cannabisnews.com: Plugging a Very Porous Northern Border 





Plugging a Very Porous Northern Border 
Posted by FoM on April 07, 2002 at 21:39:52 PT
By Bill Miller, Washington Post Staff Writer
Source: Washington Post 
A shallow ditch is all that separates Boundary Road, which winds through the fields and farmhouses of this dairy community, from 0 Avenue, a similar rural highway that parallels it just 12 feet away -- in Canada. If not for a small stone marker with "United States" on one side and "Canada" on the other, the border between the two nations here would be impossible to discern.Where Boundary Road ends, rows of raspberry plants run right to the border, offering cover to illegal immigrants and smugglers toting backpacks filled with marijuana.
Before Sept. 11, 57 Border Patrol agents were responsible for this 120-mile stretch of border in Washington state. In fact, until the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, the Border Patrol had just 334 agents posted along the 4,000-mile northern border, a fraction of its 9,500-member workforce.Since then, the U.S.-Canadian border has received the kind of attention that authorities have long spent on the boundary with Mexico, where efforts to halt the flow of drugs and illegal immigrants demanded it. Although the teeming points of entry present their own kinds of problems, halting terrorists who might try to cross these vast open stretches has become the focus of increasing concern among homeland security authorities.That puts the Border Patrol in a pivotal role: It is supposed to keep people from entering the United States at places other than official checkpoints. It is illegal to cross back and forth anywhere else, no matter how inviting it seems.The Justice Department's inspector general's office recently warned that gaps remain along the northern border and said more agents and technology are desperately needed. On Capitol Hill, Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-Wis.), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, has expressed concern about spotty enforcement. As did Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.): "I am very concerned, and have been for a very long time. I think the problems up there are large and need to be dealt with."Some former Border Patrol officials maintain that the Border Patrol relies too heavily on cameras and sensors and has too few agents to fully utilize the technology."I've never known a camera that can go down a pole and catch somebody," said Eugene R. Davis, former deputy chief patrol agent of the U.S. Border Patrol here. "It's far from being secure. If a person wants to come in, there are lots of places for them to do it. There are still lots of holes." He noted that the sensors can sound false alarms -- triggered by animals, for example -- and have other limitations. He remembers that "about 50 percent of the time, we had nobody to respond to the sensors."In response, hundreds of Border Patrol agents, immigration inspectors and Customs Service personnel have been shifted north, and more are on the way. By year's end, the Border Patrol will have more than 600 agents along the northern border, and the Bush administration wants to add 285 more in fiscal 2003.About 700 National Guard troops recently began aiding inspectors at the 124 northern ports of entry and are assisting the Border Patrol with intelligence analysis and helicopter patrols. From Washington to Maine, new tools are arriving, including cameras, explosives detectors, radiation detectors and dogs.Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge recently reached an agreement with Canadian officials to share intelligence and expand joint enforcement programs along the border. In addition, the Border Patrol is building closer ties with leaders of Native American tribes that live on border reservations.John C. Bates, deputy chief patrol agent for the U.S. Border Patrol here, acknowledged that coverage has not been beefed up as much as he would like, but said technology helps fill in the gaps. He said that sensors are hidden in fields, trees and other places, capable of detecting movement. When tripped, they sound alarms and illuminate computer terminals at a Border Patrol command center in the nearby town of Blaine. In recent weeks, a $5 million camera system capable of scanning 40 miles of border was installed on 32 towering poles, meant to complement the sensors. Technicians at the command center can swivel the cameras and zoom in on objects up to four miles away, helping authorities determine whether activated sensors were set off by innocent farmers or schoolchildren, or by someone who appears suspicious and requires immediate attention, Bates said. Surveillance aircraft also patrol the area regularly, he said.Agents respond in four-wheel-drive vehicles, some with infrared cameras mounted on their roofs. Bates said only so many roads and trails lead away from the border and authorities can cut them off. As he rode along Boundary Road recently, Bates pointed to places where agents have caught illegal immigrants and found drugs waiting for pickup, including backpacks filled with marijuana. "We're able to get there," he said. "We use the technology and the people and the information to get the job done."There is no evidence that any of the 19 terrorists who struck on Sept. 11 entered the United States from Canada. But Canadian intelligence officials have estimated that about 50 terrorist groups operate in Canada, including al Qaeda, Hamas and the Irish Republican Army, and some allegedly have set up cells in Vancouver, just 32 miles from Blaine.Nevertheless, security along the northern border has been dwarfed by the U.S. border presence in