The letter by Bill Smeathers is excellent, having read it online. It is a shame we have turned into a police state at the altar of the war on drugs. For that reason, there is an organization called Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. They are ashamed of the horrible things some in their profession are doing because of the bad laws that comprise the drug prohibition. Prohibition is bad for society and it should be ended. Richard Sinnott Fort Pierce [end]
I was pleasantly surprised to read the fine work by The Post's journalists in "Drug-free zones target blacks unfairly, critics say" (July 1), regarding the penalties paid by blacks for the excesses of our stupid drug prohibition laws. That blacks are punished more than whites in the enforcement of the "1,000 feet" laws is no surprise, but it's good to see it documented. All the drug laws punish the black population more than any other. There is not much to cheer about with today's media in its coverage of social issues relating to the drug laws, but this was a good article. I hope that it will prompt some action. Richard Sinnott, Fort Pierce [end]
The thoughtful letter of Karen Fisher on July 11 raises some very interesting questions. She mentions that "The current and most popular model of understanding the nature of alcohol and drug problems is the medical model." That suggests there are other models, and I wonder what they might be? I wonder if the medical model is the most accurate or realistic? It would be interesting to know what some of the other models are. If it is the medical model that has inspired our current well-meaning but misguided drug policy, then I suspect that model contains one very large flaw, for our current drug policy -- an integral part of the criminal industrial complex Ms. Fisher alludes to -- is an utter and expensive failure. Richard Sinnott Fort Pierce [end]
The pro and con articles about medical marijuana was a nice touch for the editorial page. I think it is a sign of the times that here in the land of the free and home of the brave, a person becomes a criminal if he chooses to smoke a plant that relieves pain and symptoms of illness. After all, we have a government that is exporting democracy to the other side of the globe by expending huge amounts of treasure and blood, but that same government does not allow its own citizens to smoke a common plant to relieve pain or illness. [continues 215 words]
Your June 2 pro-and-con columns about medical marijuana was a nice touch. I think it is a sign of the times that here in the land of the free and the home of the brave, a person becomes a criminal if he chooses to smoke a plant that relieves pain and symptoms of illness. After all, we have a government that is exporting democracy to the other side of the globe by expending huge amounts of treasure and blood, but that same government does not allow its own citizens to smoke a common plant to relieve pain or illness. Yes, truth is stranger than fiction, and politicians routinely tell lies. [continues 146 words]
Re Way to handle drugs is to legalize them, Letter, March 25 A great letter on March 25 by Alan Randell! He is so right! Richard Sinnott Fort Pierce, Florida [end]
I read DeForest Rathbone's Oct. 1 letter ["Student drug-testing: Constitutional, and a smart school tactic"] online, and simply had to comment. Mr. Rathbone is so very wrong. He has no understanding whatsoever of the spirit that created the Fourth Amendment. It is the body that provides the urine that he thinks is so important, and the body that is the "person" mentioned in the Fourth Amendment. The Constitution requires that any such searches be based upon probable cause, and those seeking such a search shall obtain a warrant. That does not happen with a urine test. Richard Sinnott Fort Pierce, Fla. [end]
In response to "Officers cleared in drug raid at S.C. high school" (Aug. 21): The Justice Department's blessing of the Goose Creek High School incident demonstrates just how distorted and corrupt the system has become because of the zealotry of drug prohibition. It is easy to understand how respect for governmental integrity grows smaller every week. For shame! Richard Sinnott Fort Pierce, Fla. [end]
Bravo to your editorial board on the fine call for caution in the case of the testing of school children in Britain. As you mentioned, the practice here in the US has been a complete travesty. Informing children on the one hand that they live in the most free country in the world, and then on the other hand instructing them to march down the hall to urinate in a bottle. If that is not a type of social schizophrenia, I don't know what is. Don't follow the lead of the US government -- it knows not what it is doing. Richard Sinnott Florida, USA [end]
Keeping up with the fashionable but questionable and unsavory trends in law enforcement nationwide, St. Lucie County is in the business of entrapping, arresting, humiliating and scorning individuals who are licensed by the state to prescribe and dispense prescription drugs. What offenses are these men charged with? Well, it seems strange I admit, but they are being charged with prescribing and dispensing prescription drugs. Go figure! I have not read the pertinent Florida Statutes that govern prescription writing, but my guess is that they do not place a number on the pills or potions that a licensed person may prescribe or dispense. [continues 575 words]
