November 30, 1999

by Peter J.M. Orvetti

Importing Drug Dealers
Taiwan-China Trade?
In The Year 2000

Importing Drug Dealers

Ten days after a bomb exploded in Bogota in what has been interpreted as a warning to the United States, accused Colombian heroin exporter Jaime Orlando Lara has been extradited to the United States. The transfer was the first time in nearly a decade Colombia has turned over one of its nationals to stand trial in the United States. Despite a terrorist campaign intended to prevent extraditions, President Andres Pastrana signed Lara's extradition papers just hours after explosion, which killed eight bystanders. "In compliance with that executive decision, this citizen was transferred today to the United States," said Gen. Ismael Trujillo of the judicial police in Bogota.

Back in 1993, Ted Galen Carpenter issued recommendations that, unfortunately, are still relevant as the "drug war" wears on, in the Cato Foreign Policy Briefing "Declaring an Armistice in the International Drug War". "The administration should immediately declare an armistice in the international phase of the drug war. The 'supply-side' campaign waged by the Reagan and Bush administrations throughout Latin America was an exercise in destructive futility. Washington's 'Ugly American' tactics caused horrendous social and economic problems in the drug-source countries, undermined their fragile democratic systems, and poisoned U.S. relations with those societies."

In the Cato Foreign Policy Briefing "Special Operations Military Training Abroad and Its Dangers", released in June, John Rudy and Ivan Eland wrote: "In one of the most dramatic shifts in U.S. defense policy since the Cold War, the U.S. military has independently initiated and strengthened military-to-military relationships with a majority of the world's nations. A prime tool in the construction of this new network is the Joint Combined Exchange Training (JCET) program, which allows the Pentagon to deploy Special Operations Forces (SOF) anywhere without congressional oversight or public debate. The only requirement for such deployments is that the ostensible primary purpose be the training of U.S. SOF personnel. JCET, however, has clearly become a tool for another purpose: advancing sometimes dubious foreign policy goals. Although the program has received justified criticism for the human rights violations of some of the foreign troops trained, the grave implications extend beyond human rights issues. Through JCET deployments, the Pentagon is provided the man-power to train and influence foreign militaries and governments, thus effectively carrying out its own mini foreign policy. This autonomous foreign policy risks entangling the United States in petty conflicts and militarizing U.S. relations with other nations." The Cato Handbook for Congress (pdf) also addresses the international war on drugs.

Taiwan-China Trade?

James Soong, an independent candidate for president of Taiwan, wants to eliminate all restrictions on investment in China and seek closer ties with the mainland if elected, AP reports. Soong says that the current policies aimed at discouraging investment in China clash with the global trend of breaking down economic barriers. Soong said the restrictions, along with a ban on direct trade, transportation and communication with China, will be hard to maintain once Taiwan joins the World Trade Organization.

"China Needs Trade to Change", writes James A. Dorn in a commentary: "What must be done now is to recognize that the only viable way to undermine the hard-liners and to help the Chinese people move toward a more prosperous, freer, and peaceful future is to continue our policy of engagement. Congress must make sure that U.S. security is not compromised -- but too often national security is used to justify purely protectionist motives aimed more at saving U.S. jobs than U.S. lives. America needs a principled trade policy that protects private property and freedom of contract while at the same time guarding against the transfer of sensitive technology that could be used to enhance China's military capability… Deepening and stabilizing commercial ties between the leader of the free world and the PRC will assist those who wish to build a freer and more open society. Both Hong Kong and Taiwan support a policy of engagement and have recommended strongly that China be admitted to the WTO. Even former Chinese student rights' activist Li Lu, now an investment banker in Los Angeles, has argued in favor of normal trade relations with China--on the basis that trade is the one path that is open to the West to bring about real change in China."

In The Year 2000

With just over a month left until January 2000 and following the network broadcast of a Y2K scare movie, the federal government is making its final preparations for possible repercussions of the 2000 date change. Federal regulators are reminding banks they need to watch out for computer hackers and other potential threats during the Year 2000 transition period while the Securities and Exchange Commission said last week the nation's brokerage firms all appear ready for the date change. House Y2K watchdog Rep. Stephen Horn (R-Calif.) last week gave the government a B+ for its Y2K efforts.

One concern that was settled last spring was the dispute over liability rights should Y2K failures occur. Doug Bandow addressed this matter in the commentary "Y2K: The Legal Liability Millennium?": "The coming new millennium means different things to different people. Some fatalists believe it presages the end of the world. Some religious people believe it portends the return of Christ. Some lawyers believe it promises yet another financial cornucopia. Hundreds of disputes over the Y2K bug have already been settled out of court and at least 100 lawsuits have been filed. Several are class actions. One plaintiff alleges everything but the kitchen sink: fraud and deceptive trade practices, breaches of express and implied warranties, and negligence.

"Moreover, a number of cases in states like California and New York have been dismissed without prejudice, meaning they can be refiled, since no injury has yet occurred. Come Jan. 1 they are likely to reappear, along with a flood of new actions. Presumably at least some software makers should be liable for at least some of the expense of fixing the Y2K bug. Yet the issue is complex. Given the cost of memory and perceived half-life of software at the time, designers could be seen as having acted reasonably." The Cato Handbook for Congress (pdf) also tackles the Y2K issue.