The Facts

In 2009 for example, in the state of Florida, considered the harshest state on cannabis, while 824,559 non-violent crimes were reported, only 193,529 (about 23% ) of those resulted in arrest with only 84,120 guilty dispositions (about 10% of reported crimes). That means 631, 030 of those crimes (nearly 77%) went unsolved with no arrests.

In a separate category of reported crimes was violent crimes at 113,415 which. total violent crimes resulting in a guilty disposition was 28,131, this figure includes reported and not reported violent crimes. There is no indication of how many violent crimes arrests were reported crimes and how many were not reported crimes yet arrested. Even if all arrests for violent crimes were results of reported violent crimes, a doubtful given, that still leaves 85,282 reported violent crimes with no arrests. That is the unsolved reported violent crimes is more than 3 times those with guilty dispositions. An other notable fact from the figures is that there were more violent crimes unresolved than non violent crimes resulting in a guilty disposition.

There was a total 856,400 “other arrests” which includes the violent crimes, and unreported crimes. Of those there were 146,056 drug arrests of which only 48,184 of those arrested resulted in a guilty verdict. Less than one third of those arrested for drugs are found guilty.

This is a point often made by Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) when Neill Franklin points out that in 1963 the closure rate for homicides in this country was 91%, whereas today is down to 61%. His reason, they spend 70 - 80 % of their time chasing drug arrests. Violent criminals run free while a cannabis user is being arrested.

Is arresting someone for smoking a bit of cannabis really worth 85,282 unsolved violent crimes? Who would you rather see in court or jail.

In a recent conversation with a group of cannabis activists it was stated that approximately 50% of those arrested become activists. If that holds true with the Florida figures 17 - 20% more arrestees become activists than are found guilty.

Most drug crime is simple possession of a controlled substance. The violence in the area of drug crime is directly due to the fact it is illegal and a black market product. By legalizing it you take it off the black market. If we tax and regulate it, it becomes as difficult for minors to obtain as alcohol. Fact is cannabis and other illegal drugs are far easier for a minor to obtain than alcohol. Drugs are available in schools across the nation, alcohol is not.

Ever since I began doing this I’ve been absolutely amazed at the amount of people that come to me to tell things and what they tell me. They don’t want their names involved but they want the facts out. Some of those include the amount of drugs consumed by law enforcement. One woman who worked in a sheriff’s department in Georgia and shared a residence with several explained how the first thing after work many of the officers got together and had a smoke out. In Florida apparently when cash was found during a drug bust the cash never was listed on the property reports, it simply went in the officers pockets. An other woman told me of several people that she was aware of that happening with including one man who they took $12,000.00. Never reported it. Others at smaller amounts but it seemed to be a regular event. An other woman explained her husband used to be a big time cocaine dealer. His largest clients were the police and sheriffs not only from her county but other nearby counties, along with doctors, and lawyers. Still an other told of judges and politicians she was aware of being users. I called a list of politicians during the primary election, asking where they stood on medicinal use of cannabis and on ending prohibition. When I asked the one I knew was in fact a user, his response was he was for medicinal use but needed to look into ending prohibition more before he could answer that. This man smokes regularly from my understanding, how could he want it to remain illegal. He was running on the Republican ticket, but still, does he really want to be considered a criminal?

By ending prohibition a large amount of corruption would also come to an end. After all, law enforcement uses, as does the prosecutors, the defending attorneys, judges and politicians. I have even met ministers that use. People from all walks of life partake in forbidden substances. One would be hard pressed to find a politician that does not ever drink alcohol. Alcohol is a drug, it may be legal but it is still a drug with psychotropic effects. Alcohol is also far more damaging to the body, brain and society than cannabis and far more addictive than cannabis.

We can not out law addictive personalities, these are the people prohibition is supposedly meant to save. The addictive personality will always find a substance until they seek help and except the fact they are just one who should not be using any substance. It is only through honest education, not the tactics of Reefer Madness and the DARE program that change will come. We do not put alcoholics in prison or on probation simply for being an alcoholic. Doctor hand out Xanex as if it were aspirin. As someone who has witnessed the effects of this legal drug I wish doctors were required to experience a drug before prescribing them so freely. Or at the very least observe someone on the drug prior to being permitted to prescribe it. Although many drugs are prescribed with an advisory to not consume alcohol with the drug it is not a crime to do so.

Drug use and abuse has gone on for thousands of centuries. Ideology and laws will not change it. Focusing on real crimes and making this a safer nation will cut down the use of drugs by means of fewer traumatized victims and fewer families damaged by prison terms for simple possession. Also one would think some of the tens of billions of tax dollars spent on investigating, arresting, prosecuting, and imprisoning citizens for the use of drugs would be wisely spent on honest education and rehabilitation, to achieve a lower use. As a taxpayer whose dollars are spent fighting the use of drugs would not you prefer to see those dollars of yours spent fighting real crime and locking up real and violent criminals instead of focused on the guy smoking a joint.

Learn more check out this video-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LayaGk0TMDc

MM1, please erase this weed heads stupid a$$ forum.

You want facts? I can give you facts...(believe it or not...numbers can be made up!)

Didn't you know that 81% of all facts are made up, that results in precisely 16,648,576 (annually) of these facts are that are really just...bullsh*t. Worse yet, this ammounts to 35.86740028475% of people for every thousand actually believe these erroneous facts when told to them. So if I'm doing the math correctly (and of course I am) that means every year, and every fact, with every person...it's exactly 547,885,221,363,927,157.12547885852364565986511551 55126321656516 false facts that are being told, believed, and to a person!?!?!? Can you believe that?????

P.S. it pained me to tell you this because...19.3546% of people who read this will become so annoyed, argumentative and just plain mad that they will actually consider a violent crime just to alleviate the headache from these numbers. And with 23.65874% of those people realistically going through with these crimes, that means 1.451558 of these people will actually get away with it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You want facts? I can give you facts...(believe it or not...numbers can be made up!)

Didn't you know that 81% of all facts are made up,

The fact is the facts came from Florida Department of Law Enforcement! Are those also made up facts?
http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/Content/getdoc/a324add7-5dd6-4201-9696-93bfd76bc36c/UCR-Home.aspx

You want facts? I can give you facts...(believe it or not...numbers can be made up!)

