A Marijuana User Gets Arrested Every 38 Seconds in America
Marijuana arrests have once again reached an all-time high, NORML reports:
I honestly feel badly for people whose view of the world is so twisted that they can’t think of something better to do with our police and our tax dollars than this. At the same time, I'm convinced that most Americans don’t support a marijuana war of this magnitude.
I believe the right politician, at the right time, could make tremendous headway by simply coming out and saying it: "In America, we have better things to do than arrest each other for trivial reasons. We're sending the wrong message to our kids when we threaten to arrest them. Let's help people who need it and leave everyone else alone." If anyone wants to use this, please, be my guest. Hillary? Fred? Hello?
Washington, DC: Police arrested a record 829,625 persons for marijuana violations in 2006, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's annual Uniform Crime Report, released today. This is the largest total number of annual arrests for pot ever recorded by the FBI. Marijuana arrests now comprise nearly 44 percent of all drug arrests in the United States.Possession of marijuana has got to be one of the stupidest, most trivial things you could ever get arrested for, and yet it happens with remarkable and increasing frequency. I reject, but at least understand the notion that marijuana should not be openly sold in convenience stores. But it amazes me that anyone still thinks we should be handcuffing people, hauling them to the station, ruining careers, collecting fines, administering drugs tests, and otherwise tormenting and humiliating people for having marijuana.
"These numbers belie the myth that police do not target and arrest minor marijuana offenders," said NORML Executive Director Allen St. Pierre, who noted that at current rates, a marijuana smoker is arrested every 38 seconds in America.
…
Of those charged with marijuana violations, approximately 89 percent some 738,915 Americans were charged with possession only.
I honestly feel badly for people whose view of the world is so twisted that they can’t think of something better to do with our police and our tax dollars than this. At the same time, I'm convinced that most Americans don’t support a marijuana war of this magnitude.
I believe the right politician, at the right time, could make tremendous headway by simply coming out and saying it: "In America, we have better things to do than arrest each other for trivial reasons. We're sending the wrong message to our kids when we threaten to arrest them. Let's help people who need it and leave everyone else alone." If anyone wants to use this, please, be my guest. Hillary? Fred? Hello?
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Arrest cigarette smokers!
>>>>>>handcuffing people, hauling them to the station, ruining careers, collecting fines, administering drugs tests, and otherwise tormenting and humiliating people for having marijuana.
Maybe this strategy will stop teens from smoking cigarettes too!
re: arrest cigarette smokers
a great amount of the U.S smokes cigarettes.
almost 80% of adult americans have smoked a cigarette,
and never the less, tried or have recently done marijuana.
arresting cigarette smokers would be a lost cause.
it's been around for decades and just because you think it should be outlawed,
people would still get them. the economy would be terrible because a great handful of
america would be in jail.
that to me, is one of the most stupid things anyone has ever said.
Pot Arrests are Political
Repuke cops busting dirty fu
Don't hold your breath waiting for Hillary or the Repukes
They don't care about this issue. The only candidate who cares about this issue is Ron Paul, but that's only because he's a libertarian.
Libertarians are Republicans on crack.
Political subtext of cannabis arrests
l. Each of the over 800,000 cannabis arrests represented a chance to search, interrogate, investigate someone, and their associates, in pursuit of grounds for felony conviction.
Kathy Kelly observed that over 5,000,000 Americans are deprived of voting rights because of a felon status of some kind. A disproportionate number of these are African-Americans-- also true of marijuana arrests of course. A substantial majority of them, could they vote, are likely to vote Democratic-- consider the percentages which decided, for example, the 2004 Presidential election.
2. A second issue I can't resist mentioning is that of asset forfeiture. I wanted to give a friend a miniature pipe (burn less herb less hot, destroy less THC, get less carbon monoxide) but he said, "If the cops find that in my car, my car might be confiscated." On the other hand if he had a hot-burning overdose wide-bowl tobacco pipe there might be less danger. Similarly hot-burning overdose cigaret papers are easy to hide, easily disposed of, etc. The law as generally enforced enforces overdose, which is the way tobacco companies like it. Their profit margin depends on smokers overdosing and overspending. Any smoking equipment unambiguously geared for conservation and health protection is automatically assumed to be for illegal cannabis and hence dangerous to possess. (If you have one, get a letter from your congressman authorizing you to possess said utensil for harm reduction with tobacco use, or maybe for basil, marjoram, oregano etc.). --tokerdesigner
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