The discussion emphasizes that coca has long been grown in Peru, Colombia, Bolivia, and other countries and chewed legally and routinely to counter hunger, fatigue, and the effects of living at a high altitude. Text and photographs describe the process that transforms the coca leaves into cocaine, which was outlawed in the United States in 1914 and the efforts of United States law enforcement agencies to infiltrate the production and trafficking networks. The discussion also focuses on the violence and corruption associated with the cocaine industry, the history and trends in its use in the United States, its impacts on the user, urine testing, efforts at eradication and interdiction, discussions about its legalization. The analysis concludes that although cocaine use is declining among many population groups, the drug is persistently entrenched and will not be brought under control any time soon.