Didn't you know that 81% of all facts are made up,

The fact is the facts came from Florida Department of Law Enforcement! Are those also made up facts?
http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/Content/getdoc/a324add7-5dd6-4201-9696-93bfd76bc36c/UCR-Home.aspx


First things first, I dont believe what you wrote is a proper sentence. It should be written...(These) facts (are) the facts (that) came from (the)...but i digress (after all I'm arguing with a pothead). And second, I would have to say yes, even the mighy FDLE can get numbers wrong...it's called being human. I'm not saying the FDLE knowingly posted false facts, but those facts had to come from a long chain a people...and yes i believe along the way they could have been misconstrued. Did you ever hear of the McCarthy trials? Or read about the number of fallen soldiers in the Vietnam War? Those came from Gov. officials and respected military positions, and those numbers, believe it or not...were a little off (READ A BOOK STONER!!!). You know you're going through alot of trouble just to make a statement about smoking a joint, if you really want to do that so bad then go ahead and do it, i mean after all it results in a lower sperm count and lower brain cells, which hinders your chance of getting a job or reproducing...it's called natural selection (again...read a book). I now consider this matter closed and i assure you that I will continue to arrest people with weed on them and I will do it with a smile on my face...(considering it's about noon and you will probably be getting up in a few hours to catch your daily dose of MTV/BET, I figure you should be reading this soon. So I apologize in advance for the buzz kill.) Bye for now Johnny Appleweed.

[quote="TheBuzzKill
but i digress (after all I'm arguing with a pothead). (READ A BOOK STONER!!!). considering it's about noon and you will probably be getting up in a few hours to catch your daily dose of MTV/BET, I figure you should be reading this soon. So I apologize in advance for the buzz kill.) Bye for now Johnny Appleweed.[/quote]

Asumptions, Assumptions, Not a pothead or a stoner, and I do not watch MTV or BET. I am a news junkie, a member of LEAP, a researcher, author, and could pass any drug test any time. In response to your other comments:
#2 Should pregnant women smoke consume pot?
The Cannabis Papers
- a citizen's guide to cannabinoids
by Publius

Uterine cannabinoids and the beginning of human life

"Do you want pregnant women to smoke pot?"

That question bounced around the room (and in my head) for a moment. And the answer is an equivocal "Yes" — but the reason why I hesitate is the word "smoke."

Here's a better question — "Do you want pregnant women to consume cannabinoids?" The answer to that question might surprise you, but this is too important of an issue to be wrong — no matter what misconceptions one might have. Current research is confirming a new theory: cannabinoids play a fundamental role in a healthy and successful pregnancy.

First of all, there is no such thing as a drug-free pregnancy. The making of a baby is a biological and chemical phenomenon that every adult is somewhat familiar with. We know cells divide, organs grow, parts mature, and then birth — and the mystery of fertility goes on.

One aspect of fertility is becoming significantly less mysterious. A 2006 report from the Pediatrics Department at Vanderbilt University characterized endocannabinoids as "an emerging concept in female reproduction." Why such praise? Because of what they found: a "cannabinoid sensor" mechanism to influence crucial steps during early pregnancy.

Pregnancy is a stress to the body. To modulate that stress, the ECS responds by creating endocannabinoids — the body's version of "first responders." By first responders I am referring to what the Vanderbilt research termed the "endocannabinoid signaling in preimplantation embryo development and activation." One of the first things the fertilized embryo must do is to attach itself to the lining of the uterus. Without becoming attached to the uterine wall, which forms the umbilical cord, there will be no pregnancy. Here is where cannabinoids play a key role: for the embryo to become attached to the lining of the uterus, a particular range (or amount) of one specific endocannabinoid, called anandamide, is necessary. This endocannabinoid uses the CB1 receptors that are on the blastocyst (fertilized egg) — the same type of receptors that the herbal cannabinoid THC uses. The Vanderbilt research shows that if there is not enough of the endocannabinoid anandamide, or too much anandamide, the embryo will not become attached to the uterine lining.
The Vanderbilt research shows how the fertilized egg is dependent on a functioning ECS — and specifically, the endocannabinoid anandamide and the CB1 receptor. To make this more charming and less scientific, one could say that once upon a time there was a baby Publius. And before I was a baby, before even a fetus or an anything — there was this one sperm that was part of making me — and it was the smallest cell in the human body, only swimming 3mm a minute. And that single cell had a ways to travel. The journey to conception begins in one organ and ends up in another — from gonads to vagina, passing through the cervix, the uterus, and into a fallopian tube where the smallest human cell joins with the largest — my mother's egg. So the sperm and the egg meet and off they go to form . . .

No — not yet — there is another part to the story. Until the now fertilized egg attaches itself to something, in this case, the lining of the uterus, there is no viable pregnancy — just a fertilized egg. That is why the Vanderbilt research is important. It points to a revolution in our way of thinking about cannabis and the cannabinoids it contains. For example, a fertilized egg is cannabinoid dependent. It, the life of the egg and the beginning of a viable pregnancy, depends on a healthy ECS. It takes the right amount of cannabinoids to activate a certain number of CB1 receptors in order for the fertilized egg to attach itself to the uterus. This process is accomplished because there are CB1 receptors on the blastocyst — that is, on the fertilized egg itself — and the cannabinoid anandamide on the endometrium — the inner lining of the uterus.

Cannabinoids are not only one of the first responses of the body to fertility, they also play a role in other aspects of pregnancy as well. A 2004 study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology concluded: "Both endogenous and exogenous cannabinoids exert a potent and direct relaxant effect on human pregnant myometrium, which is mediated through the CB1 receptor." This means that the middle layer of the uterine wall, the "myometrium," is modulated by cannabinoids as well. — And as a reminder, these uterine CB1 receptors are activated by endocannabinoids as well herbal and synthetic cannabinoids.

In addition to conception, another 2004 report showed that endocannabinoids activate the oral motor musculature necessary for newborn mice to nurse — which makes sense because breast milk contains endocannabinoids. The same 2004 study also stated "Anandamide has neuroprotectant properties in the developing postnatal brain." And of course, all of this is new, right? — No. Fourteen years ago, in 1995, there was lab research on mice that showed that the mammalian ECS is involved in signaling within the uterus.

So let's review: cannabinoid receptors are located on the blastocyst, the fertilized egg, making the implantation of the egg cannabinoid dependent. We've also learned that throughout pregnancy and during nursing that the ECS delivers relief and neuroprotection to mother, fetus, and baby. That sounds pretty important — important enough to rethink the guilt, fear, shame, hesitation, and reticence of using cannabis to modulate the ECS before, during, and after pregnancy — as it seems that nature thought of it way before we did.

And no, pregnant women don't have to smoke blunts or joints to get their cannabinoids. There are easier ways to consume cannabinoids. Simply put, expectant mothers and new moms could consume cannabinoids in baked goods, tinctures, teas or whatever form is best for them. Harm reduction is the key. Perhaps in the future the health of a woman's ECS, and its effects on fetus and baby, will be the focus of pregnancy and not the fear mongering of "smoked marijuana." In the future, mothers-to-be might want to start asking their doctors something like, "How are my anandamide levels? — Too high or too low?" Or perhaps even more likely, maybe the doctors will be asking the mothers, "Have you had your cannabis brownie today?"