the Southwest for decades. In a typical year, the Border Patrol apprehends 1.2 million people in the Southwest; 12,000 in the north.The Justice Department's inspector general's office reported in February 2000 that the Border Patrol "lacks the resources to monitor illegal activity along the northern border." The report also warned that "the porous nature of the border, coupled with limited enforcement," limits chances of making arrests. In a follow-up report released this February, the inspector general's office said conditions are improving, but noted that chiefs of all eight of the Border Patrol's northern sectors said they still needed more agents, support staff and equipment.Since Sept. 11, about 100 agents have been shifted from the southwestern border and an effort to hire more has begun. Twenty of the transferred agents work in Blaine, which now has a workforce of 77. Congress has cleared the way to bring in even more cameras, sensors and computers.Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which favors greater restrictions on immigration, said the Border Patrol's strategy is sound as long as it receives more agents. "The Border Patrol approach of leveraging their personnel with technology is probably the way to go on the northern border," he said.In Washington state, the National Guard now provides a helicopter and crew to conduct surveillance and shuttle agents to remote areas. But the bulk of the enforcement is concentrated on a 44-mile stretch east of Blaine where the new cameras have been located and where most of the sensors, which are moved from time to time, are placed.Rick Holleman, a Lynden resident who owns a trucking company, said he can attest to the sensitivity of the sensors. "I jog along the border every night, and just my jogging can set off the sensors," he said. A couple of months ago, a Border Patrol agent -- just transferred from San Diego -- asked him what he was doing running alongside Boundary Road. "It does seem like there's more Border Patrol around," Holleman said, adding that agents recently arrested two New York men near his home after they were caught crossing the border with marijuana. Carey James, who retired last year as chief patrol agent for the Border Patrol in Blaine, said enforcers must worry not only about the land border but also about nearby Puget Sound, where small boats zip back and forth from Canada, often carrying drugs.The challenges in the north go well beyond geography, according to John Frecker, the Northeast regional vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, the union that represents border patrol agents. Even when agents manage to catch people crossing into the United States illegally, they have limited options, he said. The criminal record checks they perform don't extend worldwide and detention facilities are often so crowded that the INS releases many illegal immigrants pending deportation hearings. Then they disappear.In Blaine, Border Patrol agents cite the case of Ghazi Ibrahim Abu Mezer, a Palestinian who was caught three times in 1996 and 1997 in Washington state, only to be released each time. He was sent back to Canada twice; the third time he was released pending a deportation hearing. Mezer didn't show up for the hearing but did turn up six months later in Brooklyn, New York, where police arrested him in a plot to bomb subways. He was convicted of conspiracy and sentenced to life in prison.In the most famous case, Customs inspectors in Port Angeles, Wash., arrested Ahmed Ressam in December 1999 with a trunk full of explosives. Ressam later admitted that he was part of a plot to bomb Los Angeles International Airport and other targets during millennium celebrations.Security has been stepped up at Port Angeles, where inspectors are opening more car trunks and looking at more trucks. That's also true at the two ports of entry in Blaine, where the Customs Service received new equipment to detect nuclear materials and explosives.Trucks are guided through a large scanning machine that alerts Customs inspectors to hidden compartments or suspicious cargo. A hand-held device can be used to find hidden panels in cars and smaller trucks. The radiation detectors -- worn like pagers -- are so sensitive that they are set off when someone undergoing radiation treatments comes near.Ronald H. Henley, Bates's boss and Blaine's chief patrol agent, said he believes the extra security measures are working. He's divided the region into 13 zones, regularly analyzes information coming from the sensors, cameras, law enforcement and the public, and is putting his agents in places where he believes they can have the most impact."All I can say is I don't have any actual intelligence that hundreds of people are going where I'm not," Henley said. Note: Since Sept. 11, More Agents, Technology Patrol Stretches of Long-Neglected 4,000-Mile Line. Source: Washington Post (DC)Author: Bill Miller, Washington Post Staff WriterPublished: Monday, April 8, 2002; Page A03 Copyright: 2002 The Washington Post Company Contact: letterstoed washpost.comWebsite: http://www.washingtonpost.com Related Articles:Soldiers at US Border Posts To Be Armed http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12371.shtmlCanada Battling 'Weak Link' Perception http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12043.shtml
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Comment #24 posted by FoM on April 15, 2002 at 07:40:59 PT
Snipped National Post Article
Satellites May Target Pot Crops
Surveillance from space: UN program seeks to eradicate marijuana by 2008
National Post
Jim Bronskill, Southam News
 
OTTAWA - The RCMP is studying a plan to enlist space satellites in the war on illicit drugs.
