Australian troops using hard drugs in Afghanistan, Iraq

[AlphaCentauri]

Source: The Sunday Mail

DIGGERS are using cocaine, heroin and other hard drugs while on tours of duty in Afghanistan and are returning home as addicts.

New Freedom of Information figures reveal hundreds of soldiers, sailors and airmen have tested positive to a string of illegal drugs since troops were sent to Afghanistan and Iraq.

Young Diggers Australia president John Jarrett said soldiers were mainly developing addictions to cocaine, a drug which is "as cheap as chips" in Afghanistan, The Sunday Mail reports.

"Soldiers (are) going over there, from NSW, healthy and normal, and coming back with all kinds of addictions," said Mr Jarrett, a Vietnam veteran.

"I do know the Australian Defence Force (ADF) is very concerned about the problem.

"We're seeing cocaine and marijuana as the major ones, but there's heroin around and all sorts of other drugs. Cocaine is the biggest problem though, because it's as cheap as chips."


The ADF personnel are understood to be using marijuana and cocaine illicitly to medicate themselves for psychological problems developed overseas.



Read more: http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,26383276-421,00.html

[BunkerHill24]

1. NATO has no discipline force in Afghanistan....n/t

[Journeyman]

2. Wow. Ya think? . . .

Grunts in a senseless conflict in a strange land far from home, fear and boredom their constant companions, drugs available all around . . . who'd a thunk they'd choose oblivion in place of their unpleasant reality?

Where in history might insight for such action be starkly illustrated?

Why is my history -- so very, very short though it be -- seemingly impossible to be remembered by the fools who give the orders?

[glinda]

3. The easiest way to control, people is with drugs. I suspect they are keeping the

drug addiction issues under wraps as am sure we are going to have tons and tons of addicts.

[jasi2006]

4. Just think what Austrailia will be like when they return home...

like the US after Viet Nam

[treestar]

5. Interesting, maybe this applies across the board

To Americans and others who are there.

[shadowknows69]

6. Um, yeah, so are our people. Lot's of them.

[jwirr]

7. Having lived through the Vietnam War I can say that if they are using

then so are our troops. They will come home addicted just like my cousin in Nam and many of the WWII troops came home as alcoholics. This is one of the really bad side issues of war.

[WriteDown]

8. Aussies just know how to party. nt

[L0oniX]

9. I am sure that they are not the only troops using drugs over there.

[AlphaCentauri]

10. and maybe they are buying the drugs from the insurgents

don't know