cannabisnews.com: DrugSense Weekly, June 2, 2000





DrugSense Weekly, June 2, 2000
Posted by FoM on June 02, 2000 at 11:01:12 PT
Feature Article By Steve Kubby
Source: DrugSense
Attention Law Enforcement You Could Be Sued, Indicted, Even Sent To Prison As A Drug War Criminal! All wars end and eventually the War on Drugs will end as well. After every war, comes an accounting of those who violated the human rights of others. Where will you stand when that judgment day comes? Will you be exonerated or end up spending the rest of your life as a drug war criminal?
You may believe it is your duty to "do something about the drug problem," but those who violate the human rights of American citizens will someday be held accountable. That day is surely coming and it may be sooner than you think. If you and your fellow officers, no matter how well intentioned, continue to enforce the failed ideology of Zero Tolerance; you could find yourself spending the rest of your life looking over your shoulder, worrying about being charged and convicted of drug war crimes against your fellow citizens.When police think and act like soldiers, they generate mistrust among their constituents, which in turn pushes law enforcement agencies further into an elitist, impersonal enclave. The military mentality, along with machine guns and flash grenades, have no place in a free society. Just listen to what Joseph D. McNamara, the Retired Police Chief of San Jose and a Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution has to say about the military mentality that has infected the LAPD and police departments across the country "The Board of Inquiry report released last week, for all its candor and commendable self criticism, does not cite the department's fundamental military style of policing as responsible for the horrible police crimes alleged by former Officer Rafael Perez, whose disclosures exposed the police misconduct at Rampart. Rather than calling for the development of a new style of policing, the report focuses on internal management practices. It contends that a few rotten apples, binge hiring, inadequate training, haphazard supervision, failure to hold supervisors accountable and other personnel shortcomings were the sources of the problems at Rampart."Chief McNamara then goes on to warn, "Greedy" lawyers, not idealism, may thus end up provoking citizens in Los Angeles to demand that those who enforce the law should also obey it. When police behave lawfully, people can tell the good guys from the bad. Folks don't have to worry about cops shooting their teenagers or framing them, or plunging their city into bankruptcy.Judging from the headlines, police departments across this great nation, from Los Angeles to New York City are about to reap the wrath of "Greedy" lawyers. Although no elected officials are yet ready to deal with demilitarizing the LAPD, the L.A. City Council is planning on over $200 million in law suits. That estimate is probably low and doesn't include personal suits against police as well as a tremendous loss of credibility for the police.Under the California Constitution Article 2 Section 10, Prop. 215 legally became the law of California the day after the 1996 election and only the voters can amend or repeal the Compassionate Use Act now that it has passed(a) An initiative statute or referendum approved by a majority of votes thereon TAKES EFFECT THE DAY AFTER THE ELECTION unless the measure provides otherwise. [emphasis added]Where is your moral tripwire for saying NO to a failed ideology and insisting on following the Constitution instead? If Washington and Jefferson were still alive today, would you arrest them for violating federal law? Would you fire on unarmed American citizens if ordered to? These are questions only you can decide.Hopefully, you will give serious consideration to these important issues and you will make a new commitment to your oath to "Protect and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic." Will your future hold honor or a life as a war criminal? The choice is yours. NOTE: The Feature Article excerpted below can be read in it's entiretyat a web site set up by Bob Ames: http://www.attentionlawenforcement.com/ The Kubby Fileshttp://www.kubby.org/Click the link to read all of DrugSense Weekly's Update News:DrugSense Weekly, June 2, 2000http://drugsense.org/dsw/2000/ds00.n151.htmlJoseph D. McNamaraDrugSense Weekly - March 10, 2000 #140 http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread5031.shtmlCannabisNews MapInc. Archives:http://cannabisnews.com/news/list/MAP.shtml
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Comment #10 posted by J Christen-Mitchell on June 02, 2000 at 20:02:22 PT:
'Its agents become a separate and superior caste'
"Good intentions will always be pleaded for every assumption of authority. It is hardly too strong to say that the Constitution was made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions. There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to govern. They promise to be good masters, but they mean to be masters." - Senator Daniel Webster (1782-1852) "(Government in America) has taken on a vast mass of new duties and responsibilities; it has spread out its powers until they penetrate to every act of the citizen, however secret; it has begun to throw around its operations the high dignity and impeccability of religion; its agents become a separate and superior caste, with authority to bind and loose, and their thumbs in every pot. But it still remains, as it was in the beginning, the common enemy of all well-disposed, industrious and decent men." - H. L. Mencken (1880-1956) "We will make converts day by day. We will grow strong by the violence and injustice of our adversaries. And, unless truth be a mockery and justice a hollow lie, we will be in the majority after awhile, and then the revolution which we will accomplish will be none less radical from being the result of pacific measures. The battle for freedom is to be fought on principle." - Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) The bottom line is the one law of the nation is the constitution and the drug laws are not compatible with it. Therefore the authorities are acting under color of law. By degrees we have almost surrendered liberty. By degrees it will be reasserted.