The Mounties believe satellite technology could help detect and monitor illegal marijuana production across Canada.
"It is something that is at the research and development stage to determine if there is a practical application," said Sergeant Paul Marsh, an RCMP spokesman.
A recent report by the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission says Canada is pursuing the idea as a new means of estimating the amount of cannabis cultivated each year.
Current methods employed by Canada to make these calculations include ground surveys, monitoring by airplane, and analysis of data from plant seizure reports and crop-eradication programs, says the commission, an agency of the Organization of American States that helps co-ordinate the anti-drug efforts of the 34 member countries.
"Recently, Canada launched a new program involving the police and the Canadian Space Agency to enhance detection and monitoring of illegal crop production," says the commission report, an evaluation of Canada's initiatives to stamp out illicit drugs.
A spokeswoman for Canada's space agency had no information about the plans but Sgt. Marsh confirmed the idea was under consideration. "The RCMP is committed to using technological advances which will assist us in reaching our objective of safe homes and safe communities," he said.
He provided no details, saying, "it's really premature because it's at the R and D stage."
RADARSAT, Canada's advanced Earth observation satellite, has been used to measure legitimate crop fields, make accurate maps, study ice movement and monitor the coastline. Using a system known as synthetic aperture radar, the satellite is able to operate day or night in all types of weather.
The concept of using satellites in the fight against drugs is not new. The United Nations International Drug Control Program has also announced plans to employ satellite technology as part of an effort to eradicate the cannabis plant, cocoa bush and opium poppy by 2008.
About half of the marijuana available in Canada is produced domestically, the RCMP says. Conservative estimates indicate at least 800 tonnes of pot is grown annually.
Surveillance of crops through airplane flights has proven useful to date, Sgt. Marsh said.
"Obviously, there are advantages to aerial surveillance and that's why we use aircraft at the present time. There are things that you can see from the air, [because] you simply don't have the same perspective from the ground."
However, as the OAS commission report points out, even high-powered satellites will not guarantee an accurate measure of Canadian cannabis production.
"Canada notes that a complete picture of marijuana cultivation is difficult to obtain because a significant portion of cultivation is indoors," the report says.
Complete Article: http://www.nationalpost.com/home/story.html?f=/stories/20020415/641693.html
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Comment #23 posted by goneposthole on April 08, 2002 at 14:23:00 PT
Oh Yeah
I'll take a hamburger deluxe, fries, chocolate shake, and a few chicken strips on the side.ThanksBefore the New World Odor Empire collides with reality.
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Comment #22 posted by goneposthole on April 08, 2002 at 14:19:24 PT
New World Odor Empire
We don't need no stinking New World Odor Empire. Of course, a reefer of medical marijuana (homus grownus) is what everybody needs.20 billion birds from southern Mexico to Wrangel Island like pot seeds, too. 
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Comment #21 posted by MikeEEEEE on April 08, 2002 at 12:14:34 PT
New World Ordering
You're welcome qqqq.
There's some of us that know where we're being lead. Most people are sheep to busy with with bills to care; confident the superpower is safe. We maybe called crazy, but when the shit hits the fan the sheep stand and wonder about our foresight.
An ancient guru once said, don't do it, don't start an economic system based on illusion, he said it would cause severe suffering. You could answer the question about if the current systems have caused human suffering?
Kap, I've found the American media very bias, and very blatant about their propaganda and changing opinions. I sometimes watch BBC America, they're the least bias news I've found.
Years ago countries were told to get rid of their dependence on oil, they'll, or should I say, we'll be paying for their mistakes.
Hold on to your seats, the shit will be hitting the fans, those waving the fans will feel the impact. 
