Mercantilism And Cocaine

Cocaine, a narcotic drug that took the entire world by storm in the 1980’s, has continued to find it’s way into countries all over the world. The drug is a highly addictive stimulant that is extracted from the leaves of the Erythroxylon coca bush, which is indigenous to the Andean highlands of South America. It comes in two main forms, powder and crystalline, also known as “crack” (“Cocaine Use and Its Effects”). Although the short term effects of cocaine seem somewhat harmless, the long term effects are devastating and have ruined the lives of many users. The short and long term effects of cocaine can be seen on Ishmael Beah, and his companions in the novel A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah.

“Cocaine is a naturally occurring chemical found in the leaves of Erythroxylum coca or coca plant, which is native to South America” (Cocaine Hydrochloride). The leaves of the coca plant

What is Cocaine? Cocaine is the most powerful stimulant of natural origin. It is taken from the leaves of the coca plant which is native to the Andean highlands of South America. It is a potent brain stimulant and one of the most addictive drugs. In ancient times, South American natives used coca for religious and medicinal purposes. The natives took advantage of cocaine’s stimulant properties to fight fatigue and hunger or to enhance endurance.

Cocaine (coke) is made from the Erythroxylon coca plant, a coca tree that grows high in the Andes Mountains of South America. The coca farmers' purpose is to pick and

Crack cocaine has been popular since the 1970s and mid 1980s. Crack cocaine is not a new drug; this drug is obtained from coca plant which grows mainly in South America. For many years, the native South American Indians chewed its leaves to develop strength and increased energy. By the 1800s, the cocaine was secluded from its leaves and used as a medicinal drug. By the late 1800s, it was used as an anesthetic and to avert surgical hemorrhage. The next century, people recognized crack cocaine an addictive narcotic and its non-medical use of the drug was ended by the Harrison Narcotics Act in 1914 (“How crack cocaine works?”).

Cocaine is a naturally occurring substance deriving from the Erythroxylum coca plant. The coca plant is autogenous to Indonesia, South America, Mexico and the West Indies. Historically, many cultures have utilized coca leaves for religious and ceremonial applications. Cocaine itself remains prevalent in literary and artist works of many cultures and continues to be represented in archeological finds around the world. In South America the leaves were often chewed to help the indigenous tribes overcome hunger. To many other civilizations it was considered a sacred gift from the gods. Cocaine was often used as local anesthetic for a plethora of ailments.

Cocaine had slowly risen into American Popular Culture, starting with an appeal to the elite class and ending with the Harrison Act of 1914. Employers encouraged the use of the coca leaf among their workers to increase productivity and decrease fatigue. Early physicians would prescribe cocaine to treat everything from morphine addiction to the common cold. Cocaine became a common ingredient in consumer goods. Marketers raved about the amazing effects of cocaine in their advertisements. Early historical figures, including Thomas Edison and Pope Leo XIII, endorsed French coca wine. It was difficult to escape the grasp of cocaine’s spreading popularity.

From the third world of many South American countries, to the third street projects in the inner-city, to the third floor of a downtown luxury loft, cocaine is prevalent and being used. The business of the coca leaf is a billion dollar a year industry, if not more. Our foreign counterparts are profiting in full off of the drug. Mexico, Peru, and Colombia are some of the countries in Central and South America that are profiting and manufacturing cocaine.

The commodity chain of coca and cocaine began with the extraction of alkaloidal cocaine from the dried Andean coca leaf. This discovery by German doctoral student Albert Niemann would soon transform cocaine into a world drug commodity. Initially, cocaine was essential as a high-value medical commodity. Medical uses of cocaine included treatment of opiate addiction, hay fever, asthma, or other respiratory ailments. Cocaine’s greatest medical impact in the United States was as a local anesthetic during surgery. In Europe, cocaine’s commodity chain was defined by the coca elixir Vin Mariani developed by Corsican physician and chemist Angelo Mariani. Cultivated by Peruvian and Bolivian peasants living in the Andean Mountains, the coca leaf would be dried and shipped to the United States or Europe for refining. Due to the herb’s

Cocaine originated from South America, from coca leaves. Originally, the coca leaves were chewed by workers to decrease fatigue, improve endurance and have a greater resistance to the cold. This was to benefit the workers so they could work longer hours and be more productive. In 1855 the active ingredient in cocaine was isolated from the leaves, and in 1880 it was used as a local anesthetic (Nunes,2006). It was also used in coca cola. In 1855, coca cola was a soda beverage that contained sixty milligrams of cocaine for every eight ounces of the beverage. The idea behind this was to give people energy and a sense of well being (Nunes, 2006). By the late 1880s Sigmund Freud was using cocaine regularly and was even recommending it to others.

Drugs have a particularly interesting history within the United States. Many of the well-known and highly addictive narcotics of today like heroin, cocaine, and opium, were previously used in a variety of mundane ways. They were present in drinks and in health tonics/elixirs for treatment of an array of illnesses and as pain relief (“What is Cocaine?”, 2016). Perhaps the most consumed soft drink of all time, Coca Cola, derived its name from the coca plant – giving a glimpse into its cocaine containing past. However, it was not soon after, that drugs began to lose their credibility about their effectiveness in food and medicine. By the early 1900s, they were

Today, cocaine is commonly derived from the coca plant that is most commonly grown in Columbia but also Peru and Bolivia. It is harvested and processed into a “coca paste” which the base of is extracted and turned into the white powder form of cocaine. Once the powder is made it is often mixed with laundry detergent, laxatives, or boric acid to cut down the potency and have more to distribute. Cocaine can be used snorting, smoking, injecting or swallowed. The United States outlawed cocaine in the early 1920’s but it wasn’t until the 1970’s and middle of the 1980’s that cocaine was at

The interesting thing about the drugs were that they were first used in many over the counter products- as for cocaine, it was found in Coco-Cola drinks. As concern about cocaine grew, Coco-Cola stopped using cocaine as part of their formula in 1903 . Some of the concern of course was fueled by prejudice against African Americans; it was felt that the Africans who consumed the Coco-Cola drink would become violent, and acquire super strength, as well as become insusceptible to bullets . There was obviously no evidence to support the propaganda, but it helped lead to the exclusion of cocaine use in Coco-Cola products, and the Harrison

Like many other countries in Latin America and across the globe, Peru is no stranger to the economic and social impacts of illicit drug trade. However, unlike most other countries in the region like Colombia, Peru does not experience a high rate or organized crime or violence surrounding the drug trade. Although violence is minimal, the growth of cocoa and the production of cocaine is a massive industry within the country, creating an interesting dynamic between the people of Peru, those involved in the drug trade, and the Peruvian Government. The drug trade in Peru has been fueled by the geography, structure of the criminal groups involved, perceived corruption of the military and police forces, and an ineffective and overcrowded prison system.

The shrubs and plants from which both drugs are derived from and processed has been well known in Colombia for centuries, but until the 1970s drug refiners and traffickers had not taken full advantage. The chewing of coca