substances Act and its implementing regulations as they pertain to the practitioner’s profession. ... Read more

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This report examines the federal drug enforcement data reported annually by key agencies charged with enforcing federal drug control laws. As such, this report does not discuss federal prevention and treatment drug control strategies. ... Read more