I'd like to see mandatory drug testing to get income tax deductions for mortgage interest. I'd like to see mandatory drug testing to get a high school diploma. I'd like to see random mandatory drug testing to get a driver's license.

If we can expose the hypocrasy of people who break drug laws with impunity because they are never scrutinized, then this insanity of the war on drugs may end.

>> ^Ti_Moth:

How on Earth do they justify this?


Since when do they have to justify anything?

>> ^xxovercastxx:

Not to defend the judge or the "war on drugs" at all but, if the kid killed himself over going to JH, he had bigger issues. It's sad that he didn't get help but that part isn't the fault of the judge.


At some point it isn't, however......over punishing petty crimes even if he didn't take bribes for it is bad. Add in taking money for it, makes it worse. He had incentive to send people who were obviously not meant to be there away for crazy amounts of time given the "crimes" (which are highly debatable and subjective). It's not just the judges responsibility or for that matter a jury's responsibility to send people away for as much time as possible, but also to make sure the person is mentally capable of understanding that they committed a "crime" and that the punishment given them will correct the problem. If you got a guy who has no record, has a trivial offense for a multi-offender..but one that for a first time offender is so minor as to be laughable. The scare of being in front of the judge would often times correct the issue, but if not, they hand out probationary periods and mandatory drug tests to show them how inconvenient their life can become if they keep up with the drug path.

He chose, for money, to skip all other avenues at his disposal on a first time offender with a very very very very very very minor non-violent offense and sentence him with time in juvenile detention. I mean that alone could very well ruin your chances at anything since anyone who knows you spent time in juvenile detention is gonna wonder how fucked up you are...since historically this is a place they put the too young to be tried as adult whack jobs....or the kids who never seem to attempt to turn it around and keep stealing cars or mugging people.

And to think that if he had probated the kid, there would have been a chance to find out the kid had mental issues? Maybe he was bipolar or schizo. Many doctors find that bi-polar sufferers tend to self-medicate via drinking or drugs. The kid wasn't given a chance to be diagnosed, he was stuck straight into the worst possible place someone with a fragile mental state should be stuck...no "alternative" was offered him...it wasn't a choice anyone but the judge could have made. And he made that choice for dollars in his pocket, condemned a kid with a potentially fragile mental state to a living hell for someone that age...who came out broken. Because why bother? He was shown that a judge will not show leniency he will put you away for as long as possible, whether it's the best option or not. I mean seriously, that is a system that promotes you "die by cop" every time you break the law..otherwise you might spend life in prison putting cash in some judges pocket.

It is most definitely the fault of the judge, and it's even more so if the judge didn't have him mentally evaluated or the government didn't try to help the kid out when he got out. That is all on the judge, he exacerbated this kid's problems by an immeasurable amount.

I think a largely unspoken reason the military would like to keep a "don't ask, don't tell" policy is because of how other soldiers would react. There were people essentially ostricized in my basic training unit and duty station for people *suspecting* they were gay. I wonder what would happen to a male soldier if he professed to be openly gay while in the military? There would probably be some severe beatings. Of course this doesn't make it right. Also, I knew females that were openly gay while I was in the Army. They seem to be treated differently in that respect since the males don't view this as a threat in any way. It only became an issue during mandatory drug testing since the Army appoints random male and female NCO's as "meat gazers," or people that have to observe you filling a urine cup. Some women caused a problem by refusing to test with the openly gay female observer. Our chain of command knew about it, but no action was ever taken. So, even though this policy exists and allows the military to essentially avoid taking a real stance, it's not really strictly enforced.

On another note on Skeeve's comment about females being trained and tested the same as males. Maybe in the Canadian Army, but not even close in the American Army. Female physical standards can be ridiculously out of line with males standards to the point of being laughable. It's even become a joke in the Army if you train anywhere outside of Ft. Benning or Ft. Knox since they are they only two left that don't train females. In order to pass a physical fitness test, a 21 year old male needs to perform 42 correct push-ups. That's bare minimum just to pass and be considered a lazy dirt bag by your command. You may even be forced into remedial training to score higher. A 21 year old female requires *19* push-ups to get the same passing score. In fact, a perfect score for a female is 42 (a male's bare minimum). I am of the mindset that if you want to be treated equal, equalize the testing. If you are truly capable of performing (and there are many that are, I know) then you will be able to pass on the same scale as a man of equal age.

We live in a drugs based society, anyone who doesn't realize it doesn't see the kids in school cracked out on Ritalin becuase everyone thinks ADHD is 'disease', while their soccer mums knock back Valiums to bear living with their husbands who are desperately trying to get a hard on from Cialis and Viagra. First what should happen is a total reform of the FDA to fully be able to administrate over what drugs are being produced. Pharmaceuticals have now taken to creating conditions that are not medical problems and providing medication for it, pushed through to citizens via rolling TV adverts and massive drugs guides in most popular magazines. Pick up a Reader Digest anytime. FDA needs power back to stop being run basically by Big Pharma lobby groups.

After that we must legalize drugs through the state because that will end the illegal supply from the underworld and end one of the longest running cash cows for illegal criminal activity. Once sanctioned through the state, we can start to slowly eliminate the problem with hardcore chemical dependences drugs such as crack cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin. Simply the act of high supply at low prices will collapse the illegal trade in narcotics, at the same time the state can refer critical individuals to relevant support services, because when's the last time you seen your drug dealer take you to the first aid ward?

Marijuana and other naturalistic drug supplies are impossible to make illegal, nor does it warrant heavy attention from law enforcement because it's a small source of income and has to be sold in bulk if for profit. They are usually not affiliated with the heavy criminal underworld, and the large legal repercussions we have now mean that even first time offenders can feasible be locked up for possession of marijuana, the crime doesn't not fit with the consequences.

As per your statement about loss of people to drugs through legalization, that is really quite ridiculous, I mean we have alcohol as a major social killer in various ways, yet we understand that it's for consumption under controlled circumstances. Your argument makes it sound like when booze became legal back after the prohibition everyone was going to work pissed drunk. Holding a job down comes with responsibility, one of which is to be alert, you would lose that job instantly and won't be able to buy your legal supply so to say. This is besides the fact that any job these days that requires putting the lives of others at your disposal comes with mandatory drug tests.

This is the same thing we have seen happen with regards to the abolition of alcohol, we created an underworld under dubious moralistic judgments about what is good for society.