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Comment #20 posted by dddd on April 08, 2002 at 11:18:19 PT
I'll "chime in" Kap
,,,but just long enough to say that I have been swamped with e-mail lately from nails who have recieved concussions,and various cranial traumas,,,,and most of them blame Lehder and Ddc,,,,,but I blame you !!  yes,, YOU! .. you have been brutalizing nails mercilessly for years!..cracking nails skulls as if you were some hells angel freaked out biker at a Big Brother and the Holding Company concert in 1969,,you have left a trail of victims,,16d vinyl coated Sinkers, ,,twisted 8d galvinized finish,,contorted and bent 8d box,,the obvious victims of your Estwing.,,or Vaughn.. ,you set a bad example years ago,,,so dont be tellin' Lehder to put his hammer down...I say 'go for it'!!,,it will be the "War on Nailheads"!....................yes,,we will be the elite counter-insurgent green beret special forces freedom fighters who hunt down nails and smash their heads into pulverized remnants that were once part of an engine block of a 1972 AMC Pacer....seriously Lehder,,your 54-40 comment was typicaly outstanding!.dddd
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Comment #19 posted by Lehder on April 08, 2002 at 10:14:26 PT
correction
i got carried away in describing the border dispute. it involved not the entire canadian border but only the portion which was at the time known as oregon territories: the 49th parallel had already been established as the u.s.-canadian border east of the rocky mtns, and the treaty of oregon in 1846 extended that delineation to the pacific, except for a dip to the south keeping the vancouver island and puget sound area within the uk - and we on both sides of the bc-washington delineation should feel lucky for that.polk went on during this era of 'manifest destiny' to annex california and new mexico. when money failed to buy out the mexicans, he sent zachary taylor to occupy mexico city. this ought to sound familiar to afghans today, and i hope canadians will take the trouble to review their history, as i have, and to reconsider the course to which they have acquiesced at the feet of the american empire.polk died in 1849 from so much hard work and was followed by zachary taylor:Old Rough and Ready's" homespun ways were political assets. His long
         military record would appeal to northerners; his ownership of 100 slaves would
         lure southern votes. He had not committed himself on troublesome issues. The
         Whigs nominated him to run against the Democratic candidate, Lewis Cass,
         who favored letting the residents of territories decide for themselves whether
         they wanted slavery. http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/zt12.htmlsound familiar?the civil war erupted about a decade later.
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Comment #18 posted by kaptinemo on April 08, 2002 at 09:57:28 PT:
Some more of "America as Empire"
The American Empire's 
Provincial Press by Richard Reeves:http://www.richardreeves.com/From the article:"Today," wrote Emily Eakin, in the newspaper's Week in Review section, "America is no mere superpower or hegemon but a full-blown empire in the Roman and British sense."That is something of an understatement. The United States is, in fact, now the greatest empire, militarily, economically, technologically and culturally, that the world has ever seen. We have the power, and are using it, to force other countries to adopt (or pay lip service) to our ideas of market capitalism and political democracy. That, after all, is what words like "globalization" really mean.I don't know about you, but I find the word 'empire' fraught with some very nasty connotations...unseemly for a purported republic. 
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Comment #17 posted by qqqq on April 08, 2002 at 09:55:10 PT
Thank You MikeEEEEE
...I really appreciate,and value your compliments and recognition of my ramblin' raves!..It's not that easy to seperate the reality from the jokes in what I write....I think you are right in suggesting that I might be right..
..It kinda makes me sad to think of the unknown readers who read the comments of the people here,,the anti people who feel that Marijuana should remain in the same category as heroin,,but they are not able to post any argument...If the best they can do is Francis,and Mary Friend,I guess that it should be no surprise because it reflects the true picture of spineless imperial drug war assholes,,who cannot defend their positions...like Asa Hutchinson having to flee the bookstore when real people started asking him to discuss real questions.. .Think about it,,,the head of the DEA had to split because he was being asked questions!!..unreal!,,,I think that before a citizen pays their taxes,,they should be able to discuss some basic issues with their government....Who will speak for the DEA or the ONDCP!????  c'mon,,,I dare you government!!!who are you anyway?....All we want,,is to find someone who will discuss government drug policy with us,in a sane,civilized, manner..? that's all... ..Is there not one person who will come forth to represent our rulers who will discuss these issues?????
...fuck NO!,,,you will hear them say the standard blanket,pass the buck,cop-out reply......." If you dont like the laws,then elect people who will make laws that you like.",,and then they will say;"If you could put down the bong and crack pipe long enough to get a job and vote then you could get weed from Budwieser and crack from Seagrams!,,,Dwight Yoakum and The Dixie Chicks would be doin' ads for Jack Daniels meth,,and the next thing ya know,we would have a junkie named Carl Petty drivin' a stock car in the Heroin 500,,,then,,get ready for the golf event,,The FARC Bogota Masters Tournament".....
