Slog - Comments on The Only Thing That Pisses Me Off More Than the War on Drugs... http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t ...is the mindless glorification of the War on Drugs. Gee, I wonder how many people involved with the conception, production, and promotion of this new show on Spike—let's not even talk about Spike's typical viewers—have used drugs themselves? Your front row seat to the most dangerous job on the street? Try your front row seat to the most the most unnecessary job on the street. Want to protect these saintly DEA agents from harm? Legalize drugs, tax the shit out of 'em, and reassign these DEA agents to the jaywalking beat. Oh, and here's the bottom half of the poster—which... Copyright 2008 Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:45:37 -0800 Sat, 19 Apr 2008 00:49:59 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by elenchos Bullshit. Sales taxes are regressive.

]]> elenchos http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998793 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998793 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:53:57 -0800 Comment by tiffany reason #287 to hate spike tv

]]> tiffany http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998798 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998798 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:57:23 -0800 Comment by Graham Hey Dan, do you read the articles you link to?

Yes, the LAPD has a guy on staff who fixes doors when they raid the wrong house. You know how many he did in 2007?

"Last year, Jenkins fixed eight doors damaged in such incidents -- up from four the year before. "

So yeah, you're pretty much wrong on your whole, "LAPD has a full-time carpenter that does nothing but repair doors torn off their hinges when the police raid the wrong house."

Unless the carpenter takes 6.5 weeks to repair a door.

]]> Graham http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998807 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998807 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:04:21 -0800 Comment by paul Another Easy Target exposed by Dan "Pick on an Easy Target" Savage. Another journalistic great from the Department of Stating the Obvious.
Hey Dan, I hear republicans suck and hate gays too! Why not tell us about that in another scoop! Moron.

]]> paul http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998813 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998813 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:09:24 -0800 Comment by Jerod It's not the repairing of the doors that's the tricky part, it's cleaning all the baby brains off them.

]]> Jerod http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998814 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998814 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:09:43 -0800 Comment by Bald Face Lie watch
http://www.americandrugwar.com/

]]> Bald Face Lie http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998817 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998817 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:13:21 -0800 Comment by infrequent i thought it was interesting reading this, and your last post about the violent approach the dea often takes for drug busts.

it's interesting that bursting with guns causes potential problems for such a small crime. in this newsweek article, i read the following:

Tela Mange, a spokeswoman for Texas troopers and the Department of Public Safety, added, "We have been trying very hard to be sensitive to the folks at the ranch … trying to be sensitive to their concerns about their holy places. So we have been much more diplomatic with them than we typically are when we are serving any other search warrant."

it's too bad the dea cannot take a similar approach.

]]> infrequent http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998847 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998847 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:33:04 -0800 Comment by wisepunk I heard about this show on Howard Stern from the producer of it.

Al Roker. Yes, that Al Roker. That, in and of itself, should put any viewer on notice.

]]> wisepunk http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998865 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998865 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:47:18 -0800 Comment by Mike of Renton Al Roker is the executive producer of this show. Way to go Al.

]]> Mike of Renton http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998867 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998867 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:48:20 -0800 Comment by wisepunk beat ya to it.

]]> wisepunk http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998878 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998878 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:56:05 -0800 Comment by Trevor Am currently in New York City, where there's a sculpture of anti-colonial activist Lin Zexu which doesn't mention a thing about his opposition to the British empire, saying only that he was a pioneer in the war on drugs in the 19th century. Barf.

]]> Trevor http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998885 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998885 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:01:56 -0800 Comment by Gitai In the only commercial for this show I've seen, they're preparing to bust "an international Ecstasy ring." I damn near died laughing. Good thing they're out there, protecting the enamel of kids' teeth and preventing them from getting all huggy.

]]> Gitai http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998916 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998916 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:19:52 -0800 Comment by Gomez Does Dan know that not all drugs are equal?

]]> Gomez http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998920 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998920 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:21:09 -0800 Comment by Dominic Holden Can Gomez cite a drug more dangerous than the drug war? How well are those drug laws working, Gomez? Are they keeping the drugs away from kids, allowing us to treat addicts, giving people accurate information to avoid substance abuse?