Publius

In an other resent study, Mortality Within the First 2 Years in Infants Exposed to Cocaine, Opiate, or Cannabinoid During Gestation - pediatrics.aappublications.org

A total of 2,964 infants were drug-tested at birth to see if they were positive for drugs - cocaine, opiates and cannabis were studied and compared to drug free infants. During the first two years of their lives, 44 babies from the original group died. The death rates were :

"No drugs at birth" deaths....... 15.7 deaths per 1000 live births

"Cocaine positive" deaths.......17.7 deaths per 1000 live births

"Opiate positive" deaths.......18.4 deaths per 1000 live births

"Cannabis positive" deaths.... 8.9 deaths per 1000 live births

The "cannabis positive" infants rate of death is almost half of what the "No drugs" infants death rate is! When it comes to failure to thrive, cannabis shows a significant improvement in the outcome.

If the body is low on cannabinoids, just as with any other defiency, the body does not function correctly since the endocannabinoid system regulates all other systems in the body. Misinformation has done much damage over the last 73 years as has the war on a plant and those who use it. Cannabis has continually been shown to be a remarkable anti-inflammatory which could be of great help to the 86 million people that suffer chronic pain. No one ever died from cannabis/marijuana though much suffering has taken place from the prohibition of it. It is time to end this travesty.

As someone who suffers many health problems, which even my doctor says cannabis would be a physically safer choice than all the chemical phamaceuticals which cause much damage to the body and are far more addictive and leave me bed ridden if I took them all, so don't I try to get by with a minimal use of prescriptions. I would like to see it permitted for medicinal use. However Florida does not have medicinal use. YET! Due to my position I do not use cannabis! But I will continue to fight for medicinal use in Florida. I am 54 years old and most likely will be dead within 6 years, so what have I got to loose. It is my health stuggle which lead me to LEAP and further investigation, information, and insight. For example do you know the history of the outlawing of cannabis? Or that the controlled substance act and subsequent schedule was done 18 years before science was even aware that the human body has an endo-cannabinoid system which controlls all other systems in the body? Have you heard of the Vienna Declaration? Have you heard of the Prague Declaration? Are you aware of the science? Have you listened with an open mind to anything Leap has to say? If the government controlled cannabis and drugs, there would be no more drug related violence, drug cartels, and no more drug dealers on the streets. Wouldn't that be a nicer way to live? 37% increase in deaths of officer this year, wouldn't a decrease be better? Are you aware of the improvements in society in portugal and other nations with a change in drug policy? Lower crime, less use, especially by the youth. I'd like to see that before I die.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0psJhQHk_GI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tghUh4ubbg&feature=related

It's just after 6am long before noon! I've been up for about an hour now.

Oh, okay, I get it. You're not a stoner or a pothead...you're a hippie. And considering that impressively long reply you worked out I guess your the worst kind of hippie there is...the college know-it-all hippie. I've seen your type before, you spent your first year at college on your parents dime and you think you know the world (or maybe it owes you something). And you come back thinking, "dude, this world would be so much better if everybody would just live the way I think they should"...(you must be a liberal). But what you dont see inside your little bubble is the damage that drugs (shocker...INCLUDING WEED) causes to the community. Does FDLE ever report how there's a drive-by done on someone because they didn't pay up for the weed they bought last week? Or does the 'Happy stoner mommy giving birth to healthy babies' magazine ever tell you about adoption rates of drug users, or ever touch the subject of infant/toddler deaths due to child neglect beacuse the parents (if both are even there) are too busy getting high and looking for their next hit? I dont think it does. So go keep doing your research hippie, in fact make it the topic of your thesis, I'm sure your liberal professor will love it and you'll get an 'A' with a big smiley face on it to make you feel extra special, and you can go show that to your parents so they know they spent their money wisely. But for the rest of us that live in the real world, I'm sorry to be the one to tell you hippie, but the sh!t your slingin'is never gonna fly over here. Bye for now...Mr. Suit and tie, looking all serious because weed is not bad and everyone should know it. (you're pathetic)

...oh yeah, and the next time you quote me, try and get the whole quote and not chop it apart so it looks better for your response...bye hippie!

A total of 2,964 infants were drug-tested at birth to see if they were positive for drugs - cocaine, opiates and cannabis were studied and compared to drug free infants. During the first two years of their lives, 44 babies from the original group died. The death rates were :

"No drugs at birth" deaths....... 15.7 deaths per 1000 live births

"Cocaine positive" deaths.......17.7 deaths per 1000 live births

"Opiate positive" deaths.......18.4 deaths per 1000 live births

"Cannabis positive" deaths.... 8.9 deaths per 1000 live births


yeah and what about numbers being made up like you said before. i wonder if these are made up too, hahaha!

Oh, okay, I get it. You're not a stoner or a pothead...you're a hippie. And considering that impressively long reply you worked out I guess your the worst kind of hippie there is...the college know-it-all hippie. I've seen your type before, you spent your first year at college on your parents dime and you think you know the world (or maybe it owes you something). And you come back thinking, "dude, this world would be so much better if everybody would just live the way I think they should"...(you must be a liberal). But what you dont see inside your little bubble is the damage that drugs (shocker...INCLUDING WEED) causes to the community. Does FDLE ever report how there's a drive-by done on someone because they didn't pay up for the weed they bought last week? Or does the 'Happy stoner mommy giving birth to healthy babies' magazine ever tell you about adoption rates of drug users, or ever touch the subject of infant/toddler deaths due to child neglect beacuse the parents (if both are even there) are too busy getting high and looking for their next hit? I dont think it does. So go keep doing your research hippie, in fact make it the topic of your thesis, I'm sure your liberal professor will love it and you'll get an 'A' with a big smiley face on it to make you feel extra special, and you can go show that to your parents so they know they spent their money wisely. But for the rest of us that live in the real world, I'm sorry to be the one to tell you hippie, but the sh!t your slingin'is never gonna fly over here. Bye for now...Mr. Suit and tie, looking all serious because weed is not bad and everyone should know it. (you're pathetic)

Wow, well, hopefully you know what assuming does. I will do my best to refrain from letting it make one out of me by not getting defensive. Apparently you did not read the last paragraph. I do understand you are looking at the subject from one perspective, a soldier on the frontline, as most who read this. I have watched the WOD from many sides. I fled a neighborhood which was becoming infected with crack addicts. I have half a dozen or so relatives that are officiers, from sheriff deputies to undercover narcotic officiers. My daughter's father was a contractor robbed and shot by a drug addict upon his return from the bank with payroll. Ironically he wound up getting addicted to the pain killers and hung himself on day 3 of withdrawls. I have spent the last 30 years counseling people to get off drugs and alcohol. I actually witnessed a heroin addict and alcoholic argue of who was the "better addict". I've watched people loose everything including their kids. I've watched cops loose their careers after becoming corrupt by temptation. I watched a prosecutor and defense attorney on a Sunday morning sharing champagne and strawberries and a mirror load of cocaine while viewing the video of an arrest of their mutual friend that the one was prosecuting and the other defending. I've seen or known of doctors, lawyers, prosectors, judges, cops, business owners, even politicians, along with the average citizen become users, abusers. Some overcame it, some hit bottom. I've even had a cop tell me he wished everyone would just smoke pot, that it kept the town peaceful and happy vs what happens everytime a new shipment of cocaine comes in.

