Around 500,000 people in California are addicted to methamphetamine. Out of a population of almost 40 million, that’s one in every 200 people. But this goes way beyond the US: Meth is raging across Mexico, the Philippines and South-East Asia too.

Meth is also one of the most misunderstood and unfairly stigmatized of all the illegal drugs. Here we pick apart crystal meth fact from fiction and discover how the War on Drugs has created a world on speed.

In The War On Drugs, we examine the social implications of prohibition worldwide. Any attempt to shut down the trade in drugs such as heroin, cocaine, ecstasy, ketamine or weed invariably sets off a chain of events that just makes things worse, leaving a trail of death, illness, violence, slavery, addiction, crime and inequality across the globe.

Everyone loses – except, in a weird kind of way, the drugs themselves.

Watch more from this series:

Ketamine: The Next Big Antidepressant https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfmPu8l24wY

‘Spice’ is Britain’s Most Dangerous Drug https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L62rHDJFAkg

The Great MDMA Drought and Its Deadly Consequences https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUNvLPNLxSw

Why Portugal Decriminalized All Drugs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dU5yiKBqCk

Mephedrone: The Drug That Changed Dealing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvxZyMyc7go&list=UUn8zNIfYAQNdrFRrr8oibKw

Is the Netherlands Turning Into a Narco-State?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ig5uP2R_9bg&list=PLDbSvEZka6GGanXjSfH1bQNVheppFQWWo&index=4

How America Got Hooked on Opioids

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJc-YI7OWfY&list=PLDbSvEZka6GGanXjSfH1bQNVheppFQWWo&index=9