]]> Dominic Holden http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998969 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998969 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:44:28 -0800 Comment by torrentprime Does Gomez know that the issue is obscene police overreaction in raids based on unreliable and agenda-driven informants, and the complete deference the courts show to those raids and nearly all actions that occur in them?
Pot doesn't need to be "equal" to heroin for armed men stampeding in the door based on the words of a informant with a serious conflict of interest to be troublesome, not least because we're making trash tv about how cool the DEA is.

]]> torrentprime http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998993 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c998993 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:55:44 -0800 Comment by Bellevue Ave drug raids gone bad is what angers you about the drug war? fucking fuck!

]]> Bellevue Ave http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999045 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999045 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:25:11 -0800 Comment by torrentprime "Gone bad"? Even when the state says they went right, they're often pretty bad.

And it's related to the general erosion of 4th Amendment rights due to the drug war, so yes, drug raids are one part of what angers me about the drug war. You?

]]> torrentprime http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999145 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999145 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:36:15 -0800 Comment by Karlheinz Arschbomber I love it that that fat fuck Al Roker is doing this show.

I hear it on good authority that one of the most popular places to get a good cup of coffee, etc in Amsterdam is called the Rokerie. Roker == Rauchen == Smoking.

]]> Karlheinz Arschbomber http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999184 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999184 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:05:12 -0800 Comment by Gomez Do you do meth, heroin or cocaine, Dominic? Since you've established we're going to discuss this issue using only fallacious remarks, I might as well cut to the chase. You cut right to the hostile chase when discussing this issue so quickly that I have to wonder exactly what drugs you do.

]]> Gomez http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999248 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999248 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:54:24 -0800 Comment by ektachrome I guess Dan and Dominic wouldn't mind if someone opened a meth lab next door to them after legalization.

]]> ektachrome http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999409 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999409 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 19:47:38 -0800 Comment by Ebrey RIGHT NOW someone could open a meth lab next door to you. If drugs were legalized, they could be zoned (to keep them away from houses) and subjected to safety standards (so that they didn't explode all the time).

Anybody who wants to can buy meth, heroin, and cocaine, so the fact that they are "bad drugs" doesn't justify the drug war in any way.

]]> Ebrey http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999451 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999451 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 21:31:30 -0800 Comment by Mmmm, drugs are bad, m'kay? I've been to 2 heroin funerals for close friends, and have lost at least 6 or 7 other friends to junk that I can think of off the top of my head.

I have two friends who had to give up blow after having heart trouble, and countless more who pissed away instruments, cars, jobs, relationships and treasure while they were doing it. Meth wasn't real prevalent in my social circles back in the 80's and 90's, but it definitely seems like powerfully nasty stuff that trashes the lives of a lot of people who take it up.

That said, all of the preceding drugs should be decriminalized.

Drugs (particularly the hard stuff) certainly hurt a lot of people, but the criminality that arises from prohibition magnifies that harm tenfold (at least).

Legalize everything - it can't get worse.

]]> Mmmm, drugs are bad, m'kay? http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999474 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999474 Drugs Tue, 15 Apr 2008 23:37:04 -0800 Comment by Will in Seattle Ever since the decriminalization of pot, the easy availability of gay marriage, and the strengthening of privacy rights in Canada ...

well, ever since then ...

their GDP went up, crime went down, they live longer, they're happier, and they have fewer murders.

Hmmm.

Maybe we should take the DEA and airdrop them on Iran wholesale, with no return tickets?

Then they can deal with them, and we can be like Canada ... and live 10-20 years longer than we do now.

]]> Will in Seattle http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999489 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999489 Drugs Wed, 16 Apr 2008 00:28:30 -0800 Comment by infrequent just before i die i'm going to move to canada.

]]> infrequent http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999535 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c999535 Drugs Wed, 16 Apr 2008 08:24:32 -0800 Comment by makesmecry So many smart people out there who see the war on drugs for the ridiculous scam that it is, and yet the media push it like it's the only thing that will save us. Makes me cry sometimes.

]]> makesmecry http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c1002288 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/04/the_only_thing_that_pisses_me_off_more_t#c1002288 Drugs Sat, 19 Apr 2008 00:49:59 -0800