[C19fan]

Bureaucrats in DC decided to export the failed war on drugs to Afghanistan where poppy cultivation goes back thousands of years.

[KC Burke]

each flower produces a lot of seeds.

[sagar]

It is not a waste if my cronies got a cut. Hey, billions of dollars don’t just vanish.

[Iron Munro]

[PapaBear3625]

Although it would have been upsetting to the Afghans, there's a simple and cheap way to do it. Set up some Predator drones with crop sprayers. When a drone spots a poppy field (the flowers are colorful), spray the field thoroughly with a powerful herbicide, and fly away.

Eventually, poppy growers will get the message.

[Wolfie]

Capitalism always wins.

[rfreedom4u]

a cool $7.6 billion

How much salt could that money buy? Plow the salt into their fields.

[Organic Panic]

Afghanistan needs an economy and they are good at producing opium. Why won’t pharmaceutical companies purchase opium from them?

I’m sure it’s a matter of follow the money.

[Resolute Conservative]

Eradicate my butt. Our troops were told to not disturb or mess with those fields when moving in areas with fields.