....anyway,,thanx again MikeEEEEE
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Comment #16 posted by goneposthole on April 08, 2002 at 09:23:42 PT
they are grabbing at straws
not "that are grabbing at straws"
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Comment #15 posted by goneposthole on April 08, 2002 at 09:19:48 PT
American empire
the hempire within the borders is actually beginning to control the US blubberment. All of the grandstanding, huffing and puffing, laws prohibiting marijuana, DEA, saving the children, and what not is crumbling under the weight. I think it can no longer be controlled, that are grabbing at straws all for naught. We're winning, they're losing. Joost like the Romans expanding their empire and not paying attention to the 'Homeland', the power will eventually wither and die.Anyway, that is what I opine )in the pines).A spelling error, that would be spelled "Question Mark and The Mysterians"
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Comment #14 posted by kaptinemo on April 08, 2002 at 08:55:07 PT:
Sr. Lehder! Would you please
put that hammer down; the nail heads are screaming from the pounding you've given them.I am wondering if anyone has noticed the same things:Last year, there was an interesting commercial on the Tube; interesting in light of recent developments. The commercial came on in the wake of the popular interest in the Roman Empire sparked by the hit movie Gladiator. It showed what a modern-day Roman Empire might look like - given modern-day technology. The point of the commercial? If Rome had had access to modern technology, it would still be ruling a sizable chunk of the world...if not the whole planet.Whether it had any right to was conveniently left out of consideration.Just a month before 9-11, in the Washington Post below the fold, was an interesting aritcle. The article dealt with the idea of certain policy wonks arguing that the US was an empire in all but name...so why not take the last step and call it that?Most Americans either cringe in pain or growl in anger from offended sensibilities when the US is described by other nations as an empire. Yet there are some very obvious parallels with previous ones...nearly all commercially oriented and using the military to make the ground safe for well-connected corporate 'shareholders' (who often turn out to be high paid CEO's taking a huge paycut to accept government jobs as 'public servants'; sound familiar?) who have 'economic interests in the affected countries. So that they may do what a private citizen certainly may not do...invade a foreign country while waving the flag and making patriotic noises.And through commercials and other routes in the corporate media, the Powers-That-Be appear to be slowly testing the waters as to how close they can come to acclimating the public to the idea. which would necessarily require 'secure borders'...to the extent of 'territorial acquisitions'. What do you think? Anyone chime in...
 
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Comment #13 posted by goneposthole on April 08, 2002 at 08:46:01 PT
Question Mark and The Mystrerians
I wonder when the (Con)gress of the United States will vote on repealing the Constitution, anyway?What the hell, might as well.Then it will be time to wax nostalgia.
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Comment #12 posted by dddd on April 08, 2002 at 08:28:50 PT
,,,Goneposthole,,
,,,c'mon man!!!,,knock it off!,,,you're gonna drown me in nostalgia,,,and I'll have to post another lil' novel about dropping acid in the Hoh rain forest,and hiking over "The High Divide",,and the time a deer hit my car in front of the Japanese tourists,and taking the Black Ball ferry from Port Angeles to Victoria!!,,I'm already feeling pangs of mild guilt from straying off topic into distant realms of selfish gossipy blabbing rambles...dddd
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Comment #11 posted by Lehder on April 08, 2002 at 08:10:09 PT
the wrong bean has been arrested 
i make a lot of typos, but wish to correct only cocoa where I meant coca. Chocolate is still legal; but if there should appear any advantage to drug warriors in criminalizing it, you can be sure that many dangers to the health of children will be discovered in cocoa.
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Comment #10 posted by MikeEEEEE on April 08, 2002 at 08:06:28 PT
You may have something there 4q's
The bible speaks of end times when we get burned from the sky (look at global warming, the polar ice caps melting), the oceans dieing (the coral dieing), etc. I believe Nostrodamus was a real mystic, and he definitly used drugs to open channels, being a doctor he had access to them.Some of you may think qqqq (interesting name) is rambling, but he's expressing some valid points, at least some of them. The one superpower is fighting a world war on terror, other countries are fighting small wars, the fighting is producing more anger and thoughts of war. We may be nearing the onset of WWIII. And for what, a dirty little oil that powers SUV's, it's sick. The problem may be the interesting name you have 4Q, if enough people 4Q each other, we'll all be 4Q'ed in the end.
