West Coast Liberals

[wallynut]

This is how Arnold and his liberal buddies think.

In what may be the largest early release of inmates in U.S. history, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration is proposing to open the prison gates next year for some 22,000 low-risk offenders. :p :p :p

[coolwhip]

I think Arnold is a republican and his wife is a democrat.

There letting them out so they can vote.:eek::D

[mrs reb77]

Well, let's be fair, maybe they're only as dangerous as Paris, Nicole or Kiefer Sutherland?

Article pertaining to this story: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/12/21/MNMHU2OOI.DTL

With a recidivism rate of 75% they have to make room, 3/4 of them will..."BE BACK"....

[wallynut]

[QUOTE=mrs reb77;1706771]Well, let's be fair, maybe they're only as dangerous as Paris, Nicole or Kiefer Sutherland?

Well, lets be fair, out of the 22,000 prisoners, how many
do you think are a fair comparison to Paris, Nicole or
Sutherland.
The point I am making is, I am sure their are a lot
of other things that can be cut , rather than letting
prisoners out. It might not be politicaly, something
Arnold should do but his job is to make sure the public
is safe.

[The Doctor]

Well, let's be fair, maybe they're only as dangerous as Paris, Nicole or Kiefer Sutherland?

Article pertaining to this story: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/12/21/MNMHU2OOI.DTL

With a recidivism rate of 75% they have to make room, 3/4 of them will..."BE BACK"....

LOL. That's almost funny--have three out of four of the released inmates say to the Governator as they walk past him, "I'll be back".
Let's face it, our drug laws are leading to overpopulation. And have you seen the numbers on those released?

Save like $740billion over 10 years, I think.??? It's a ridiculous amount of money. Never fear, the Fed will print more. :rolleyes:

[whec720]

Hmmmmm.....maybe we should just let people use as many drugs as they want?:rolleyes:
As long as it does not hurt you or your loved ones, let these drug abusers hurt and destroy as many lives as possible, not to mention themselves. You are a true humanitarian.:p

[hvacker]

Ah, come on Wally..Wouldn't you want them to let you go?

22000 cons @ $56000/year = 1,232,000000 Sounds like a plan.

Also the longer they keep them in the harder it is to adjust to civilian life.

Jail can also make one lazy as they no longer have to worry about survival. (Except for Bubba)

[jmac00]

I think everyone is jumping the gun here. As the article said "It's just an idea, one of many that the governor has to consider"

I think if enough people complain, this "idea" will get tabled.

Lets try not to panic to early:cool:

[wallynut]

[QUOTE=hvacker;1707993]Ah, come on Wally..Wouldn't you want them to let you go?

22000 cons @ $56000/year = 1,232,000000 Sounds like a plan.

22,000 cons @ $5,000 would be better plan.

[The Doctor]

Hmmmmm.....maybe we should just let people use as many drugs as they want?:rolleyes:
As long as it does not hurt you or your loved ones, let these drug abusers hurt and destroy as many lives as possible, not to mention themselves. You are a true humanitarian.:p

In all fairness, that remains to be seen. In the meanwhile let's revisit the drug laws, NOT abandon them. The simple fact that people are in jail for marijuana while overcrowding leads to sentencing disparities for much harder crimes, such as violent crimes ought to make us think. Those violent crimes could be punished (incarcerated) more, drug crimes punished less and then let me then ask you. Wouldn't that be better for the society at large? I'm not saying let's have America look like the district in the Netherlands. Not by any stretch. I'm saying with certain (and a limited amt.) drugs, in light of the billions and billions paid by YOU and me, that we have much bigger fish to fry.
Unless you consider incarceration a major industry.

[FollettEngineer]

Locking people up for weed that overfill the jail cells needed for the rapist and violent offenders is pathetic to me.... Who are you gonna fear more, the pot-head or the sex offender?.... And people with serious drug issues need treatment, not excessive jail-time.....

[bootlen]

Locking people up for weed that overfill the jail cells needed for the rapist and violent offenders is pathetic to me.... Who are you gonna fear more, the pot-head or the sex offender?.... And people with serious drug issues need treatment, not excessive jail-time.....