But what I have not seen is a lower demand or lower supply of drugs in this nation. I have not seenany evidence that the WOD has had any positive affect. However in nations that has changed their approach to the problem, a lower demand and lower use is happening, with less young people tempted to use them. When funds are spent on treatment and education it has more effect.

More of those pesky facts:
Dr. Carel Edwards, the Anti-Drugs Coordinator for the European Union from 2003 to 2010 joined LEAP as a speaker and advisory board member. On December 8th, 2010 at a Public Hearing on Drug Policies in the European Parliament held in Brussels, the capital of Belgium, Dana Spinant, the new Coordinator of the European Commissions Anti-Drugs Unit, repeatedly stated, “The European Union will not block any initiative of EU Member States to start the legal regulation of cannabis and other currently illegal drugs.” This opens the doors for 27 EU Member States, two candidate countries and Norway (population 500 million) to start “the legal regulation of cannabis and other currently illegal drugs“.

The United States has 5% of the world’s population, and 25% of the world’s prisoners, 40% of whom are there for simple possession. One in every 31 Americans is either behind bars, on probation or on parole according to the Pew Center on the States‘ recent report “One in 31 - The long Reach of American Corrections. And according to the FBIs' Uniform Crimes Report, marijuana users are arrested at the rate of 1 every 40 seconds, with about 88 percent of all marijuana arrests being for possession - not production or distribution. The United States imprisons more people for drug offenses than European Union (EU) countries imprison for all offenses, even though EU countries have 100-million more citizens.

Anand Grover, the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, submitted a report to the UN August 2010 stating “Decriminalization of certain laws governing drug control would improve the health and welfare of people who use drugs and the general population demonstrably.” While the UN has not adopted and ratified Grover’s recommendations, for the first time open dialog and conversation took place on the possibilities of changing the way nations deal with drug use and why it should be done.

UNGASS 98 is an acronym for United Nations General Assembly Special Session 1998, which issued a declaration and action plan to curb world wide drug abuse and trafficking.
The study found :

“No evidence that the global drug problem was reduced during the UNGASS period from 1998 to 2007. “

“There is a lack of evidence that controls can reduce total global production. The same applies to trafficking.”

“Enforcement of drug prohibitions has caused substantial unintended harms; many were predictable. “

“ Production and trafficking controls only redistributed activities. “

The study concluded :

“That during the period 1998 to 2007 the size of the global illicit drug problem did not decline; indeed, it has most probably grown somewhat worse over that time.“

“Enforcement against local markets failed in most countries to prevent continued availability at lower price.”


For the record - I have never felt anyone owes me anything, not even a listening ear or an open mind. I did not start the post, someone else using my computer did using a portion of my article that was published elsewhere.

Buzzkill - Cannabis does not kill brain cells. That old study was debunked by every peer review. Those monkeys died from lack of oxygen. Alcohol does kill brain cells. Binge drinking causes damage to 8 areas of the brain. The nuro-protectant property of cannabis actually prevents damage in 7 of those 8 areas, according to 2 recent studies. You can read about the studies at
http://www.gsalternative.com/2010/07/cannabis-may-protect-the-human-brain-against-alcohol-induced-damage/For further insight and to end your absurd assumptions, go back and read the last paragraph of my last reply.

The war on drugs is not working. If the government controlled cannabis and drugs, there would be no more drug related violence, drug cartels, no more drug dealers on the streets and a safer place for all. I would like to see that before I die. Then you could get back to doing what you originally joined the police for, surely you had larger goals than busting pot smokers. The churches have also turned to this thought. Heck even Pat Robertson has.

But don't take my word for it see it to believe it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlzcdHbsEYk&feature=player_embedded#!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FSjS8HsaJQ&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jI1Rwmvg5E&feature=channel
A Safe and Happy New Year to All!

To be honest, I dont think I'm ass-u-m-ing anything, I actually think I'm hitting the nail right on the head, and unless that first paragraph was from a book or a movie quote (which seems to be the majority of your 'original' thoughts...you college know-it-all hippie), you are truly retarded if you're fighting for what gave you so many hard times throughout the years...I mean, truly retarded. I thought I've made this point 87,625 times, but I'll say it again, numbers can be made up. So anytime you give me something like that I'm just not going to be impressed by it at all and I hope that everyone else that reads your garbage wont be either. And if you werent such a bleeding heart liberal, you wouldn't care about the EU as much as you should the USA, so I'm going to give you one of the most cliche lines I've ever heard of...if you dont like it, you know where the door is. So I guess I'll hear from you in a few days after you read your 'high times' magazine and hit your local library for a built up two page response...P.S. and those 'youtube' video links are nothing more to me than pretty blue lines, it doesn't interest me to watch them at all, I think it's because I'm not a college know-it-all hippe who gets sexually aroused by watching someone else smoke weed...unlike someone else who I know...

To be honest, I dont think I'm ass-u-m-ing anything, I actually think I'm hitting the nail right on the head, and unless that first paragraph was from a book or a movie quote (which seems to be the majority of your 'original' thoughts...you college know-it-all hippie), you are truly retarded if you're fighting for what gave you so many hard times throughout the years...I mean, truly retarded. I thought I've made this point 87,625 times, but I'll say it again, numbers can be made up. So anytime you give me something like that I'm just not going to be impressed by it at all and I hope that everyone else that reads your garbage wont be either. And if you werent such a bleeding heart liberal, you wouldn't care about the EU as much as you should the USA, so I'm going to give you one of the most cliche lines I've ever heard of...if you dont like it, you know where the door is. So I guess I'll hear from you in a few days after you read your 'high times' magazine and hit your local library for a built up two page response...P.S. and those 'youtube' video links are nothing more to me than pretty blue lines, it doesn't interest me to watch them at all, I think it's because I'm not a college know-it-all hippe who gets sexually aroused by watching someone else smoke weed...unlike someone else who I know...