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Comment #9 posted by goneposthole on April 08, 2002 at 08:01:10 PT
Crescent Lake
Fouglas dirs, Sitka spruce, the incredible Olympic Peninsula; you can walk up to the elk within 50 feet. If the elk are in the forest, you will see them for 2 seconds; they'll move a few feet and will be gone. "Their they were, gone." Drift down the Bogachiel River and catch a Rainbow swimming back from the Pacific Ocean. Dyanmite. France wishes for what Washington has.Oh, ich vergessen, you can get pretty good pot, too. Mt. Baker, Gray's Harbor, Long Beach...hundreds of places to go and see. Well worth the wisit.The Space Needle whirling around, and on a clear day, you will catch a view of Mt. Rainier. Can't forget that. Graffitti on the walls downtown: The needle is goddess, space is the place.
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Comment #8 posted by Lehder on April 08, 2002 at 07:47:15 PT
Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!
In the presidential election of 1844 James Polk defeated Henry Clay by running on a platform that claimed for the U.S., under threat of war with the UK, all of present day Canadian territory to the northern latitude of 54 degrees 40 minutes: "Fifty-four forty or fight!" It's the sort of belligerent slogan that Americans still love, and Polk's victory, though close at the time, seems a natural one today.The 54 40 line lies hundreds of miles to the north of the present border and is coincident with the southernmost tip of Alaska. The issue was peacefully resolved at the 49th latitude with the 1846 Treaty of Oregon, still in force; but if the US had gone to war with the UK and successfully annexed the disputed lands then virtually all Canadians would today be drug-warring Americans.War never came in the 1840's. Our border with Canada has been a peaceful one for hundreds of years, and the 49th parallel with Canada has long been called 'the longest unguarded border in the world.' Thanks to George Bush and the War on Drugs which masquerades now as a War on Terror, this can no longer be said.The Justice Department's inspector general's office recently warned that gaps remain along the northern border and said more agents and technology are desperately needed. We can be certain now that no matter how robustly the border is reinforced, always, for many years to come, more and more "agents and technology" will be "desperately needed" to protect Americans from drugs (marijuana), and when that does not play well, then to protect Americans from terrorists. But fundamentally the effort is waged by America's inner corporate circle against the importation of marijuana.More and more we will see televised propaganda about busts of drug runners and suspected terrorists. Each story will bolster American support for still more agents and more technology and more money spent on militarizing this once serene international border. People will be inconvenienced, and the huge numbers that cross that border each day will dwindle. Economic, cultural and family ties will weaken. Business whose profits suffer from the expenses and delays of trade will be replaced by other business specializing in security and reporession. Violent incidents and even deaths and 'justifiable killings' will become commonplace and will be exploited to justify the further endless militarization of the border. Just as the war on drugs increases the numbers of the addicted; just as the spraying of herbicides only boosts the production of South American cocoa; just as more repressive laws in the US only breed more homelessness, corruption and violence in the streets - so will this purposeful souring of relations only create corruption and violence within a vastly increased border patrol and breed acrimony between two friendly countries and economic and social decay within them.Now I am not going to chide the Justice Department for making an error in judgement or unwisely introducing policies that will backfire to create problems where few existed before. Because I know too well from the many examples we have already seen that the War on Drugs is a traitorous enterprise conducted at heart by people who thoroughly understand the consequences of their policies. 
For as far as its prosecutors can see, the war on drugs has been a tremendous success in Colombia, Peru, the far East and in Afghanistan; it has succeeded beautifully in the US and continues to succeed in its goals of impoverishing and brutalizing the population.The mafia moves in on a legitimate business and its honest owners to make a quick profit by abusing every penny of good credit to buy goods which are then sold through the back door. It robs its customers and its owners alike, destroys that business, brings danger and blight to a city block and walks away with the pockets of a few violent men bulging with the wrack and refuse of many destroyed and newly miserable lives. And that's exactly how the Drug War works when applied not to business and individuals, but to whole nations and societies. Canada is next.
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Comment #7 posted by dddd on April 08, 2002 at 07:35:17 PT
Goneposthole
.....I was born in Seattle Washington,,and I grew up in Edmonds....The Puget Sound is so beautiful I think maybe I'll move back up there!......We used to have a summer place on Whidbey Island,I know the area well,and yes ,,I do remember Smuggler Cove....The San Juan Islands are killer,,and they extend up almost to the Strait of Juan de Fuca,which seperate Vancouver Island from the Olympic Penninsula........to suggest that it would be possible to "plug",,the,"pores",in this area,is like suggesting Yasser Arafat will host Saturday Night Live....