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Comment #9 posted by dddd on June 02, 2000 at 18:06:48 PT
Approacher
I must agree with "...."concerning the negative vibration of a violent,and retaliatory outlook.Even though you cant blame someone who has had their life shredded,as a result of some planted evidence,or trumped up charges,(it would be hard to forgive someone who was responsible for your innocent ass being brutally incarcerated for years).....but I must agree,that,that a balanced approach is best.Violence,and hate,or bitterness and retaliation,are never good solutions. Welcome ....  nice to hear from you...........dddd
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Comment #8 posted by kaptinemo on June 02, 2000 at 17:57:09 PT:
Angry, dangerous kooks
Your're at home. It's late. You and your wife have gone to bed, your kids are sound asleep, even the cat is nodding off.Downstairs, you hear a thumping at the door, then the sound of splintering wood, and the muffled thudding of feet rushing upstairs. Your door bursts inwards and you are confronted with Fritz helmed, flack-jacketed, black clad, masked men wearing Ninja suits and waving machine pistols in your face. Your children are screaming from the other room, crying for you to help them from the marauders. Your uninvited guests shout at you that they are police, to obey them; the threat of consequences for failing to do so are obvious. And all the while you are begging and pleading with them to tell you what you've done wrong! You pay your taxes, drive carefuly, give to charities, go to church, et al, and you just can't figure it out. They tell you to shut up, you know what you've done: you've been selling illegal drugs!The invaders then ransack your home, tearing your furniture apart, kicking your cat (which later dies from the injuries it received) and generally ruin your house. Then one of them makes a startling statement: they picked the wrong house. The misread the address on the warrant. They file out, laughing at their 'mistake'. no mention is made of restitution; they laugh - this time, at you - for having the temerity or the naivete to expect any recompense.And this time, the homeowner was lucky. Because he's alive. Some other innocent homeowners have not fared so well. ask Ismael Mena's ghost. Or David Scott's.Angry, dangerous kooks are afoot in our streets, already. But if they realize that one day they will be held accountable for their actions, they might be a little less 'enthusiastic' the next time they raid the wrong house. In fact they might take the time to actually read the wording on the warrant they got. I'll be happy to help them with the big words, if they need it.
