Buried By a Tropical Snowstorm

U.S. Agents Wage a Fierce But Losing Campaign Against Smugglers

Not long ago in the woods of Georgia, a black bear wandering in search of food came across an air-dropped duffel bag packed with about 75 lbs. of cocaine. The animal proceeded to nibble at the coke until it died from an overdose. At about the same time in Haiti, millions of dollars' worth of poorly aimed cocaine packages fell upon an isolated farming village. The natives tried to make the mysterious substance into a whitewash for their huts but discovered it worked better as a foot powder and diaper-rash treatment. They began selling it for about $50 a kilogram (actual...

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