...JAH is no secret....dddd
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Comment #6 posted by Dan B on April 08, 2002 at 07:28:34 PT:
qqqq / dddd
Cannabis News is home to the best satire on the 'Net, thanks to you. You made my day; I'll be smiling at least until tomorrow.Have a good one.Dan B
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Comment #5 posted by goneposthole on April 08, 2002 at 07:02:12 PT
Smuggler's Cove
Visit Washington State sometime, Wesetern Washington is a great place. Chuckanut, Wallace Falls, San Juan Islands are all sites well worth seeing. Take the Mukilteo ferry over to Whidbey Island (if I remember correctly). As you drive through and around the island you will come across a spot called 'Smuggler's Cove'. I wonder how it got it's name?In my hometown there were underground 'rooms' that had opium dens from many years ago. Probably just like many other towns and cities across the land here in America. The borders are porous and willl remain so despite all attempts to make them otherwise.
Our broken down leaders have to realize that what is past is prologue.By the way, TV is dead. I get my news at cannabisnews.com. If you haven't heard of it, go there. It's good news.
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Comment #4 posted by qqqq on April 08, 2002 at 06:36:59 PT
..dont be fooled by dddd!...
...I dont even know who he is..I'm tryin' to find his email address,and track him down so I can sue the jerk!. I dont think dddd will be having such jolly fun after my lawyer,Mr Myers gets done with him,(Jacoby might have to handle the case if Myers is too busy),,,,
..anyway,,to get back on track,,,,just watch as oil prices start to rise!..if this aint a hot,,HOT summer,,I'll join the Salvation Army of China to fight against those Falun Gong terrorist religious misfits!...There's probably millions of terrorists in China,,but we cant hunt then down and bring them to justice until the Chinese rulers tells us who they are.,,It might be a good thing if the Chinese government could release the information and location of the terrorists in China,,then maybe we could get Isreal to go terrorist huntin' in China,and that would ease tensions in the middle east...well,,now that I think of it,,I think China has already made terrorism illegal. .I think I heard that they have eliminated the Tibetan Al-Quieda..They made that Dolly-Lamma bin-laden guy leave the country,,and now the path has been cleared for China to hold him responsible for some suicide bomber from Tibet...I'm sorry,,I think maybe I'm getting a bit too political here.
..I can hardly wait til we conquer terror.,,I plan on kickin' back and makin' sure no Enron type guys try to play some kinda shell game with my mutual fund,,,gotta keep your eyes open nowdays or before ya know it AOL, and General Electric will declare bankruptcy..and General Motors will move their corporate headquarters to Bejing, ,and drinking water will be selling for ten bucks a gallon!
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Comment #3 posted by dddd on April 08, 2002 at 04:46:55 PT
..I dont know about 4Q...
..he may be wandering into areas that are too far removed from what we discuss here...I'm seriously considering excommunicating him from here,and finding him a job!....I'm not sure if you're aware how he got the name '4Q',,,, and neither am I,,but I think it was CongressmanSuet who told me that he heard through the grapevine, that it refers to an IQ test score.. It turns out his IQ was 4,,so people started calling him 4Q....I guess this supports my theory that you dont need alot of IQ to dazzle,,you just need to use whatever Qs you may have availiable,in a way where you get the most out of them.....I pity the nurd who has hundreds of Qs,,,,there are alot of really smart losers out there.I guess they are probably overloaded with excess Qs that dance around their minds and brains like some breakfast cereal commercial..I'll bet you a majority of people who are "mentaly ill",were driven to madness by dozens of frenzied excess Qs dancing about in their brains,,and asking too many questions,,annoying the mind with facts that are both real and imagined,,overloading the victims intellect,and smothering reality like a dumptruck full of hamburgers being poured into the stomach of a starving infant in Uganda!....
..
