The war on drugs

[WernherVonTrapp]

Originally Posted by Skybird

Think again. Somewhere in the film they count that up to 90% of a certain drug mentioned got consumed by whites, but at that time almost 90% of all drug addicts and traders arrested in relation with that drug were blacks...

Interesting. I made lots of drug arrests during my career, and not one of them was "black".

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by WernherVonTrapp

Interesting. I made lots of drug arrests during my career, and not one of them was "black".

It was a scene before I think a senate committee, a hearing, something like that, and the considered state was I think California. The issue discussed was the impact of one certain drug, over a certain period of time when it became a problem some time in the 80s, I think I recall they talked about Crack. The scene is in the movie somewhere. It was not just a claim by the film maker, but info voiced by I think an official in public, before such a committee.

Also, check your national statistics on arrests and skin colour, and how they changed, or not changed over the past 50 years, regarding drugs, and skin colour. Most drug consumers are whites, it thus should be whites leading the arrest numbers. But for some reason it is not like that. Says the police representatives in that film. Blacks consume drugs less than whites, but are overrepresented in arrest over consummation by several factors. That needs to be explained.

Another interview they included - from a police guy, mind you - reflected on how the priority put on war on drugs changed arrest behaviors and shifted the focus of police work from generally more harmful crime like robbery and murder, to bagatelle crimes regarding consummation or possession of even smallest amount of drugs, even such harmless stuff like Marihuana. That officer asked the interviewer this: when an officer gets payed by numbers of arrests per month, and focus is politically wanted on drugs, then this has two effects. The one officer may spend many hours and days for investigating a case of murder or robbery , and at the end of the month gets two or three arrests scored. The other officers knows he gets payed by arrests, so he goes onto the street and starts to arrest suspects over minor drug offences that the law has blown out of proportion, and thta way he scores let'S say 60 arrests by the end of the month. Guess what the police is focussing on, robbery and murder, or arresting persons who consume drugs, may it be Crack, may it be Marihuana? This officer worried about the quality of police investigation work suffering from this, because police now tends to not care for patient, long investment of time, but just sees the street as a fish pond where they take a big fork ionce a day and catch out what they get, without caring anymore for the severity of the offender's "crime" or any contexts leading beyond the letter of the paragraph that calls it an offence.

There seem to be quite some police officers and judges who are seriously worried by how things have turned, and they question both the effic iency and the morality of the rules and paradigms currently being acted by. Many seem to have resigned and do not care anymore. What wil not help to reinstall the trust that the civilian population already has lost.

Anyhow, I'm telling some info from the film by memory only. If somebody has doubts, he better goes out and watches that movie somewhere. I refer to that film only, and by memory. But the real important witnesses are not me, but those people they interview in that film, and who are prison wards, judges, activists, police officers, offenders, family members.

[Wolferz]

Originally Posted by WernherVonTrapp

Interesting. I made lots of drug arrests during my career, and not one of them was "black".

What was the most common drug you made arrests for?

[Betonov]

Good thing I live in a country that possesion of (small quantities) only ends up with a fine. Mostly just confiscation and your name in the cops little badboy book.

[Catfish]

A war on drugs, in the USA ?

There were wars against middle and south american countries
(financed by drugs)
There were wars in Corea and Vietnam
(financed by drugs)
There were wars against middle east countries
(financed by taxpayers)
There is a world war against terrorism
(financed by taxpayers)

Who fights a war against drugs ?
The Cocaine Importing Agency ?

Sorry, but

[WernherVonTrapp]

Originally Posted by Betonov

Good thing I live in a country that possesion of (small quantities) only ends up with a fine. Mostly just confiscation and your name in the cops little badboy book.

You cannot do that in the states because, even the guys who you give a warning to, will run off and brag to their friends. I've seen it happen with various things (drugs, fireworks, alcohol, etc.) where word gets around that "the cops probably kept it for themselves or smoked it", etc.. Then IAD comes looking for YOU and a big investigation ensues. Where applicable, I've only handed out citations too, but always tagged and bagged the evidence, turning it over to the evidence custodian to maintain the "chain of evidence". Maybe the big cities can get away with that, since there are always shootings, robberies and such to occupy their time, but in the smaller suburbs, if you turn in evidence w/o filing charges, you yourself can potentially be charged with failing to enforce the law, malfeasance, nonfeasance, etc.. In essence, it could end up costing you your job.