LOL, my, my, you are evidence that ignorance is bliss. Speaking of evidence, one would think an officier would consider the evidence provided. I guess that would take an ounce of critical thinking. The class is most likely available at your local community college if you aren't too afraid of a bit of higher education. Not all people who go to college are hippies. Believe it or not higher education will not turn you into a hippie. There were many officiers in most of my classes. I worked my way though college, and I have never read a "High Times" magazine. Isn't working with evidence part of your job? I think I clearly credited what was written by others that I submitted as evidence. Do you honestly believe those pretty blue lines you mentioned are videos of someone smoking weed? Or do you only watch videos that get you sexually aroused? Are you afraid of a church group discussion, or Pat Robertson? That is what the videos are as stated. God forbid a retired 26 year veteran of the New Jersey State Police, with 14 years as an undercover narcotics detective testifying might have an insight beyond your expertice. Careful now, he might be a hippie. But thats likely part of a sadly closed mind which is why you question my patriotism. Try not to be so afraid to look past the end of your nose. There is a whole world out there. Try looking at the whole picture instead of just one piece of the puzzle.

Doing the same thing over and over agian expecting a different result is said to be the definition of insanity. Hmmmm. Once the realization occurs that something doesn't work to produce the end goal, it's time to consider an alternative approach. With that concept in mind, looking into what other approaches are being tried along with the results of those tactics seems the obvious next step to ending the insanity.

How is it retarded to believe ending the insanity of something that has not worked and using a different approach? The DEA alone has been funded with 600 billion dollars since 1971. I know you hate numbers but that is just one agency, and easy enough to verify. If half of that was spent on offering effective treatment without the sigma and education we might actually see a change as Portugal, Denmark, Holland, Switzerland, and others have. If Scientific American isn't too unpatriotic for you and if you are willing to look at some evidence you might want to read the article at

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=portugal-drug-decriminalization

If the black market was out of the picture, chances my daughter's father would not have been robbed for the payroll and shot by a desparate addict.
If treatment was available with out the stigma chances are my daughter's father would still be alive, and we might have far less addicts and drug abuse in this nation.

Since clicking on a pretty blue line (as you call it) is too far out of your way, for further explaination on why what takes place in Europe matters:
The Vienna Declaration is a scientific statement calling for evidence-based approaches to illicit drug policy, with the theory that drug policy should be based on science, not ideology. The declaration was the result of the International AIDS Conference in Vienna in July, 2010. The next International AIDS Conference will be held in Washington D.C. in 2012. Yes, in the US.

Quoted from the website of the Vienna Declaration (viennadeclaration.com)
"The Vienna Declaration is a statement seeking to improve community health and safety by calling for the incorporation of scientific evidence into illicit drug policies. The declaration was drafted by a team of international experts and initiated by several of the world’s leading HIV and drug policy scientific bodies: the International AIDS Society, the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, and the International Centre for Science in Drug Policy (ICSDP). It was prepared through an extensive consultative process involving global leaders in medicine, public policy and public health."
(Yes, many on the writing committee are from the US)

"In June 1998, the UN General Assembly hosted a Special Session on illegal drugs under the slogan “A drug free world – We can do it.” The session set out international drug control strategies and law enforcement goals for the subsequent decade in which it was hoped the world could be made “drug free.”

"However, it is now clear that drug law enforcement has not achieved its stated objectives. In fact, illicit drugs remain readily available worldwide, and the previous three decades have seen drug prices continue to fall while drug purity continues to increase. In addition, the over-reliance on drug law enforcement has resulted in overwhelmingly negative health and social consequences. This includes the enrichment of organized crime and associated violence, the spread of HIV among injection drug users, as well as other devastating harms as outlined in the Vienna Declaration."

"The negative effects of drug control efforts in the United States led to a unanimous resolution at the 2007 annual United States Conference of Mayors that stated that the War on Drugs has failed. The resolution called for a “New Bottom Line” in drug policy, and demanded a public health approach focused on reducing the negative consequences associated with drug abuse while ensuring that policies do not exacerbate problems or create new social problems of their own."

Buzzkill - Please stop assuming you know me, every assumption you have made of me is way wrong. While I have continued to supply evidence to back up what I think you have merely made wrongful personal accusations and been reduced to name calling. Do you actually have something to contribute to the discussion beyond name calling and false accusations? I realize you dislike facts and numbers, and probably science too, but seriously do you have anything constructive. Any point to continue the insanity? While I may not have opened your mind at all, perhaps I have opened 1 or 2, maybe more. One mind at a time. Change is never easy, sometimes it is needed. :idea:

Assumptions assumptions, you think I'm calling you a hippie because of your education, and I'm afraid of education like your afraid of vagina (a pretty accurate assumption if I must say so myself). I'm a college grad with a bachelors, and I'm not a hippie. I'm calling you one because of your backwards way of thinking and the fact that you (being an educated person) have been completely taken by this 'drugs are not bad' idea, you being an educated person, I figured you would have caught the grasp of my comments long ago (but if I have to explain everything then just let me know). And as far as being a 'college know-it-all hippie'...well...the sh!t your saying, you would have to go to college to say something as stupid as what you're saying. and you being an educated person, I'm surprised that you still have looked passed my first (and most important) point...facts (even the facts that you're waisting your time looking up)....CAN BE MADE UP AND BIAS. But you (pathetically) keep looking up such facts and feel the need to post them...ON A POLICE WEBSITE (again...truly retarded).
I guess what I'm saying in this post (because aparently I have to explain them to you now) is opinions are like a$$holes, everyone's got one...yours just stinks a little bit more :lol: . And as far as you not assuming anything or getting defensive because you wanted to be better than that...well...it seems I've finally brought you down to my level. :devil:

P.S. mr. author, I hope you never go away...you're becoming alot of fun

yeah mr author, this stuff is kinda gettin old. do you really think your going to change the police world with your stupid bullsh!t. and that the names your using are 'learn more' and 'the author', i mean really? do you think your some sort of professor or something? with the way you write, i think if i met you in person you would be really stuck up. go preach somewhere else!!

seriously, whoever this author is needs to just shut up, if your saying things like this and you work for this dept then its good that your staying anonymous. and if you dont work for this dept then f#*k off. no one likes you here

Assumptions assumptions, you think I'm calling you a hippie because of your education, and I'm afraid of education like your afraid of vagina (a pretty accurate assumption if I must say so myself). I'm a college grad with a bachelors, and I'm not a hippie. I'm calling you one because of your backwards way of thinking and the fact that you (being an educated person) have been completely taken by this 'drugs are not bad' idea, you being an educated person, I figured you would have caught the grasp of my comments long ago (but if I have to explain everything then just let me know). And as far as being a 'college know-it-all hippie'...well...the sh!t your saying, you would have to go to college to say something as stupid as what you're saying. and you being an educated person, I'm surprised that you still have looked passed my first (and most important) point...facts (even the facts that you're waisting your time looking up)....CAN BE MADE UP AND BIAS. But you (pathetically) keep looking up such facts and feel the need to post them...ON A POLICE WEBSITE (again...truly retarded).
I guess what I'm saying in this post (because aparently I have to explain them to you now) is opinions are like a$$holes, everyone's got one...yours just stinks a little bit more :lol: . And as far as you not assuming anything or getting defensive because you wanted to be better than that...well...it seems I've finally brought you down to my level. :devil:

P.S. mr. author, I hope you never go away...you're becoming alot of fun





I am glad your finally having fun and not quite so angry. You've been giving me a regular good laugh too.
I'd like to recap the details you you've missed:

I discussed my daughter's father - so it's ms. author, not mr. (I can guarantee you I'm not afraid of what I have, and I don't need a video.)