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Comment #7 posted by observer on June 02, 2000 at 17:47:28 PT
Nuremberg
``A senior official in one state frankly told me that he was simply demagoguing the issue to get votes. Prosecutors at the Nuremberg trials noted a similar attitude among Nazi conspirators, in which they promoted anti-Semitism not because they were concerned about a Jewish problem but because they felt anti-Semitism would be politically popular.190'' (pg.32)``Mandantory sentencing eliminates the independent excercise of authority by judges in criminal cases. Nuremberg prosecutors condemned elimination of judges' independence230 and entered mandantory sentencing as part of the evidence of crimes against humanity.231 A judge removed from office by the Nazis recalled that "in important criminal cases," the Nazi district attorney would "inform the presiding judge prior to the trial of the punishment which would be sought and point out that this sentence would be expected of him."232 Procedure is little different in important American drug war cases. Upon conviction, under mandantory sentencing judges must obey the sentencing decision of the prosecutor, who prearranges the sentence by fine tuning the indictment. Nuremberg prosecutors described "prearrangement of sentences between judges and prosecutors" as criminal.233'' (p.63)``Without [such] vilification, the war on drug users would be impossible, because citizens would recoil from persecuting people no different from themselves. Drug war propagandists serve the same function that Nazi propagandists served, a function judged harshly at Nuremberg.'' (p.32)Richard L Miller, Drug Warriors and their Prey, 1996http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0275950425/Cannabisnews/ 
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Comment #6 posted by ... on June 02, 2000 at 17:03:38 PT
Approaches
>Things seem to be getting worse,and better at the same time.The drugwar/police empire is truly having to scramble,to avoid the growing realization,and awareness of the people,that the WosDs is a sham and a scam...The next couple of years are going to be really weird.......peace.....dddd___________________________So what's wisest approach to increase awareness in the people and accelerate an end to the WosD? Is it best to approach the issue from a moderate standpoint, somewhat emotionless and appeal to reason, or is it better to unleash anger and threaten reprisal? I certainly can empathize with the anger towards those involved in this despicable war. But I'm not so sure that threats to hold law enforcement accountable for war crimes is helping the cause. I think it instead gives the warriors something to point at and say "See, they're not 'peaceful'. They're angry, dangerous kooks"
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Comment #5 posted by dddd on June 02, 2000 at 14:14:32 PT
graybar hotel
An excellent article. I like the point that is brought up about law enforcements reaction to officers who have planted evidence,lied under oath,etc.There seems to be some sort of underlying assumption of immunity,as if a police officer is somehow judged under completely different laws than us enemy citizens. I was driving to work this morning listening to the local Southern California news on the radio,and I had to gasp in disbelief,when I heard that some lawmaker or L.A. official had proposed a bill to make it a felony,for a cop to plant evidence on someone.....What!,,you mean it's not already a felony?..To completely destroy someone elses life and cause them to be locked up for years???Where are the mandatory minimums for these rogues?..These egregious crimes are somehow explained with terms like "bad judgement",and the "bad apples"are relieved of duty,as if that was punishment enough!These crooked cops should be taken into custody immediatly,and be held in the wonderful L.A. County jail,the same place their victims were held over for trial.(yes,I've been there.it aint pretty)....And after they've seen the judge,who has no choice but to sentence them to ten years mandatory minimum,under the new zero tolerance crooked cop law,,they should be sent to the same brutal lockdowns that their victims ended up in.....When this scandalous drug war sham finally comes to an end,I'm sure there will be plenty of cells availiable.Why they might even end up sharing a cell with someone the met in the past. To say the police state is out of control,is an understatement.Kap sez..."The more intelligent of them know what's coming; that is why they are pushing so hard for a de facto police state. Yousee, they believe that if all of their actions can be sanctioned as legal under the aegis of a police state, they will besafe from the inevitable backlash. "....This is an excellent observation,and it is already ringing true.Lawmakers are increasingly dreaming up new absurd laws,and they are not letting the constitution get in the way.They've already chipped it down so much over the last ten or so years,that the public has pretty much given up asking about it,because they have been effectivley endoctrinated into thinking the WosDs,is such a huge problem that it would be silly to let the constitution get in the way of saving the children. Things seem to be getting worse,and better at the same time.The drugwar/police empire is truly having to scramble,to avoid the growing realization,and awareness of the people,that the WosDs is a sham and a scam...The next couple of years are going to be really weird.......peace.....dddd