[Wolferz]

I don't fault any officer of the law for doing his duty in enforcing drug laws. Laws that are for all intents and purposes black and white in their interpretations. But then you have to question the motives behind some of these laws. I'll use Cannabis as an example. It's not really a drug. It's a naturally occurring plant that needs no manipulation by man, other than cutting and drying to make it useful. Unlike the harder, more addictive drugs like Cocaine and amphetamines. Both of which are chemically processed into their addictive forms. Cannabis, no matter what some government paid lab rat says, is NOT physically addictive. You can imbibe Cannabis every day for years and not suffer any physical withdrawal symptoms if you suddenly stop using it,
unlike other substances. Even the oh so legal alcohol has a nasty set of withdrawal symptoms and we've all seen the effects of impairment that alcohol provides.

Cannabis was originally demonized by a director of the USDA doing his imitation of Napoleon, just to appease the big influential commodity growers in the southwestern US. Their main beef stemmed from the migrant farm workers bringing their Cannabis up from Mexico with them when they came to pick fruits and vegetables. Not so much because they were getting stoned and acting lazy but, more because the seeds made their way into the grower's dirt and grew like the weeds they were.
On the other side of the coin was Hemp. A more fibrous form of Cannabis that made strong durable products like clothing and rope. The budding petrochemical industry of the day saw it as a direct threat to their livelihood after they discovered the formulas for making nylon, rayon and other artificial fibers. So they lobbied to kill the competition that Hemp threatened. The Cotton growers weren't real happy about Hemp either. Hemp had been cultivated in the states from the time before we were a sovereign nation.
So technically, the war on Cannabis has been waged by big money interests seeking profit. The elected have long since been bought and paid for by these lobbies and have seen no reason to interrupt their cash and perk flows. Then came their realization that enforcing these unfair laws carried a side benefit of prison industries ripe for profit taking by all involved.

The way I see it, Cannabis isn't for everyone but, it has certain medicinal benefits for many ailments. This threatens big pharmaceutical companies. It's a naturally occurring analgesic and Bayer will fight against it tooth and nail, along with every other maker of pain killers.
Well, God put Cannabis here for a reason and I trust him far more than I trust Squibb Pharmaceuticals.
Attitudes are starting to change more rapidly now as the brainwashing lies and propaganda of big government loses it's grip on people's minds.
They can keep showing Reefer Madness in school health classes if they want. It's at least good for a laugh.

[Betonov]

Originally Posted by Wolferz

The way I see it, Cannabis isn't for everyone but, it has certain medicinal benefits for many ailments.

Tell me about it. the one I smoked in may made so sick I havent touched since and I doubt I will
oh well, I'm running out of vices

[Wolferz]

Originally Posted by Betonov

Tell me about it. the one I smoked in may made so sick I havent touched since and I doubt I will
oh well, I'm running out of vices

Must have been some good shtuff.
Or you were already ripped on booze. The two do not mix well.

I very rarely drink alcohol because it makes me sick.

[Skybird]

German Focus magazine reports on how the industry in the US has discovered prison labour as a way to produce cheap, and for private capital interest, which helps to boost the private prison sector, and motivates for legislation to encourage high imprisonment rates by drqaconic penalty for even marginal offences, to ensure that prisons stay profitable and always enough slave workers are in the production line.

http://www.focus.de/panorama/welt/ti...d_1037691.html

A depressing, dangerous and disgracing business model that in my opinion equals slave labour. I am not against forcing prisoners to work for the costs of their "lodging", but I am against motivating to boost imprisonment rates and turning prisons into an attractive business model. The TV docu already showed how marginal offences have become for which you can earn long slave work sentences, and how real important focusing on really major crime cases gets neglected by a system that sees its focus now in serving the profit interests of private contractors and private business leasing the prisons as de facto slaves. The whole system is not only depressingly but also very dangerously derailed.

IMO this becomes dangerously comparable with slave labour in KZs.

[Ducimus]

The War on drugs, it failed.

[WernherVonTrapp]

Originally Posted by Wolferz

What was the most common drug you made arrests for?

The most common, or most often arrested were marijuana, then heroin, crack, illegal prescription drugs, some Special-K (or Ketamine), Ecstasy (methylenedioxymethamphetamine). Too many to remember. Oh, and I was wrong. After thinking about it, I did remember where I was involved (not the arresting officer) in an arrest that involved two "blacks" and two "whites".
It came about after a call of a suspicious vehicle parked in front of a known (or common) actor's residence. Upon arrival with other units and subsequent investigation, it was learned that this white male was pimping his girlfriend out for sexual favors in lieu of payment from two male drug dealers (black males). During a probable cause search, illegal drugs (crack) was found and all parties were arrested on various different charges. But that's the only one I can think of. I worked in a small suburb just outside the city of Paterson, NJ (where I just happened to be born and raised).

I'm not disputing anyone's claim's here; just stating a fact. I became a LEO in the mid-late 80s. I grew up with friends who (for purposes of this topic) were black, hispanic, circassian and eastern european. I suppose, because of that, I never looked at things from a color standpoint, though early as a child, I remember hearing racial slurs of every kind coming from older people.