I have never said "drugs are not bad". What I did say is:
"As someone who suffers many health problems, which even my doctor says cannabis would be a physically safer choice than all the chemical phamaceuticals which cause much damage to the body and are far more addictive and leave me bed ridden if I took them all. I would like to see it (cannabis) permitted for medicinal use. However Florida does not have medicinal use. Due to my position I do not use cannabis! I will continue to fight for medicinal use in Florida." (Actually nationwide, though not previously stated.) "I am 54 years old and most likely will be dead within 6 years, (meaning I most likely won't see my 60th birthday) so what have I got to loose."

I also stated "It is my health stuggle which lead me to LEAP and further investigation, information, and insight. If the government controlled cannabis and drugs, there would be no more drug related violence, drug cartels, and no more drug dealers on the streets. Wouldn't that be a nicer way to live? 37% increase in deaths of officer this year, wouldn't a decrease be better? Lower crime, less use, especially by the youth. I'd like to see that before I die."

As an author whose health has turned me into an activist (something I never dreamt I would ever do). I don't need to waste my time looking up facts. I have them readily available from previous published articles I've written and from conversing with many politicians.

I was inspired by Neill Franklin of LEAP, a 33 year veteran of the Baltimore Police, when he stated, "We the people have to educate ourselves so we that can talk to those cops and those cops that you know and let them know - hey we know you don’t want to be doing this stuff and we’re going to help you shift that focus back to where it needs to be so you can get back to doing those things that you signed on for. They need your help. They need your voice. The bloggers that are out there, please talk about this, and let these cops know, that you support what you’re doing and that you want them to do real honest good police work."

Franklin later went on to say, ”You’ll hear the opposition talk about more drugged drivers on the streets. You’ll hear the opposition talking about marijuana being a gateway drug. But I want to focus on those drivers on the street. If people want to smoke marijuana and drive, they are doing it already. There is no doubt about it. For decades we in the law enforcement community have had the tools to recognize those who are driving while under the influence of drugs. There called drug recognition experts. I was one. I arrested hundreds for DUIs during my time in law enforcement. Not once had I arrested one person for using marijuana in and of itself. They were always on something else if marijuana was even in the game. It’s alcohol and it’s prescription drugs. Alcohol and prescription drugs, keep that in mind because those numbers are not going to increase as they would like you to believe.”

Neill Franklin displayed a photo from the end of prohibition era, depicting a vehicle painted with the words Protect Our Youth, Stamp Out Prohibition, Save Our Children, with moms and children and an officer around the vehicle. Franklin commented, “You’ve heard about women, back in the 1920-early 1930’s when we ended alcohol prohibition, it was because of women. It was because of moms. And moms are starting to make that shift today. When they get the information, when they get the facts, when they find out what’s really going on they make good decisions. Moms have always made good decisions. Let’s get the Moms movement with us on this."

I guess the women listened, 2 new groups - Moms for Marijuana and the Women's Marijuana Movement.

From LEOAFFAIRS.COM, LLC
We encourage access and participation by Law Enforcement Personnel, the Media and the Public. In this way the LEOs (law enforcement officers) can post about the pros and cons within their industry, Media can pick up on the stories and publicize them and the General Public can respond by applying pressure to the agencies and powers that be for any changes they see fit." And, "Here’s an opportunity to voice your opinion, ask questions, become more informed, make a stand or engage in a healthy debate."

So what's retarded about responding to the invitation, especially considering I was inspired by LEAP? As someone who doesn't use drugs, not even the majority that are prescribed to me, what is the harm in the discussion?

Activism and opening dialog is not against the law.

The prestige of government has undoubtedly been lowered considerably by the Prohibition law. For nothing is more destructive of respect for the government and the law of the land than passing laws which cannot be enforced. It is an open secret that the dangerous increase of crime in this country is closely connected with this. - Albert Einstein

[youtube:3kne55au]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jI1Rwmvg5E&feature=player_embedded[/youtube:3kne55au]

yeah mr author, this stuff is kinda gettin old. do you really think your going to change the police world with your stupid bullsh!t. and that the names your using are 'learn more' and 'the author', i mean really? do you think your some sort of professor or something? with the way you write, i think if i met you in person you would be really stuck up. go preach somewhere else!!


I learned long ago, leave the emotions out and stick to the point of discussion and the facts. I apologize if that made me come across as stuck up. Or do you feel left out because I hadn't responded to your comment. Is that why you think I might be stuck up?

No, I don't think I am going to change the thinking of the entire "police world". AsI said previously, "While I may not have opened your mind at all, perhaps I have opened 1 or 2, maybe more, maybe none. One mind at a time. Change is never easy, sometimes it is needed."

As stated previously, I did not start this post. I found it and I did read the riot act to the one who did start it and banned them from using my computer.
I originally responded to a questioning of the statistics in an article I wrote, though only a portion of it was posted. Personally, if I had posted it, I would have posted the entire article. I have appreciated the opportunity to explain further with each response.

According to the Terms of Use "If at any time you are not happy with the Forums or object to any material within Forums, your sole remedy is to cease using them." Or quit giving me something to respond to. No one says you have to read anything I or anyone else writes. Why do you open the topic again? Ignor it, simple. Buzzkill said he hopes I never go away, he is enjoying the banter, guess that's why he keeps prodding me to respond.

Of coarse an other idea is lets go all out. Outlaw alcohol, after all, it is a drug too. It has no medicinal value and is far more damaging to the mind, body and society than cannabis. It has psychotropic effects. It certainly causes more domestic and other violence. Lets go further, drug test every person on the planet weekly! Do you honestly believe every cop, prosecutor, lawyer, judge and politician could pass a urinalysis? Lets outlaw every prescribed medicine that has any psychotropic effect. That will put an end to the pill poppers. Oh and even Benadryl and those cough meds. Lets eliminate caffeine and tobacco too! Oh yes we can't forget sugar! That should be eliminated too! It has no healthy benefits, it's addictive, it should go. No more kids on a sugar rush, nope, forbidden, it's a gateway.

