It's like it is turning into Chicago or Detroit or something. Every day someone else is getting shot or stabbed and it seems worse now than I can ever remember as long as I have been in the area. I used to not be scared of anywhere in Lexington. Now, it seems that it isn't safe anywhere in that town.

 

I wish I had the numbers. Has the Herald-Leader done a story on the rise of violent crimes in Lexington this year? If so, please provide the link. If they haven't then they need to get on it.

It's like it is turning into Chicago or Detroit or something. Every day someone else is getting shot or stabbed and it seems worse now than I can ever remember as long as I have been in the area. I used to not be scared of anywhere in Lexington. Now, it seems that it isn't safe anywhere in that town.

 

I wish I had the numbers. Has the Herald-Leader done a story on the rise of violent crimes in Lexington this year? If so, please provide the link. If they haven't then they need to get on it.

 

If it's anything like Louisville then a lot of it is related to the drug trade. Louisville did a great job of taking a big bite out of meth production and distribution over the last decade. It's way down and they've gotten really good at finding and destroying meth labs.

 

Unfortunately, a big rise in heroin has come right in to take its place. Heroin is everywhere and its causing all sorts of mayhem.

If it's anything like Louisville then a lot of it is related to the drug trade. Louisville did a great job of taking a big bite out of meth production and distribution over the last decade. It's way down and they've gotten really good at finding and destroying meth labs.

 

Unfortunately, a big rise in heroin has come right in to take its place. Heroin is everywhere and its causing all sorts of mayhem.

 

I'm guessing it is drug related or drug fueled. It's out of hand in Lexington. I don't remember it ever being this violent. A woman was shot on her porch in broad daylight yesterday.

I'm guessing it is drug related or drug fueled. It's out of hand in Lexington. I don't remember it ever being this violent. A woman was shot on her porch in broad daylight yesterday.

 

The Herion explosion has caught most of Kentucky and Ohio off guard.

As pot prices have dropped pot farmers in Mexico have transitioned over to Poppy farming.

 

Reason #437 to seal the dang Border!!! Right now Heroin is just walking across the border in back packs and making it's way north.

As pot prices have dropped pot farmers in Mexico have transitioned over to Poppy farming.

 

Reason #437 to seal the dang Border!!! Right now Heroin is just walking across the border in back packs and making it's way north.

 

Legalize it and take organized crime out of it :jump:

As pot prices have dropped pot farmers in Mexico have transitioned over to Poppy farming.

 

Reason #437 to seal the dang Border!!! Right now Heroin is just walking across the border in back packs and making it's way north.

 

Read an article the other day that as it's already gotten more difficult to cross the border from Mexico, the Caribbean into Florida has re-emerged as the pipeline it once was in the 1980s. If there's demand in the US, they'll find a way to get it in.

Read an article the other day that as it's already gotten more difficult to cross the border from Mexico, the Caribbean into Florida has re-emerged as the pipeline it once was in the 1980s. If there's demand in the US, they'll find a way to get it in.

 

True, but we don't need to make it easy by leaving the back door open.

Could be worse...could live in Chicago...

82 shot, 14 wounded in Chicago 4th of July weekend shootings, report says - CBS News

Drug trade fueled by the cartels in Mexico and South America and the battles for turf from illegals and those established. It will only get worse with the influx of illegals

If it's anything like Louisville then a lot of it is related to the drug trade. Louisville did a great job of taking a big bite out of meth production and distribution over the last decade. It's way down and they've gotten really good at finding and destroying meth labs.

 

Unfortunately, a big rise in heroin has come right in to take its place. Heroin is everywhere and its causing all sorts of mayhem.

The meth just moved across the river.

As pot prices have dropped pot farmers in Mexico have transitioned over to Poppy farming.

 

Reason #437 to seal the dang Border!!! Right now Heroin is just walking across the border in back packs and making it's way north.

 

 

It's my understanding that black tar heroin has had a pretty firm hold in the border drug trade for awhile. Areas like the Delta have been affected for some time now and it's not really anything new.

 

I'm doubting that, for people who are actually smuggling massive amounts of heroin across the border, there's some type of thinking like, "man, we're going to get so rich off these people in Kentucky". It's probably just more of a thing where the same amount is coming across but middlemen in Spot B are now getting it instead of middlemen in Spot A.

 

 

From what I read in local (SA) papers, the cartels #1 moneymaker in the drug trade is still marijuana production, and it's not even close. (Side note: I've also read that Cartels are now trying to use more legitimized businesses, e.g., mining, as a way of laundering money and that they are definitely trying to 'diversify' away from just the drug trade and human trafficking).

 

I'm not really sure how many independent "pot farmers" there are in Mexico, because I'm under the impression that those activities are pretty large scale, and, again, controlled by large Cartel enterprises. That's probably a really risky venture for someone who isn't doing it with the Cartel's blessing.

 

I'm also not sure it's really fair to say that heroin is just walking across the border in backpacks. The trip that many people are making when they try to come in is quite dangerous and a dog-eat-dog world. I really doubt they are coming through areas controlled by cartels and/or local gangs carrying significant amounts of drugs and those drugs aren't just being taken by whoever is controlling the area.

 

Don't take the above to mean that I don't think any heroin is coming across the border or that I don't think border security is important, just that I'm not sure that illegal immigration is suspect #1 here. Now, if the issue is Cartels, then I think that's a better point, but nothing about Cartels really strikes me as them being the types who rely on walking it across in a backpack to meet demand and aren't really the same issue as illegal immigration.

