I made this comment on another Afghan thread but it seems more appropriate here.

Nothing will work unless demand is eliminated. That is impossible. Too many people like the idea of feeling good the easy way and don't see anything wrong with it.

The demand combined with the illegal status of opium means big money; that mostly benefits the bad guys wherever they may be.

So, they thing to be done is remove the illegal part of the equation. That removes the big money from from the hands of the bad guys.

There will be social costs to this course of action. But on balance, I think the benefits outweigh the costs, both here and overseas.