A second state in the United States has passed a law giving immunity from criminal prosecution to someone who is having a drug overdose or someone who reports a drug overdose by calling 911 for help. Here in New Hampshire someone overdosing from drugs will not be so lucky. Call for help and you’re risking imprisonment.
The State of Washington passed SB 5516, something that would be worthwhile to push for here in New Hampshire. This type of limited immunity does nothing to address the problems of addiction, crime associated with addiction, and crime associated with the black market supply of drugs. It is a good step in the direction of harm-reduction, though.
For a fraction of the cost of enforcement and imprisonment, treatment centers could be opened for opiate-addicted individuals. People could be given the drugs they need to survive with a plan to get them off of their addictions. They no longer would be out terrorizing neighborhoods with burglaries or worse to support their habits. They could get drug free. Black market drug dealers would wither when they no longer could count on returning customers. This would make it harder for people to start using in the first place. People not being addicted to hard drugs is a good thing.
Why don’t people in government realize this? The tough on crime approach to drug policing doesn’t work. It never will. Every drug arrest and drug investigation is a complete waste of time. If it were not a waste of time wouldn’t the non-stop stories of drug arrests have come to an end after 40+ years of doing the same thing over and over and over and over and over again?
The drug war does nothing positive and it does a tremendous amount of negative.
Police Courtesy Cards and preferential treatment, AZ voters and marijuana, convictions handed down in industrial accident that killed thousands of people over 25 years ago, and the world’s biggest hamburger record.
1. An attorney with political connections in Concord, NH is caging a man like an animal for 18-months for participating in the black market sale of plants. Since the dawn of time people have wanted to alter their state of consciousness. People do it every day with alcohol. People do it every day with marijuana. By any measure of rational science marijuana is proven time and time again to be safer to us vs. alcohol.
“Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man(,)” according to DEA Chief Administrative Law Judge Francis Young.
Why must we continue to toss people in a cage for voluntarily agreeing to exchange money for this plant? Wait, I know why. Good grief.
This man is not accused of hurting anyone. Accordingly, he should not be hurt by the state.
If you’re an open-carry activist or proponent… please read #9. The state is charging someone with disorderly conduct for what appears to be the mere act of openly-carrying a pistol. The judge rejected a plea in the case out of concerns that the man should be charged with a more serious offense.
This should be alarming to all of us who value our inherent and constitutional right to carry a firearm.
1. The Keene Police protected and served the community when one of their officers arrested a man for robbing someone of a 12-pack of beer and kicking him in the face. This is what the police should be doing. Good work Keene PD! This is a crime clearly worthy of state action as this man is a threat to those of us who wish to be peaceful.
Only go after people like this who have hurt someone and your days of having to worry about all the pesky activists will be numbered!
2. The Manchester Police have likewise protected their community when they caught a guy who beat the crap out of someone else with a baseball bat. Good work MPD! This guy obviously is dangerous and needs to be met with justice. This is the type of thing that protection services should be investigating and preventing. The guy could have avoided having the force of the state come after him if he simply refrained from using the blunt force of a baseball bat on another human being.
Initiating violence against anyone for any reason is always wrong.
Is it really hard to understand that people within the freedom/liberty movement simply want consensual acts between people as well as acts which harm no other individual to be unfettered? It is amazing that simply wanting to allow other people to live their lives in the way they see fit is a goal that needs to be striven for.
In the “land of the free” shouldn’t this already be the state of affairs?
Time for some news from around New Hampshire viewed through the perspective of a person who used to be authorized to use violence to enforce morality.
I welcome your opinions about mine:
1. Lawmakers are contemplating a change to the “Right-to-know” law which would allow greater governmental accountability for the people. The people, you know, who have to consent to the government in order for it to even exist.
“But those who worry about the continued efforts of public officials to restrict public access see this as one more attempt to inhibit the spirit of the law.”
Public servants. People who work for and answer to you. They’ll be the judge of what you should know. Just trust them.