 

 

 

As far as why heroin has caught on in Central KY recently, I think the best guess is speculation that much of the current demand is correlated to newer laws that have made highly addictive pain killers like oxycontin, etc. much more difficult to get. The guess is that, in effect, the new laws in one area created a hole in the supply side of the equation that got filled with something worse because that worse thing was cheaper and, in many ways, easier to acquire. Now, that isn't to say laws that imposed tougher restrictions on prescribing strong painkillers, cracked down on pill mills, etc. weren't needed. In fact, I'd say it's just the opposite, as those were badly needed. It’s basically that Kentucky just put the lid on one problem and then another one popped up like a game of Whack-A-Mole.

 

Right now, it seems that there's a lot of focus on improving the situation (locally). Lawmakers and the media are discussing stiffer penalties for trafficking, more awareness and education on the issues associated with it, etc. Things like that are definitely a good start and will hopefully help, but will probably only go so far at the same time. I'm not saying people shouldn't try or that everyone should just give up and quit trying to fight it, just that I don't really have a good answer to how to end it.

In the first seven months of 2014 there has been 11 homicides. There were nine in 2013, six in 2012 & 13 in 2011 during the same time. Maybe it seems so bad because they've come in such a spree.

It's my understanding that black tar heroin has had a pretty firm hold in the border drug trade for awhile. Areas like the Delta have been affected for some time now and it's not really anything new.

 

I'm doubting that, for people who are actually smuggling massive amounts of heroin across the border, there's some type of thinking like, "man, we're going to get so rich off these people in Kentucky". It's probably just more of a thing where the same amount is coming across but middlemen in Spot B are now getting it instead of middlemen in Spot A.

 

 

From what I read in local (SA) papers, the cartels #1 moneymaker in the drug trade is still marijuana production, and it's not even close. (Side note: I've also read that Cartels are now trying to use more legitimized businesses, e.g., mining, as a way of laundering money and that they are definitely trying to 'diversify' away from just the drug trade and human trafficking).

 

I'm not really sure how many independent "pot farmers" there are in Mexico, because I'm under the impression that those activities are pretty large scale, and, again, controlled by large Cartel enterprises. That's probably a really risky venture for someone who isn't doing it with the Cartel's blessing.

 

I'm also not sure it's really fair to say that heroin is just walking across the border in backpacks. The trip that many people are making when they try to come in is quite dangerous and a dog-eat-dog world. I really doubt they are coming through areas controlled by cartels and/or local gangs carrying significant amounts of drugs and those drugs aren't just being taken by whoever is controlling the area.

 

Don't take the above to mean that I don't think any heroin is coming across the border or that I don't think border security is important, just that I'm not sure that illegal immigration is suspect #1 here. Now, if the issue is Cartels, then I think that's a better point, but nothing about Cartels really strikes me as them being the types who rely on walking it across in a backpack to meet demand and aren't really the same issue as illegal immigration.

 

 

 

As far as why heroin has caught on in Central KY recently, I think the best guess is speculation that much of the current demand is correlated to newer laws that have made highly addictive pain killers like oxycontin, etc. much more difficult to get. The guess is that, in effect, the new laws in one area created a hole in the supply side of the equation that got filled with something worse because that worse thing was cheaper and, in many ways, easier to acquire. Now, that isn't to say laws that imposed tougher restrictions on prescribing strong painkillers, cracked down on pill mills, etc. weren't needed. In fact, I'd say it's just the opposite, as those were badly needed. It’s basically that Kentucky just put the lid on one problem and then another one popped up like a game of Whack-A-Mole.

 

Right now, it seems that there's a lot of focus on improving the situation (locally). Lawmakers and the media are discussing stiffer penalties for trafficking, more awareness and education on the issues associated with it, etc. Things like that are definitely a good start and will hopefully help, but will probably only go so far at the same time. I'm not saying people shouldn't try or that everyone should just give up and quit trying to fight it, just that I don't really have a good answer to how to end it.

 

I'm not saying illegal immigrants are the problem, drugs coming across a porous border are.

 

I doubt someone said hey let's get rich off of Kentucky either, but some one made the decision to ramp up Heroin supplies in Cincy/NKY and it is spreading quickly across Ky.

 

Your also correct that cartels probably don't use backpacks to smuggle across the border, they just drive across sometimes under the very protection of the Mexican authorities that should be arresting them.

 

Here is an article that I saw a while back about some farmers switching over and the rise in Heroin...a lot of the end use is due to reduction in availability of drugs like Oxy as you stated...Tracing the U.S. heroin surge back south of the border as Mexican cannabis output falls - The Washington Post

I'm not saying illegal immigrants are the problem, drugs coming across a porous border are.

 

I doubt someone said hey let's get rich off of Kentucky either, but some one made the decision to ramp up Heroin supplies in Cincy/NKY and it is spreading quickly across Ky.

 

Your also correct that cartels probably don't use backpacks to smuggle across the border, they just drive across sometimes under the very protection of the Mexican authorities that should be arresting them.

 

Here is an article that I saw a while back about some farmers switching over and the rise in Heroin...a lot of the end use is due to reduction in availability of drugs like Oxy as you stated...Tracing the U.S. heroin surge back south of the border as Mexican cannabis output falls - The Washington Post

 

 

Gotcha. I see what you were going for now. Also read the article and thought it was good.

 

 

I agree there's too much nonsense that goes on at the Mexican border, but I think if it were taken out of the equation entirely, it just means it comes in through one of our ports or through a different border. Maybe that's enough to make it hard enough and to increase expense so that Cartels don't see it as being worth the cost/trouble too though.

 

 

People might be surprised at how sophisticated some of the Cartel's methods are with some things they do. I think a lot of people in who keep up with public policy, law enforcement, etc. would think it's fair to say that the recent banking fiascos where the US didn't really drop the hammer on banks that were essentially laundering large amounts of cartel money was seen as a disappointment on the US's end.