TEGUCIGALPA, HONDURAS – Here in the middle of the rain forests of Central America, the United States military is painstakingly misapplying the lessons it learned from the War on Terror to the War on Drugs.

A soldier makes contact with tribal elders from the turret of his desert-patterned Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle, after getting stuck in a mud puddle.

"Salaam Alaikum," shouts Specialist Lenny Barnet to a group of Honduran farmers.

The farmers, who are overwhelmingly Spanish-speaking, just stare back blankly.