Pubdate: Mon, 09 Feb 1998
Date: 09/02/1998
Source: Tribune Review (PA)
Author: Jay Ferguson
Related:  http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v98.n757.a12.html
Note: Headline by MAP

Dear Editor of Pittsburgh Tribune Review:

I am responding to the article POLICE APPEAL TO PUBLIC TO NAB
MARIJUANA GROWERS.  In the article the police ask neighbors to rat on
other neighbors.  The police then go on to tell you how to determine
whether or not someone is growing pot.

---- "We're also looking for that neighbor who, like during that dry
spell we had a while back, was disappearing every now and then with
buckets of water into the middle of his field," States said. "Where
was he going?"

"Hey, we're looking for dealers, too. High traffic.

If your next door neighbor has lots of traffic in and out and they
stay only for five minutes, that might mean something," States said.
----

I'd like to add.  Look for people who are just acting in a way you
don't like.  If someone acts like a trouble maker, then call us and
we'll break his door down and destroy his furniture looking for pot.
Whoa there big brother.  I mean, are the police going to be coming to
my door because I am a social person with lots of friends? But that is
exactly what it says above. High Traffic. No mention of actually
having reasonable suspicion. This is very disturbing.  Joseph Goebles
used such tactics to ferret out those who disagreed with the Nazis.
George Orwell talks about this kind of behavior by the police in his
novel "1984." When do we stop this insanity? The police are way out of
line here. How many more freedoms do we have to lose before we reign
in our government?

`A society that will trade a little liberty for a little order will
lose both, and deserve neither' - Thomas Jefferson'

Jay Ferguson

Graduate Student

Computer Science and Engineering

Pennsylvania State University

814-867-2051