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82 Comments
- error10, on 11/21/2007, -17/+123McCain blows, too. If you want to end the drug war, vote Ron Paul.
- PistolSO, on 11/21/2007, -0/+73This police officer is a hero. End the War On Drugs!
- shadowspawn, on 11/21/2007, -3/+62I like McCain's response... but I think the only reason he continued the discussion was because of Jardis's standing as a police officer. If it was just a regular joe shmoe like you or me asking the questions... we'd be tasered.
- OnGard4Liberty, on 11/21/2007, -2/+50Come to New Hampshire...even our cops are better. :-)
http://www.freestateproject.org - jimbabb, on 11/21/2007, -0/+39LEAP is an amazing organization. They bring a world of credibility and experience to the anti-prohibition movement. Check them out: www.leap.cc
- StarchildSF, on 11/21/2007, -9/+43
McCain apparently fails to realize that by wasting $69 billion a year on Drug Prohibition, prisons are subject to overcrowding, and violent criminals like robbers, rapists and murderers are more likely to be released early. Or they are not apprehended in the first place, because the resources that could have been used to fight crime were wasted on targeting non-violent sellers and users of drugs (yes, sellers who commit violent acts should be put away, but not those who are peaceful and harming no one against their will).
I support Ron Paul (http://www.RonPaul2008.com) who will put law enforcement's focus back where it should be, on stopping violent crime and protecting life, liberty and property. I also urge readers who want to know how this unconstitutional* Drug Prohibition came into existence to check out http://www.ADrugWarCarol.org for a humorous but educational illustrated history of the "War on Drugs."
*In order to enact alcohol Prohibition, which was in effect from 1919 to 1933, Congress and the state legislatures had to pass a constitutional amendment, because the federal government had no constitutional authority to ban the transportation or sale of an intoxicating substance. That amendment, the 18th, was later repealed. No similar amendment outlawing marijuana, MDMA, or any other "illegal" substance has been passed. Therefore, THESE DRUGS ARE ALL IN FACT LEGAL UNDER FEDERAL LAW! Of course you can still be arrested and jailed for using them, because the U.S. government and courts are run by people who do not respect the Constitution or the law. - inactive, on 11/21/2007, -3/+33I hope something sunk in for McCain because he should be on the side of what is right for Americans if he is going to be a leader.
- SeethisPass, on 11/21/2007, -2/+31McCain is irrelevant
- StarchildSF, on 11/21/2007, -8/+34
McCain apparently fails to realize that by wasting $69 billion a year on Drug Prohibition, prisons are subject to overcrowding, and violent criminals like robbers, rapists and murderers are more likely to be released early. Or they are not apprehended in the first place, because the resources that could have been used to fight crime were wasted on targeting non-violent sellers and users of drugs (yes, sellers who commit violent acts should be put away, but not those who are peaceful and harming no one against their will).
I support Ron Paul (http://www.RonPaul2008.com) who will put law enforcement's focus back where it should be, on stopping violent crime and protecting life, liberty and property. I also urge readers who want to know how this unconstitutional* Drug Prohibition came into existence to check out http://www.ADrugWarCarol.org for a humorous but educational illustrated history of the "War on Drugs."
*In order to enact alcohol Prohibition, which was in effect from 1919 to 1933, Congress and the state legislatures had to pass a constitutional amendment, because the federal government had no constitutional authority to ban the transportation or sale of an intoxicating substance. That amendment, the 18th, was later repealed. No similar amendment outlawing marijuana, MDMA, or any other "illegal" substance has been passed. Therefore, THESE DRUGS ARE ALL IN FACT LEGAL UNDER FEDERAL LAW! Of course you can still be arrested and jailed for using them, because the U.S. government and courts are run by people who do not respect the Constitution or the law. - patriotwarrior, on 11/21/2007, -3/+20The "war on drugs" was invented by public employees so they could have more job security. If rational drug laws were passed millions of these public cogs would have to find jobs in the more competitive private sector.
