AP Photo/Patrick Semansky
- During a recent Senate hearing on fentanyl trafficking, lawmakers and officials used the word "cartel" 90 times.
- But fentanyl is produced and trafficked by complex, multi-layered criminal networks rather than traditional, top-down cartels.
- The emphasis on "cartels" distorts how the US should use its resources and leverage to deal with this complex issue.
A recent US congressional hearing illustrated how the wanton use of the word "cartel" has made it virtually meaningless and gets us further, rather than closer, to understanding modern-day criminal organizations and how best to direct resources to fight them.