No need to worry about rapists and child molesters filling cells. Judges are releasing them by the dozens.

[whec720]

In all fairness, that remains to be seen. In the meanwhile let's revisit the drug laws, NOT abandon them. The simple fact that people are in jail for marijuana while overcrowding leads to sentencing disparities for much harder crimes, such as violent crimes ought to make us think. Those violent crimes could be punished (incarcerated) more, drug crimes punished less and then let me then ask you. Wouldn't that be better for the society at large? I'm not saying let's have America look like the district in the Netherlands. Not by any stretch. I'm saying with certain (and a limited amt.) drugs, in light of the billions and billions paid by YOU and me, that we have much bigger fish to fry.
Unless you consider incarceration a major industry.

And just by whom are these violent crimes being committed? Usually by someone who is high or in the pursuit of being high. This is not rocket science. Drugs are @#$%ing this country up and wasting swaths of human beings.

[The Doctor]

And just by whom are these violent crimes being committed? Usually by someone who is high or in the pursuit of being high. This is not rocket science. Drugs are @#$%ing this country up and wasting swaths of human beings.No one is suggesting that it is rocket science that I can think of. Myself, I would remove the federal laws altogether, but this necessitates ( and I can't stress that point enough) that state and local jurisdictions use their own discretion in those matters. Meaning, we can't just do nothing. Still on the other hand, could we just revisit the laws to the effect that we go after the violence against other people, and place less emphasis on the drugs themselves?
Our prison populations are filled with drug offenses, and violent crimes are not able to be prosecuted as fully as they could .

[wallynut]

Illegal drugs are a Cancer on our
society and we should not sympathize with drug users or dealers.

Just my opinion

[The Doctor]

Illegal drugs are a Cancer on our
society and we should not sympathize with drug users or dealers.

Just my opinion

So is teaching them that alcohol is okay. It's a choice, but when we don't enforce DUI and DWI by stronger enforcement during the inevitable progression (they keep driving in spite of losing their license), we send the wrong message about its effects on the society at large. Instead, we sympathize with them. If they kill someone as a result of dui, they ought to be given a full measure of sentencing, not probation.
Violent crimes demand justice, but drug possession just doesn't measure up in light of the societal condoning of alcohol. To then demand that people only use those drugs which the society condones (such as alcohol) is rather selfish. It ought to be left to the states which behaviors they would like to regulate, not a federal issue, IMO.

[whec720]

Illegal drugs are a Cancer on our
society and we should not sympathize with drug users or dealers.

Just my opinion

Agree with you somewhat there, wally. Drugs are a cancer, no doubt about it. However, addiction is a strong mechanism that can strike anyone, if you let it in to your soul. I'm not saying that everyone that abuses drugs is an addict, but the majority that do are, whether they realize it or not. That goes for the "weed" as well. Drug abuse is a sad state of affairs and people who practice in it, deserve some pity.
I'll agree with doc on one thing. Maybe it is best for the local governments to decide the punishments for drug crimes. Then again, if that happened, how would a city like San Francisco handle such legal matters?

[oloenneker]

Illegal drugs are a Cancer on our
society and we should not sympathize with drug users or dealers.

Just my opinion


Nor should we sympathize with legal drug dealers. There are plenty.

According to studies (ones that I cannot cite right now) more Americans are addicted to prescription medication than all illegal drugs combined in total...


Big Pharma wants you to rely on medication, so they can turn big profits...


Restless leg syndrome anyone?

[The Doctor]

Nor should we sympathize with legal drug dealers. There are plenty. And yet look up any of the Democratic candidates for POTUS. For that matter you can add to Arnold's buds the republican liberal from Arkansas. They are making a killing harping about socialized medicine and/or more aggressive health care --the most virulent form of sympathy for the legal drug dealers. As for the governator, I'm still not sure why he's considered a R, but I digress.


According to studies (ones that I cannot cite right now) more Americans are addicted to prescription medication than all illegal drugs combined in total...


Big Pharma wants you to rely on medication, so they can turn big profits...


Restless leg syndrome anyone?
Gawd, and the side effects take up 2/3 of the commercial.