- DavyRockett, on 11/21/2007, -0/+13Really it's the only sane policy that the police officer is speaking of for addicts and the War on Drugs.
Yeah nobody wants meth readily available, but keeping it in the black market creates so much worse crime than the actual use of it. IMO, it's worth it to deal with the problem on a health level instead of a law enforcement level.
Also some drugs like pot would be no worse than alcohol. - ryno35, on 11/21/2007, -1/+14It's too bad the cop didn't have a good response to the meth question.
Meth is a direct result of the "war on drugs"/prohibition. If prohibition didn't exist meth would cease to exist because people would have access to legitimatly made amphetimines not something cooked up by a criminal in god knows what. A further result of the repeal of prohibition would be the end of the black market that generates billions of dollars for criminals. Furthermore the meth problem is less than 2 million users which is less than 1% or the population, yet the resources spent on prohibiton makes it seem much worse and has little to no effect on the problem.
People with addiction problems need help, but criminalizing drugs only gives control over those drugs to criminal and does not help addicts. In a regulated market there would be so much more opportunity to help addicts and the money would be taken away from the criminal and used to help the people that need it the most.
It will be nice when people like McCain die and the younger generation get a chance to change things. Most young people I meet seem to get this. - skeeterbug84, on 11/21/2007, -0/+12If you allow people to use drugs you can tax it like cigarettes and alcohol. So the money for treatment is taken out of the people that are using anyways. The average American that doesn't do drugs is no longer paying the bill, because they don't use it in the first place.
- m0tbaillie, on 11/21/2007, -1/+13I agree with error10. I thought McCain was a good guy a couple of years back, but as soon as he announced his bid for presidency he began pandering to the religious right and he truly became your run-of-the-mill *****-talking politician. He stopped telling it like it was and started pussyfooting around issues and pandering to various special interest groups. He's a douche just like the rest of them. "I'm sorry you don't have a position on meth" What the ***** is that? The guys *first* sentence of his initial retort said he thought they ought to be helping people on meth, not putting them in jail and essentially destroying their lives. This country incarcerates over 3 million people, vastly more than any other country in the world by an obscene amount (I think the second closest is barely over a million) and most of these are for minor drug offenses. It's just plain ***** obnoxious how hypocritical we are sometimes. We put people in jail for more time for possession of a big bag of a weed than we do for murder, in some instances.
- JEAH, on 11/21/2007, -3/+14you're already paying for drug treatment, except it's a very expensive way of doing it and instead of curing them, it often turns them into violent criminals Perhaps, RTFA?
- inactive, on 11/21/2007, -0/+9It's refreshing to know there are still active police officers that are intelligent, dignified and actually care about their job. It's beautiful, really.
- JackandCoke, on 11/21/2007, -1/+10I don't quite understand this give up on the world stigma you attach to Ron Paul. I don't agree with everything he says, however knowing how weak we are becoming internally and externally, i think it is important to remove our over extensions and rebuild the strength inside, and then work with everyone outside to fight the real problems. We've been placed in where we are producing enormous quantities of debt that are being bought up by other countries, when those countries want their money back, we will find ourselves in complete bankruptcy, what happens then?
- andshewas, on 11/21/2007, -1/+9I'm not going to say you are completely wrong, but I work in MIS in the public sector and I vehemently oppose the War on Drugs. In no way does this unconstitutional war have any impact on my job security. My skills however, do. If electing Ron Paul as president means I lose my job, oh well. I'd much rather have a safer country, monetary system and foreign policy than my stupid-ass, drug-prohibiting job. I'm sure there are plenty of other state or government employees that would agree with me.
- batshitcrazy, on 11/21/2007, -0/+8I lived in NH till I was 18... very beautiful there. Didn't ever really realize the importance of "Live Free or Die" till recently. I find it somewhat symbolic that the Old Man in the Mountain crumbled during the same month we invaded Iraq.