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Comment #4 posted by Shishaldin on June 02, 2000 at 14:11:49 PT
Kaptinemo- Orator Extraordinaire
Kap- The eloquence in your posts never fails to blow me away. It also never fails to inflame me and strengthen my resolve to do whatever I can to bring the Police State train of oppression to a grinding halt."The more intelligent of them know what's coming; that is why they are pushing so hard for a de facto police state. You see, they believe that if all of their actions can be sanctioned as legal under the aegis of a police state, they will be safe from the inevitable backlash."True, too true.Note:1. The Methamphetamine Anti-Proliferation Act, a clear infringement upon our 1st and 4th Amendment rights, openly supported by none other than my home state's Senator Diane Feinstein.2. "Smoke a Joint, Lose your License" Catchy, huh? Once again, California leads the way. My beloved "moderate" Gov. Gray Davis wants to revive William Bennett's (the Paragon of Virtue) bad idea that serves no one but those who need to have marijuana illegal to help line their pockets with forfeiture money.3. "U.S. Customs Service is asking Congress for permission to search mail leaving the United States." This is your country (map of USA). This is your country under a Police State (above quote). Any questions? 4. "Dover School Board Chairman Wants to Bring in Dogs" DOGS? At one point in my short life, this would've seemed ludicrous. Now, this type of paranoia/knee jerk reaction among school administrators is almost commonplace. They already have a cop on site. Bring on the razor wire, cameras, and guard tower. Make the police state a state of mind for our children. Makes it all the easier for those who hold the reigns to "guide" our youth.Fight the good fight, folks. Don't let them turn our beautiful land of the free into an Orwellian Twilight Zone. Do it "for the CHILDREN". As a father myself, I am....Peace and Strength to all,Shishaldin 
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Comment #3 posted by LOBO on June 02, 2000 at 14:10:47 PT
PREACH ON BROTHER!
You aree preaching to choir here Nemo ! Don't let that stop you though brother Can I get a amen ? AAAAAAAMMMEEEEEEENN BROTHER!!!
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Comment #2 posted by kaptinemo on June 02, 2000 at 12:21:58 PT
Some of you might recognize this
Justice is what we deserve; Mercy is in not getting it.Meaning very simply that those presently in power honestly believe themselves to be amongst The Righteous in their Just Crusade against illicit drugs. But like most such crusaders, they tend to forget that what they dismiss as 'collateral damage' are not grist for their mills. They are not faceless masses. They are people who live and love, laugh, (and largely due to the efforts of the self-proclaimed moral proctors) cry and suffer.But of course, the zealots are doing this out of their sense of tacit moral superiority; only the Just can wield the power of the State to save it...from itself. More correctly, from the perceived barbarians within its' gates.What such people rarely tumble to, until it's too late for them, is that what they set into motion is very like mounting and riding a tiger. If you get off of it, it will eat you. The actions that the DrugWarriors have set into motion - home invasions, forfeiture, trampling of civil liberties, rending families asunder, and murder(!) of innocents - cannot neatly and quietly be put back into Pandora's Box without some richly-deserved repercussions. They cannot be dismissed without review like the statements of a fantasy prone child. Because, instead of simply case of feelings being hurt, lives have been ruined. Instead of a sand castle being stepped on, people's homes have been violated. Their careers trashed. And in the case of David Scott, Ismael Mena, Esequiel Hernandez, and God knows how many others, lives have been taken, without even the slightest whiff of due process. The more intelligent of them know what's coming; that is why they are pushing so hard for a de facto police state. You see, they believe that if all of their actions can be sanctioned as legal under the aegis of a police state, they will be safe from the inevitable backlash. Yes, they do, indeed, deserve justice. They hunger for it, not realizing it is a two edged sword. The brightest of them know that they will not always be holding it by the haft. Because times *do* change, the circle *does* come round, and the worm *does* turn... sometimes slowly, sometimes in a flash. On the day they learn they are holding it by the edge, they will learn what real pain is. Because after what they have done to me and others, I am not so inclined to be merciful.
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Comment #1 posted by Dankhank on June 02, 2000 at 11:32:20 PT:
Truth ...
Truer words not spoken for a long time ...I have thought along these lines for a while ...I am listing the more egregious local cops for just such an eventuality.Peace for all ...
HEMP n STUFF
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