ipser@vaxa.isi.edu (Ed Ipser) (01/18/90)
Last September, a Washington Post-ABC News Poll discovered: 62 percent of those questioned said they would be willing to give up "a few of the freedoms we have in this country" to significantly reduce illegal drug use. 55 percent said they favored mandatory drug tests for all Americans, and an even larger majority--67 percent--said all high school students should be regularly tested for drugs. 82 percent favored using the military to control illegal drugs within the United States. 52 percent said they would agree to let police search homes of suspected drug dealers without a court order, even if the houses "of people like you were sometimes searched by mistake." 67 percent favored allowing the police to stop cars at random to search for drugs, "even if it means that cars of people like you are sometimes stopped and searched." 83 percent favored encouraging people to report drug users to police "even if it means telling police about a family member who uses drugs." ---------- You can get 50 FREE pocket copies of the US Constitution by sending a request to: Commission on the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution 808 17th St., N.W. Washington, DC 20006-3999 Ask for 50 (maximum allowed) copies of the Constitution. Distribute them to your friends and associates. The more people who have a copy, the more secure is our liberty. PASS THIS MESSAGE ON TO OTHERS!
thk@uxrd15.UUCP (Tom Kiermaier) (01/18/90)
In article <11450@venera.isi.edu> ipser@vaxa.isi.edu.UUCP (Ed Ipser) writes: >Last September, a Washington Post-ABC News Poll discovered: > > 62 percent of those questioned said they would be willing to give up > "a few of the freedoms we have in this country" to significantly > reduce illegal drug use. > > 55 percent said they favored mandatory drug tests for all Americans, > and an even larger majority--67 percent--said all high school students > should be regularly tested for drugs. > > 82 percent favored using the military to control illegal drugs within > the United States. > > 52 percent said they would agree to let police search homes of suspected > drug dealers without a court order, even if the houses "of people like > you were sometimes searched by mistake." > > 67 percent favored allowing the police to stop cars at random to search > for drugs, "even if it means that cars of people like you are sometimes > stopped and searched." > > 83 percent favored encouraging people to report drug users to police > "even if it means telling police about a family member who uses drugs." Incredible! I guess in the comfort of your secure living room it's easy to think about stripping away the rights of others. I wonder how many of the people who favor abandoning the Bill of Rights would feel the same way after being rudely awakened at 2:00AM by a police narcotics raid. My guess is that they would be damn angry. I know I would be. While returning home from a vacation in the Adirondak region of NY, We came upon a road block on I87. All of the vehicles were being funneled into a rest area and stopped. US Government agents looked inside the stopped vehicles, asked a few questions, then waved most people on. When we were stopped, they were ripping apart a Winnebago. Watching this was an older couple who probably owned that motorhome. I think the agents were from the US Border Patrol. Since they were tearing apart the Winnebago, I assumed they were looking for drugs rather than illegal aliens. That incident further decreased my already low level of respect for the US Government. Stopping innocent people for unknown reasons is what they do in police states, no the United States. Right? Another "police state" incident I witnessed occurred in a condo I lived in 5 years ago. I was awakened at about 1:30AM by a very loud pounding noise. My wife and I just about jumped out of bed. I got up and looked out the bedroom window. I saw 2 men, one with what looked like a shotgun, pounding on my neighbors door. After pounding on the door for what must have been about thirty seconds, they started screaming that they would break down the door if wasn't opened. At that point I grabbed my gun just in case they decided to break down my door. As my wife started dialing the police, the guys pounding on the door started yelling that they were the police. The cops didn't identify themselves for nearly 50-60 seconds, all the while pounding on the door and threatening to knock it down. Once they identified themselves, my neighbor opened the door. The cops left within 2 minutes or so. We never did find out what they were after. My wife and I were pretty shaken up by the experience. Tom Kiermaier
turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) (01/19/90)
In article <11450@venera.isi.edu>, ipser@vaxa.isi.edu (Ed Ipser) writes: > Last September, a Washington Post-ABC News Poll discovered: > > 62 percent of those questioned said they would be willing to give up > "a few of the freedoms we have in this country" to significantly > reduce illegal drug use. ... ad nauseum ... > Ask for 50 (maximum allowed) copies of the Constitution. Distribute them > to your friends and associates. The more people who have a copy, the > more secure is our liberty. I wish I believed this, but generating an understanding and love for liberty is much more complex than passing out copies of the Constitution. What the poll you quote clearly is that the majority of Americans are willing to sacrifice vital freedoms for the promise of a safer(?) land. As a wise man once said, those who are willing to sacrifice liberty for security shall have neither. Russell
turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) (01/19/90)
In article <1062@devildog.UUCP>, thk@uxrd15.UUCP (Tom Kiermaier) writes: > Another "police state" incident I witnessed occurred in a condo > I lived in 5 years ago. ... After pounding on the door for what > must have been about thirty seconds, they started screaming > that they would break down the door if wasn't opened. At > that point I grabbed my gun just in case they decided to > break down my door. As my wife started dialing the police, > the guys pounding on the door started yelling that they > were the police. The cops didn't identify themselves > for nearly 50-60 seconds ... I hope that you did not lay down your gun just because the brigands started shouting that they were the police. From someone acting dangerously and violently, this cannot be reasonably considered evidence of identity. Anyone can shout, and there have been incidents in large cities where gangs use just this tactic. When invading a house, they shout "Police", knowing full well that this gives them an advantage. Russell
michael@xanadu.com (Michael McClary) (01/19/90)
In article <11450@venera.isi.edu>, ipser@vaxa.isi.edu (Ed Ipser) writes: > Last September, a Washington Post-ABC News Poll discovered: > > 62 percent of those questioned said they would be willing to give up > "a few of the freedoms we have in this country" to significantly > reduce illegal drug use. [etc] I'd like to see the questions they actually asked, and how they chose their sample. (Bet it was done in as biased a manner as the Parade poll...)
ipser@vaxa.isi.edu (Ed Ipser) (01/20/90)
In article <1990Jan19.124619.1104@xanadu.com> michael@xanadu.UUCP (Michael McClary) writes: >In article <11450@venera.isi.edu>, ipser@vaxa.isi.edu (Ed Ipser) writes: >> Last September, a Washington Post-ABC News Poll discovered: >> >> 62 percent of those questioned said they would be willing to give up >> "a few of the freedoms we have in this country" to significantly >> reduce illegal drug use. [etc] > >I'd like to see the questions they actually asked, and how they chose their >sample. (Bet it was done in as biased a manner as the Parade poll...) "Would you be willing to give up a few of the freedoms we have in this country if it meant we could greatly reduce the amount of illegal drug use?" Yes 62% No 31 Don't Know 7 "Now I'd like to talk to you about some measures that are being discussed to reduce the drug problem. For each, i want you to tell me whether you woud agree or disagree with each proposal. Here is the first: Allow police to stop cars at random to search for drugs, even if it means that the cars of people like you are sometimes stopped and searched." Agree 67% Disagree 28 Don't Know 1 etc.