- Luminoth, on 11/21/2007, -1/+9Why should tax payers be forced to pay the costs of keeping them all in jail? It seems you don't understand the purpose of taxation.
- schroeder, on 11/21/2007, -1/+8No, but he does seem to be the only one interested in solving problems rather than creating them. Well, Gravel and Kucinich also.
- SIRBERUS, on 11/21/2007, -1/+8McCain's response about methamphetamines was stupid. Meth is already legal... if you have a prescription and it comes in a fancy pill form. What do you think ADHD meds are?
- diggduggjoe, on 11/21/2007, -0/+7The fact is the worst drugs would not be the most commonly used. Prohibition is known to increase the potency of nearly all drugs and artificial scarcity of marijuana leads to harder drugs more than the use of it directly.
Most people who have a real problem with substance abuse will find their way into the enforcement system by DUI. Many people get treatment for alcohol before that due it not being a crime just using it like other drugs. The illegal nature of it makes it less likely for many to seek treatment on their own. - wishninja, on 11/21/2007, -1/+7Maybe once these older generations die off we will finally be able to have something that resembles a working drug policy in the united states. But I don't think there is much hope until McCain's generation is gone.
- inactive, on 11/21/2007, -0/+6Wow, one ***** cop out of literally hundreds of thousands comes out and says something we have known for decades.
Thanks cop! - amphet, on 11/21/2007, -2/+8I'm amazed that this article about a cop doesn't involve tasers. GJ!
- brisbin33, on 11/21/2007, -4/+10dugg for taser reference
- defconoi, on 11/21/2007, -0/+6Here in Arizona you get a felony for a 5 dollar bag of weed and you cannot even get a job a Mcdonalds because every job backround checks because of the illegal aliens... wtf
- defconoi, on 11/21/2007, -1/+7Drugs are not the problem, people are, if we can work to change people's mindsets, and habitual patterns we can make a difference, its like saying guns are bad, guns themselves are not bad, people's intentions and mindsets are the things we need to work on. Proper education, respect for others and the human body and a better education and understanding on how to live happily and good is what we need to be teaching in schools and pushing on the streets. With true understanding of our problems as a world and as people we can accomplish anything...
peace
-defcon - inactive, on 11/21/2007, -0/+5It's up to 69 Billion a year now is it? Oh my.
- StopTheLie, on 11/21/2007, -0/+5"Crime" is the health of the state. Like “fear” it serves as a “justification” to seize money and power. (And that stands regardless of whether the crime is “REAL crime” or "non-crime" that has been legislated / coerced into existence.) And of the two kinds (real crime VS fabricated) the latter is the best….because, with some clever propaganda, it can be continually created out of thin air. -the same could be said for war. (As a matter of fact, it has.)
- sensi313, on 11/23/2007, -0/+5Vote RP if you want to be free..
- skeeterbug84, on 11/21/2007, -0/+5http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_the_Food ...
I work for a company that writes life sciences software. Took months to get a TEST submission validated through them (so we could verify our format was correct). Obviously you have no first hand experience in dealing with this organization. - ZenMojo, on 11/21/2007, -0/+5It's been buried on the interwebs but a program in, I believe, North Carolina instead of arresting drug users just forces the person caught to tell their parents what happened with a police officer standing outside the door. They then send the person to rehab. Drug-related crimes have plummeted since it was implemented.
- dizzythegreat, on 11/21/2007, -0/+5This goes right along with the modern philosophy that the problems of the world can be solved by showing the world how big our penis is. The war on drugs cannot be solved by brute force, but by intelligence. Similarly, the war(s) in the middle-east cannot be solved by raw power, but by intelligent, effective diplomacy. As soon as a single troop (or police officer) is used, it becomes a military, brute force, look-how-tough-we-are operation.