Regarding the homicides in Fort Pierce, Anthony Westbury's Editor's Notebook on a recent Sunday was very well done. Finally, a local editor has asked the essential question in trying to understand at least part of the problem: "Why would a young man with any street sense at all be tempted by a dead-end, minimum wage job when selling drugs is so much more lucrative?" Indeed. He then goes on to wonder about viable economic alternatives to the illegal drug trade. [continues 468 words]
To the editor: Congratulations, and thanks very much for the fine editorial about U.S. involvement in Colombia ("Rethinking Colombia: U.S. should reconsider its war on drugs," May 13). Everything you said was right on the money. It is a very pleasant surprise indeed to see a paper such as yours to utter the very simple truth that you did. If the U.S. government wants to end the connection between terrorists and drug trafficking, repeal the drug prohibition that makes that connection. Richard Sinnott, Fort Pierce, Fla. [end]
Even though I disagree with her conclusions, I enjoyed reading the guest column by Brenda Katz. It was a well-written article reflecting much thought on the subject of drug policy. One technical error Ms. Katz made was that "some countries have legalized drugs" is inaccurate. The United Nations controls world drug policy, so to speak, and drugs are illegal worldwide. But it is true that several countries in Europe have recently decided not to enforce certain of the drug laws - a sort of decriminalization, I suppose. [continues 117 words]
I read the story in your paper online about the tainted heroin damage there in Bradenton. It is such a pity but really is a repeat of numerous other stories around the country over a period of many years. Under the current drug policy of prohibition, the drugs are not regulated in any way - no strength or purity requirements. Thus, such stories will continue to repeat as they have in the past. It is a certainty that when criminals are selling the drugs - our present approach - the drugs will be impure and contaminated in many cases. History has proven that simple fact many times. [continues 61 words]
Ft. Pierce, Fla. -- The Dec. 1 editorial, "The business of murder," comparing the Chicago murder rate today with that of Al Capone's time, was very much run of the mill. It is a very plain vanilla piece, indicating that the writer has no understanding of the underlying causes of the murders, even though he mentions it. He seems unable to connect the dots. If Capone's success depended upon a black market and today's gangs also depend upon a black market, why does not the writer mention the simple economic fact that once the black market was removed in 1932, the crime rate plummeted? [continues 53 words]
As an out-of-state observer and online reader of your newspaper, I must say that the recent furor over the actions of Judge Gilbert is quite an insight into social behavior by humans. Most of your letter writers are highly critical of the judge for having smoked the marijuana and thus broken the law. Some describe him as a hypocrite, and others use stronger language. I find it interesting that when it comes to marijuana smoking by public figures, nobody has yet mentioned that in the last presidential election, nearly all the candidates admitted to past use of marijuana. Indeed, Bill Clinton admitted smoking pot and actually ran the federal government for eight years. There is circumstantial evidence that President Bush used cocaine in his earlier years. [continues 94 words]
The young editor of Baldwin High School's newspaper, Audrey Goodson, is a diamond in the rough! What a wonderful piece about constitutional rights Goodson writes, very perceptive and well thought out. You folks in the Macon area should be very proud of Miss Goodson. That a young person would show such knowledge and wisdom is very encouraging indeed. RICHARD SINNOTT Fort Pierce, Fla. [end]
Dear Sir, Reading your story on the internet about the DEA conducting still more raids on individuals and groups conducting legal grow operations makes it perfectly clear to me how silly things have become in the name of the silly (and tragic) drug war. Just visualizing a team of federal agents going in and ripping up from the ground 20 ordinary plants, and I also recall images of Elliot Ness and his boys going through and doing the very same righteous seizing of whiskey kegs or bottles. Those images from many movies that have been made about social phenomena during that time of the Noble Experiment. This drug prohibition could be called the Noble and Cruel Experiment. Or the Noble and Immoral Experiment. Very truly yours, Richard Sinnott Fort Pierce, FL [end]
In his letter questioning Cynthia Tucker's column ("U.S. war on drugs not 'ill conceived,' " Aug. 26), L.E. Craddock wonders if we should believe the Garrison twins were convicted without evidence. I remind him there are now 110 documented cases of people who have served many years in jail for a crime they did not commit. Ms. Tucker's piece was very good. The war on drugs is a cruel hoax on the American people. All it does is fill our land with vice and crime, and our prisons with people who do not belong there. Richard Sinnott Fort Pierce, Fla. [end]
I know it's the newspaper's job to report the news, and the Times has done so with Diana Washington Valdez's story about the El Paso Intelligence Center and the recent visit and comments by high-level drug officials. For a person 25 years old or so, that story and the officials' comments about arresting drug kingpins and eliminating this, that, or the other drug organization might seem like news. It might convince one that something is finally being done about the drug problem. [continues 115 words]