...the really sad part about all this,,is my own situation...I've gotta try and hunt down the Q that knows how to charge people for being amused....I've thought of being a standup comic,,but I have this fear of facing a totally silence audience after I told my best joke..............maybe I could get anyone who reads my ramblings to send me an amusement fee,,of a "pay per laugh" thing that would use the 'honor system',,and those who laughed at what I wrote would mail me some money,,,,,but that would not be good..not because I wouldnt trust people to send me their laugh donations,,but because I'd feel sorry for the poor folks who would cheat me on the honor system,,and lay awake at night feeling guilty for all the free fun I provided for them,,and I dont like the idea of poor folks who can barely make the rent,and cant even afford to pay attention!..it would be selfish of me to make them feel guilty for laughing at my jokes,yet not being able to pay...maybe I could set up a program where honest poor people who had enjoyed cheap fun,could pay me with canned goods or food stamps.?....or what about some TV infomercial that is styled after that Cleo pshycic false Jamaican tarot card sham....1-900-FUN-TIME,,3:30 in the morning on UPN and WB,,4D in a turban,,"Call me now for some free fun!!!"??nope,,come to think of it,that would be too much of a hassle..I guess I'll file that idea with other ones,,like the "Crack Hut",crack delivery franchise, ,,or my new chain of "Terrorist Depot" megastores,,or,"Bomb-Mart".,??????????????..
........nah,,,I'm just kidding,,,,I feel proud and lucky if someone out there enjoys whatever it is I do here,and I want to thank anyone who has bothered to read this far,and enjoyed themselves........but if you read this far,,and didnt like it,,,I dont care!..find something else to read,,fucker!..................qqqq,,,,oops,,I mean..dddd
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Comment #2 posted by qqqq on April 08, 2002 at 00:12:04 PT
MILLENIUM APOCALYPSE REVELATION....
...(Readers Beware....strong language)...
...Global events....Worldwide conflict of Bibical Nostrodamus proportion...!...Get ready,,,
....To qualify as being on topic,,,I cant believe idiots who seem to suggest that we somehow need to,,or can seal off the Canadian border!...Gimme a freekin break!...What about the very porous border between lobbyists and lawmakers?....One wonders how long it will be until us sheeple get pissed off enough to speak out?...next thing ya know,,you will have to go through an ass probing metal detector drug test before you can shop at Sears or Wal-mart!!!!..
....I hope I'm not the only one who sees the recent world events as extremely alarming.....I dont know about you,but I think that it's time to shit your pants,when you see masses of really pissed Arabs around the world,demonstrating against Isreal/US agression... I am a Jewish Christian and I have nothing against Jewish people,,but Isreals military agression is fucking stupid!,,but then again,who could blame them??the shrub, and his war on terror set the stage for any government military to justify hunting down and killing anyone who can be labeled as a Terrorist".... ..the Chinese dictatorship said;"right on!",when they heard about the war on terror!,,after all,any Chinese people who would oppose the Chinese government are obviously terrorists!!!.The war on terror has spun out of control like like a drug war on crack....Speak out while you still can,because it wont be long til we an article saying,"Porous pro-drug websites shut down"........Freedom fighting,,,Marijuana using ,,true Patriots,,,Beware!,, ..dont be suprised when the Apache helicopters hover overhead,,as the SWAT team ransacks your home,,,hunting for drug using terrorists!...and your ass will end up in jail,,,and maybe you will end up sharing a cell with some catholic priest pedophile child molester,and you can visit with him until the church pays his $500.00 bail!..too bad,,your bail is $500,000.......
...it aint lookin' very pretty,,,,,I recommend getting to know God better...I dont recommend consulting a Catholic priest because I think the catholic religion is flawed,,but if you decide that catholism is what you want,,I dont think you need to worry about getting molested by priests anymore..all confession booths and churches have been outfitted with security cameras....if your dentist is a catholic priest,and he uses gas,,beware..you should call the authorities if you get home and find that you underwear is on backwards or inside out....and if you're not sure about ,,and want to give the dentist/priest the benifit of the doubt,,then the next time you go in for a root canal or something,,put your underwear on backwards before you go,,,then,,when the gas wears off,and you get home and find your underwear is on frontwards,,it's a for sure bust,,then you can call the cops,and get a lawyer, ,hopefully,you will make sure to get a Jewish lawyer..they are the best,and easy to find..A catholic lawyer might not pursue the case aggressivly enough,,and if it was a catholic priest attorney,you might end up getting molested again.....to be fair,,I'll bet there are a few deviate molester rabbis out there too.......
...If I have offended anyone of the Catholic or Jewish faith with my wreckless humor,(or anyone else) ,,Please accept my sincere apologies.I respect everyones beliefs,and I do not intend to offend anyone with my sardonic rambling attempts at humor.
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Comment #1 posted by greenfox on April 07, 2002 at 22:07:25 PT
policestate.gov
"There are still lots of holes."Lock the borders up, put a camera in every house, put the bar codes on the skin...
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