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Chinese Crime Syndicates Bolster the Heroin Trade

Organized crime groups in China, called triads, have become some of the biggest forces in the international heroin trade. Writer Gerald Posner links their rise to the power vacuum left by the Sicilian mafia, as well as the policing policies of Chinatowns throughout the U.S. Posner's book about the subject is called Warlords of Crime.

28:04
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Other segments from the episode on December 6, 1988

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, December 6, 1988: Interview with Gerald Posner; Commentary on Guitar Slim; Interview with Robert Pinsky; Review of Humphrey Carpenter's book "A Serious Character."
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05:52

"No One Could Outperform Slim"

Eddie Jones, who later performed as Guitar Slim, was an early pioneer of rock and blues guitar. He died in 1959. Rock historian Ed Ward says that, had Slim lived, he could have outshone Jimi Hendrix.

Commentary
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09:38

Poet and Critic Robert Pinsky

Pinsky says he's suspicious of literary criticism, even though he often writes it himself. His new book, Poetry and the World, looks back on his past, including growing up in New Jersey.

Interview
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03:50

Remembering the Paranoia of a Fascist Poet

Book critic John Leonard reviews Humphrey Carpenter's biography of Ezra Pound, called A Serious Character. Leonard says the book is filled with inessential material, and doesn't do enough to address Pound's literary, political, and personal shortcomings.

Review

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42:34

Fentanyl As A Dark Web Profit Center, From Chinese Labs To U.S. Streets

More than 70,000 Americans died from drug overdoses last year, and a growing number of those deaths are attributed to the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl. Journalist Ben Westhoff says the drug, while an important painkiller and anesthesia medicine in hospitals, is now killing more Americans annually as a street drug than any other in U.S. history.

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35:40

Journalist Matthew Brzezinski

Journalist Matthew Brzezinski wrote about the global narcotics industry in the June 23, 2002 issue of the The New York Times Magazine. His cover story is, "Heroin: The Sleek New Business Model for the Ultimate Global Product."

Interview

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