VOCABULARY REVIEW CARD CHAPTER : 3 TITLE : ILLEGAL DRUGS Martin Valuet 2- ESSENTIAL NOTES AND EXPRESSIONS The expression "War on drugs" refers to a Nixon policy that begun 1969: to struggle drug reselling and abuse, Government created a "Drugs Enforcement Administration". Due to a new point of view of the Obama Administration about drugs, the so-called "War on drugs" is since 2009 over. 1- VOCABULARY (About 50 words) MOT FRANÇAIS / ENGLISH WORD To snort cocaine: sniffer de la cocaïne A needle : une auguille A syringe : une seringue A designer drug : une drogue de synthèse To become commonplace : se banaliser The spreading use of crack : la banalisation du crack A drug ring, a drug cartel : un réseau de trafiquants A plague, a curse, a scourge : un fléau A mule : un passeur, une mule A drug kingpin : un baron de la drogue A drug pusher, a drug peddler : un dealer Drug-related crime : la criminalité due à la drogue An awareness-raising campaign : une campagne de sensibilisation To smuggle drugs into a country : faire entrer de la drogue dans un pays The US-Government experimented a Prohibition policy about alcohol betwenen 1919 and 1933, also known as "The Noble Experiment". It as failed and enforced trafficking-activities, such as illegal bootlegging, and public violence. Increasingly impopular, the experiment was stopped after the beginning of the Great Depression. Drugs doesn't mean the same thing in English and in French. Even if English drugs can be French "drogues", drugs can be bought in every French "droguerie": medicines and beauty products. A reclassification experiment on cannbis has been led by the British Government between 1971 and 2009: even it it remained illegal, the fines were lighter and possession wasn't punished by arrest. This reclassification helped Police to fight against harder drugs, but suffered critics from the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), that argued of the encouraging effect of this measure for drug-producers. To go into rehab : entreprendre une cure de désintoxication A causal / heavy user : un consommateur occasionnel / gros consommateur To be addicted to sth : être accro à qqch To need a fix : avoir besoin d'une dose To experiment with heroin : essayer l'héroïne Dependency on sth : la dépendance à qqch To be high / spaced out: planer, être défoncé A joint, a reefer : un joint To be hooked on cocaine : être accro à la cocaïne To make people aware of sth : faire de la prévention To seek treatment : demander à être soigné The pros and cons : le pour et le contre To crave sth : avoir un besoin maladif de qqch To kick the habit : décrocher Detoxification / detoxication : désintoxication To be in detox : être en cure de désintoxication To go cold turkey : arrêter la drogue d'un seul coup / être en manque To phase sth out: éliminer qqch progressivement To relapse : rechuter Withdraxal symptoms : les symptômes de l'état de manque The drug czar / the drug tsar (US) : le responsable de la lutte contre la drogue. To clamp down, to crack down on drug abuse : réprimer la consommation de drogues A fine : une amende To fine db: condamner qqn à une amende The foreground : le premier plan Intricacies : la complexité L'exemple de la Prohibition a montré que la répression profite surtout aux organisations criminelles. To notice : constater Travailliste : Labour The example of Prohibition has shown that repression mostly benefits (no preposition) organized crime. Gathering : réunion Drafted / written out: rédigé La toxicomanie est un fléau qui touche principalement les personnes instables psychologiquement. Opinion poll : sondage d'opinion To pursue : poursuivre, pourchasser, rechercher Drug addiction is a scourge that mainly affects psychologically instable people. To supersede : remplacer Proceedings : déroulement, actes (d'une réunion) 3- TRANSLATION REMARKS (3 from French to English, 3 from English to French) The Obama Administration has expressed its desire in favor of treatment over punishment when it comes to drug abuse. L'administration Obama a exprimé son désir de privilégier le traitement au détriment de la répression en ce qui concerne la drogue. A kilo of cocaine used to sell for up to $290,000 on the streets of the United States – enough to enough to buy a Rolls-Royce car. Un kilo d'héroïne se vendait jusqu'à 290.000 dollars dans la rue aux Etats-Unis, de quoi acheter une RollsRoyce. For many people, the debate about drugs is a moral one, akin to debates about allowing divorce, say, or abortion. Pour beaucoup de gens, le débat sur les drogues est un débat moral, analogue aux débats sur la légalisation du divorce ou de l'avortement, par exemple. Que pourrait-on faire de plus pour dissuader les jeunes de prendre des drogues dures ? What more could be done to deter young people from using hard drugs ? ANGLAISCPGE.FREE.FR 4- PROBLEMATICS AND PLAN FOR A COMMENTARY ON THIS TOPIC Problematics (20 words or so) : How far has the war on drugs revealed inefficent ? Which new approaches of the problem can be found ? PART 1 : Assessment : how does drugs-trafficking in the worlds looks like after 40 years of war ? Argument 1 : Growth of the consumption in Europe and North America ; problems with the control into the Schengen area. Example 1 : Growth of the consumer's numbers in the US ; reclassification of cannabis in a class B drug in the UK (2009) ; massive cannabis seizures in France (30.5 t in 2011). Argument 2 : Loss of efficiency of armed war in Central America. Example 2 : Failure of the Condor operation in Mexico (1975-78) : main dealers remain out of control, as well as their plantations. PART 2 : Economic and human costs of the war. Argument 1 : Tremendous costs for little results, in a crisis time : will people continue to pay ? Example 1 : War on drugs costs 16G$ a year, only for the US. Argument 2 : War means violence. Even if developed countries don't suffer from this side of the war, Central America is the theater of many military operations. Example 2 : Mexican population was very critical about the 50,000 deaths due to the Mexican Drug War, under the presidency of Felipe Calderon (2006-2012). PART 3 : Seeking new ways to win the war. Argument 1 : « Prevention, education and healthcare » Gautemala President Molina : encourage minor producers to live on legal activities. Example 1 : Development of biofuels in Brazil and Chile : creation of profitable perspectives for poor populations. Argument 2 : Modification of the legal status : has every drug got to be fought ? Are people responsible enough to protect themselves against drugs ? Example 2 : Successful experimentation on cannabis in the UK (1971-2009) ; useless awareness-raising campaigns in the schools. Conclusion : It appears that the war on drugs could be won two ways : international supervision and joint management of national initiatives (according to the British example, that failed because of isolation) ; extended education of the population, in both producing and consumer countries.