- wishninja, on 11/21/2007, -1/+5I think this was more or less the mans reply. See, in the debate over the war on drugs drug warriers typically like to force the L word. The word legalization sets the hair of the prohibitionists on fire. They have in their mind that people that do these drugs are sub -human as soon as they do the drug. The officers actual mistake was to start defending that position. McCain left himself wide open by bringing up Alchol. "He claimed that most experts agree alcohol is fundamentally different in that only alcohol can be moderately consumed." and he also spent some time joking around. Both should be considered weakness and the officer should have attacked mccain on both points making him defend the drug war and making him look like an ***** not taking the lives of millions of Americans seriously. (he only looked like an ***** to people like us his supporters probably loved it)
"The issue is not legalization or decriminalization because we really do not know if we will ever do those things, or anything like them. The issue is prison. The issue is how many millions of people will have to go to prison before this policy is successful."
- jcastillo81, on 11/21/2007, -2/+6My respect 'o' meter gauge rose (VERY) slightly (actually maybe it just twitched a little) for McCain only because he actually attempted to engage the officer. All of the other candidates (except RP of course) would have just made a snide remark at such an outlandish suggestion and gone to the next question.
- andrewrocks, on 11/21/2007, -0/+4Don't snort me, bro!!
- ronaldinho, on 11/21/2007, -1/+5Man, McCain got pwned by that officer. Officer retorted perfectly, and McCain pretended he didn't hear the officer's answer (which is that meth OUGHT to be made legal, you have to read it carefully to not miss it). That's one perfect sign that we do not want McCain as our president
- nullity, on 11/22/2007, -0/+4but... but... the media says he's a front-runner.
(In my state he has a total of 6 delegates registered for the convention so far. Ron Paul has 31. Guiliani 26. Romney and Thompson are tied at 45.)
The media wouldn't lie to us would they? - andshewas, on 11/21/2007, -0/+3The problem being that the FDA won't be "pushed" in the right direction. It's much easier to kick them all out and start over. You can't tell a bunch of people (FDA) who have been fighting for a cause (war on drugs, prohibition) that all of a sudden their cause must do a 180 and expect them to follow along.
- anhedonia, on 11/22/2007, -0/+3I can't wait to get there! FSP ftw.
- JEAH, on 11/21/2007, -0/+3Anyone see the third season of The Wire? Great show and the third season's main plot line is relevant to this debate.
- accessviolation, on 11/21/2007, -4/+7LOL... are you ***** stupid? We already spend $69 ***** BILLION a year on prohibition related enforcement measures!
- skews13, on 11/21/2007, -0/+3the good officer is quite correct.bringing millions of cannabis users in on the side of the law,would have a huge impact on the drug war in general.it would free up court docketts,jail space,and free up investigation time for officers to focus on other more important issues,in their local communities.in an age of terrorism,imigration,and border security concerns.certainly common sense would dictate that we must come at this in another direction.in order to deal with these more pressing issues
- Luminoth, on 11/21/2007, -0/+3I wish you had spent more time proofing what you wrote, because underneath all the spelling and grammar problems is a good point.
- inactive, on 11/21/2007, -0/+2Have you ever done one iota of research on the effects of prohibition? My guess is not.
Go get a clue - nikkesen, on 11/21/2007, -2/+4Unfortunately, a good dose of left (rehabilitation and social investment) is what is needed. "Right" is too much about traditional policies that focus on locking up even the most pettiest of criminals instead of attempting to root out the cause. A good leader for Americans would be one who is about scrapping zero tolerance and looking at creative solutions.
- GreenGuy78, on 11/22/2007, -0/+2While I agree on principle, I am not sure that works with our current health care structure. For instance, my insurance premiums pay for people who smoke and drink excessively. : I think the issue is really complicated. To be fair, my insurance pays for people who drive erratically too...
- wishninja, on 11/21/2007, -0/+2yea what is with the liberal blog sites picking this up lately? I have felt snubbed by the liberals on this topic for at least 12 years or so. They do not want to legalize they only want a different style of jail.
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