The Colombian government has been left to man the front lines of the drug war in its country without the proper resources, training, or equipment. Unreasonable pressures and expectations by the U.S. Government have both frustrated and angered Colombian officials. Options for the United States are to finance a significant buildup of Latin American governments' drug-fighting capabilities, to assume drug enforcement functions in source countries, to support Latin American governments' efforts to provide viable economic alternatives to the drug trade, and to legalize or decriminalize drug consumption. The most promising approach is to combine increased U.S. support to Latin American governments for drug enforcement with efforts at viable economic alternatives to the drug trade. 10 footnotes.