No worries, the new state and federal congress is about to take office. My hiatus is coming to a close.

The world that we have made as a result of the level of thinking that we have done so far, has created problems we cannot solve at the level of thinking at which we created them.." - Albert Einstein

seriously, whoever this author is needs to just shut up, if your saying things like this and you work for this dept then its good that your staying anonymous. and if you dont work for this dept then f#*k off. no one likes you here


So don't read it! Don't open the topic. It is that simple. Freedom of speech does not force you to listen. Change the channel. This topic has had over 480 views somebody is reading something.

"For more than six hundred years -- that is, since the Magna Carta in 1215 -- there has been no clearer principle of English or American constitutional law than that, in criminal cases, it is not only the right and duty of juries to judge what are the facts, what is the law, and what was the moral intent of the accused; but that it is also their right, and their primary and paramount duty, to judge the justice of the law, and to hold all laws invalid, that are, in their opinion, unjust, oppressive, and all persons guiltless in violating or resisting the execution of such laws."
- Lysander Spooner
who also said -
"Vices are not crimes."

“Prohibition…goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man’s appetite by legislation and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes. A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded.”
- Abraham Lincoln, December, 1840 -

The point is best stated by the judge


[youtube:3c1uiy92]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDKarCeC_Ic&feature=channel[/youtube:3c1uiy92]

Medicinal use huh? How many people do you think we arrest use marijuana for a medicinal purpose? (not to mention you dont need to legalize it for everyone if all your concerned about is medicinal usage...that usage is known as a 'right' not a 'privilege') I'm don't think I've heard yet from someone, "man, if it wasn't for this damn glaucoma then I wouldn't be going to jail." but I'll let you know if I ever do. And all your presenting this whole time is left-winged propaganda. I don't care how you say it or dress it up. It's nothing but bias, and your stupid enough to believe that's the only truth. What about in the revolutionary and civil war days? before they bit the bullet they took a fifth of liquor to ease the pain, was that not medicinal usage for it's day and time? But you believe we should outlaw that because some people abuse it (just like weed). With that train of thought then we should outlaw vehicles too because some people abuse those and drive so reckless they kill people. We should also outlaw scissors beause I read a story about someone who was stabbed to death with scissors last year and that's just unacceptable, I mean if there were no scissors in the world then that man would still be alive! How could we have let that happen?!?!?!? WE SHOULD HAVE KNOW THAT SCISSORS ARE EVIL!

You also proudly state that you're a female, sorry I must have missed that, since you tend to put me in a coma from your ten page replys that you always give back to prove that you're smarter than me (even though none of your responses contain any original thought, only regurgitated bias youtube videos). Okay 'Ms. Author', and now I'm sure that you're not afraid of vagina, in fact that might very well be all you embrace.

You also state that 'learn more' and 'author' are two different people, you said a friend used your computer and put that up? So what now, are you defending their honor or something? Are you using that as an excuse to be some sort of martyr to save your friend's statement?

And judging from everything that you're saying ('author' and 'learn more'), I can't imagine you're a cop. If you are then your the worst cop on the face of the earth. And if you work for Hallandale then god help us all and I hope I'm never on your shift and I will do my best to avoid you at all costs (and I would promote everyone else to do the same).

Medicinal use huh? How many people do you think we arrest use marijuana for a medicinal purpose? (not to mention you dont need to legalize it for everyone if all your concerned about is medicinal usage...that usage is known as a 'right' not a 'privilege') I'm don't think I've heard yet from someone, "man, if it wasn't for this darn glaucoma then I wouldn't be going to jail." but I'll let you know if I ever do. And all your presenting this whole time is left-winged propaganda. I don't care how you say it or dress it up. It's nothing but bias, and your stupid enough to believe that's the only truth. What about in the revolutionary and civil war days? before they bit the bullet they took a fifth of liquor to ease the pain, was that not medicinal usage for it's day and time? But you believe we should outlaw that because some people abuse it (just like weed). With that train of thought then we should outlaw vehicles too because some people abuse those and drive so reckless they kill people. We should also outlaw scissors beause I read a story about someone who was stabbed to death with scissors last year and that's just unacceptable, I mean if there were no scissors in the world then that man would still be alive! How could we have let that happen?!?!?!? WE SHOULD HAVE KNOW THAT SCISSORS ARE EVIL!

You also proudly state that you're a female, sorry I must have missed that, since you tend to put me in a coma from your ten page replys that you always give back to prove that you're smarter than me (even though none of your responses contain any original thought, only regurgitated bias youtube videos). Okay 'Ms. Author', and now I'm sure that you're not afraid of vagina, in fact that might very well be all you embrace.

You also state that 'learn more' and 'author' are two different people, you said a friend used your computer and put that up? So what now, are you defending their honor or something? Are you using that as an excuse to be some sort of martyr to save your friend's statement?

And judging from everything that you're saying ('author' and 'learn more'), I can't imagine you're a cop. If you are then your the worst cop on the face of the earth. And if you work for Hallandale then god help us all and I hope I'm never on your shift and I will do my best to avoid you at all costs (and I would promote everyone else to do the same).

Hahahaha...correction, it's a 'privilege', not a 'right'

this topic has over 400 views because everyone wants to read the replys made in response to you and prove that your an idiot. i dont know if you figured it out yet, but we are all laughing at you

this topic has over 400 views because everyone wants to read the replys made in response to you and prove that your an idiot. i dont know if you figured it out yet, but we are all laughing at you


Amazing - Not one of you have given a single reason to continue a failed policy!
I am aware your job is to enforce existing laws. You must enjoy the self-pertuating dismal failure. Probably feels like job security.
Ok you think I'm an idiot for presenting evidence for making a change.

You've given me much insight. You like the current situation, anyone who has a different opinion is retarded. While I'd rather see less availablity of drugs especially to the youth, you love the wild west aspect. yeeha! I'd rather get the drug dealers off the streets, end the black market, put some of that money towards treating addicts. But you must love having them around. It's easy pickens, not like solving real crime.

Citizens pay your salary but you think you are too good to have a real discussion. The only thing I've seen is name calling, absurd assumptions,
closed minds, and the lack of ability to give one reason to continue what the whole world knows is a failed policy.

The following video "Substance Abuse and Victimization" is from The National Office for Victims of Crime and The National Victims Assistance Academy, two government departments. It discusses the relationship between victimization and substance abuse. Focusing on real crimes and making this a safer nation will cut down the use of drugs by means of fewer traumatized victims. This government video shows an awareness of it.


[youtube:13cm7y56]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ba2vzEDatCo&feature=player_embedded#![/youtube:13cm7y56]

Prior to the misleading of congress in 1937 one third of all medications were cannabis based.
The Controlled Substance Act of 1970 and subsequent scheduling was done before science was even aware the human body has an endocannabinoid system. The human endocannabinoid system was discovered in the mid 1980’s.

