In 1971, President Richard Nixon coined the term the war on drugs. His campaign to eradicate illegal drug use was picked up by the media and championed by succeeding presidents, such as Reagan and Bush. While Canada never bought into the war on drugs to the same extent as the U.S., it was still largely supportive. Then in 2011, there was a surprising capitulation. The Global Commission on Drug Policy, which included former United Nations Secretary Kofi Annan, proclaimed that the war on drugs has not – and cannot – be won. Since then, many heavyweights from around the world, including former President Jimmy Carter, have come out in support of this new perspective. The War on Drugs approaches this issue from a variety of points of view, offering insights into the history of drug use and abuse in the twentieth century; the pharmacology of illegal drugs; the economy of the illegal drug trade; and the complete lack of success that the war of drugs has had on drug cartels and the drug supply.