[youtube:r3l1hvov]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkNtR1vYakg&feature=player_embedded[/youtube:r3l1hvov]

[youtube:r3l1hvov]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp633lcU9F8&feature=player_embedded[/youtube:r3l1hvov]

I watched the videos, didn't care for them...and really didn't believe everything I saw. Sorry but you didn't really open my eyes to anything. I do have one question though, it's nothing too person that I feel couldn't be given out. I have already told you I'm a cop in hallandale, but you still haven't revealed what it is that you do. Again I have to say that I cannot believe you're a cop anywhere with this train of thought that you carry. And calling what cops do a 'perpetual dismal failure', I honestly just laughed at that, but I hope nobody actually cares what you think, because they might have gotten a little offended. So what is it that you do? (and I hope you don't say you're a cop just to prove me wrong and for the sake of being right all the time, I wouldn't put that past you, but I hope that you're better than that)...I think alot of people will be waiting for this answer...

I watched the videos, didn't care for them...and really didn't believe everything I saw. Sorry but you didn't really open my eyes to anything. I do have one question though, it's nothing too person that I feel couldn't be given out. I have already told you I'm a cop in hallandale, but you still haven't revealed what it is that you do. Again I have to say that I cannot believe you're a cop anywhere with this train of thought that you carry. And calling what cops do a 'perpetual dismal failure', I honestly just laughed at that, but I hope nobody actually cares what you think, because they might have gotten a little offended. So what is it that you do? (and I hope you don't say you're a cop just to prove me wrong and for the sake of being right all the time, I wouldn't put that past you, but I hope that you're better than that)...I think alot of people will be waiting for this answer...


Please forgive me, I have been knocked down by a nasty virus for the last week, which is also why it has taken so long to respond.

First please understand I was referring to the current drug policy as a self-pertuating dismal failure not what cops do. I agree I should have finished the sentence more clearly. (probably virus related)

Now to answer some of your questions, "What posessed my friend to post my article here and why do I continue?" As I explained previously among other things, I am a writer - author. My current project is a study. (Not for some college class. but for publication and subsequent submission to legislatures and other political offices.) All states that have legalized the medicinal use of cannabis and those that have decriminalized recreational use of it each have different guidelines, laws, provisions. The same holds true for each nation that has decriminalized the use. Part of the Prague Declaration on the principles of effective local drug policies, is no size fits all and realism is key. The study examines existing programs, the changes that have occured from the different programs and taking into consideration Florida also has it's differences. For example, the pill mills certainly were not originally intended to create so many pill addicts, profiting the pharmacuetical companies and turning clinic owners into pill pushers. Why have I tried to "open minds". I would like to get the input of law enforcement that currently deals with the existing problem. So I guess my question is, "If cannabis were to become legal for medical use or decriminalized in Florida, what suggestions would you make for the guidelines, laws, provisions. Knowing the current situation, what do you think would be effective for Florida in particular? What do you think would not work in Florida that is done elsewhere and why? I am not cop and anytime the subject arises it has always brought the same responses, but no answers. The idea of "opening minds" to the idea first is an approach I have found successful with legislatures and other political offices by presenting evidence, to start an exchange of ideas and dialog. I realize your job and position is to enforce current law, as I have stated. I also realize you do not change laws. But if you had a say in how Florida would handle the medicinal use or decriminalization, what would your advise be to effectively manage it? To end the black market, the drug dealers, keep it out of the schools and away from the youth? I am looking for real answers and input for a solution, not simply the same old "don't do it attitude" but something for guidelines, laws, provisions from people with experience and hopefully insight to the current problem.

I have created a new email address - mauthor@ymail.com
If anyone would feel more comfortable making suggestions :idea: regarding a control policy
for medicinal use or decriminalization in a more private manner. Please feel free to use it.

Oh, okay...LOL...I knew there was a reason why I didn't value your opinion. You do know this is a POLICE FORUM right?? (yeah, yeah I get it...freedom of speech, but still...POLICE FORUM) You can thank your friend with an open handed slap in the face for starting this conversation (which I still don't believe), and if your friend works for Hallandale then I would tell you to never give their name because they would lose their respect in this place. As an educated person that you claim to be, I'm surprised that you dont really know how to pick your battles. I mean, I think Walmart is hurting America by killing the family owned businesses, but I'm not going to drive through a trailer-park or the ghetto with a bull horn shouting "Walmart sucks". I also think we should piss test for welfare, but do you think I'm stupid enough to tell that to everyone living in section 8 housing? I've been talking with some of the other cops that I work with and they all think that you're just a joke...so it's not just me. So I've decided not to even entertain this topic anymore and you can consider this my last post on here, you have given your email to anyone who wants it so I ask that you respect my fellow officers by doing the same. I know you will probably give one last post (with one more youtube video) just to have the last word (because that's what people like you do). But it will only be ignored by me and I ask my co-workers to follow suit. Good-bye.

Invitation -
This Wednesday, April 13, noted author, retired police officer and LEAP speaker Marshall Frank will give a presentation titled "Legislating Morality and Regulating Human Behavior" at the Libertarian Party of Broward County's monthly networking event. Please continue reading for more details...

MARSHALL FRANK, is a retired captain from the Metro-Dade Police Department in Miami, Florida, and a featured speaker for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition.

Thanks to the advice of a notorious Miami Beach bookie, and thoughtful stepfather, Marshall found his niche in law enforcement by joining the Dade County Sheriff¹s Office in 1960, rising through the ranks to captain.

He has traveled extensively across the U.S. and abroad in various police and security management capacities and authored numerous editorials and magazine articles pertaining to issues of crime, violence, law, and other social ills.

Marshall¹s last arrest was that of five police officers charged with the beating death of an unarmed motorcyclist, the infamous "McDuffie" case. Their subsequent acquittal led to the Miami riots in May of 1980 and another eighteen brutal killings of innocent people. That same month, Marshall was invited to testify before the United States Congress about violent crime in America.

Now a respected author, novelist, and speaker, Marshall lives in Melbourne, Florida, and is a regular editorial columnist for The Smoky Mountain News and The Asheville Citizen-Times.

Marshall thanks all those fellow officers and other members of the criminal justice community for their friendship over the last forty-four years...thanks the wonderful folks of the United States who continue to ensure social laws exist that are intended to legislate morality and regulate human behavior. For without them, there would be much lower crime rates, less criminals, a weaker organized crime cartel, and in turn, less material for writing books.

Where : Denny's - 4001 Powerline Rd, Ft. Lauderdale ( I95 & Oakland Prk Blvd)
When : Wednesday 4-13-11
6 pm networking & food
7 pm presentation
Cost: Free to attend (food extra)