Comments on: Battleground: Philadelphia

[aahpat]

Since the 1990's America has known that bin Laden is using heroin as a weapon targeting the children of the west.

Heroin In The Holy War
Dec 1998, Indian Times
The crop will be opium and the farmer will be Osama bin Laden, the most wanted terrorist in the world. Bin Laden, accused by the United States of bombing two of their embassies in East Africa this summer and a string of other attacks, sees heroin as a powerful new weapon in his war against the West, capable of wreaking social havoc while generating huge profits, according to sources in eastern Afghanistan and in Pakistan.

[usascottwright]

Crime is getting out of control in Milwaukee and Racine. Wisconsin and Illinois is the only two states that don't allow concealed weapons. We need the ability to protect our selves until police arrive.

We can bring a paraelle to this point as - Why would you have a fire extinguiser? It would help until the fire dept comes.

I have had a Florida Concealled weapons permit for over 10 years, I haven't went on any shooting spree all of a suden as alot of these opponents would have you beleive that honest people who would get a licence would all of a suden go on shooting sprees and kill all the children.

We need to get rid of Wisconsin Governor Doyle

[aahpat]

American policy is "Creating chaos and instability"

The 2004 non-partisan Congressional Research Service,'Illicit Drugs and the Terrorist Threat: Causal Links and Implications for Domestic Drug Control Policy' summarized the drug war this way;

"The international traffic in illicit drugs contributes to terrorist risk through at least five mechanisms: supplying cash, creating chaos and instability, supporting corruption, providing %u201Ccover%u201D and sustaining common infrastructures for illicit activity, and competing for law enforcement and intelligence attention. Of these, cash and chaos are likely to be the two most important."

The drug war prohibition is producing the same chaos and instability that the alcohol prohibition created. And for the same economic reasons.

[kandry1]

Although Mr. Pitts and Commissioner Johnson raised our awareness of the increased circulation of illegal guns -- they were also unfortunately demonstrating another disturbing (and I'm assuming illegal) trend of not wearing a seat belt. Per the NHTSA report in 2005, it was reported that 55% of all people killed in car accidents did not use a restraint.
Pennsylvania, a state with 1,616 vehicle fatalities in 2005, approx 889 of those people were not wearing a restraint. This compared to the 756 murders that took place during the same year.
While the rise of crime and illegal guns the cities is no doubt concerning, it was also disappointing to see the oversight of not wearing a seat belt on National TV.

[scurtis_3447]

Its a lot easier for politicians and police officials to blame the guns than it is to accept accountability for the fact that the police department is making far too few arrests and the D.A.'s office is prosecuting too few cases.

Phoenix, AZ is the same size as Philly. Arizona has very lax gun laws, yet has significantly less crime than Philadelphia. We should also remember that there was virtually no gun control until the late 60's and crime was dramatically lower than it is now. Gun control does not equal crime control. Instead of disarming honest citizens, why not start arresting and incarcerating the criminals?

[aahpat]

Yes its a war. A war declared some three dozen years ago and escalating ever since. Its prohibition economics. And its just hitting critical mass in terms of world anarchy.

Guns are a tool. A means to an end.

In Philadelphia that end is a piece of the, according to U.N. estimates for 2003, $ 703,919,484 annual retail black market for drugs. In poverty oppressed communities the enticement of the money, drugs, bling and social acceptance all conspire to induce under-educated young people into crime, addiction and gangsterism.

Prohibition is anarchy. A complete lack of social control. Nationally a totally free market worth more than $ 144-billion a year.

Afghan expert New York Univ. Professor Barnett Rubin told the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee last Sept.

"The international drug control regime, which criminalizes narcotics, does not reduce drug use, but it does produce huge profits for criminals and the armed groups and corrupt officials who protect them. Our drug policy grants huge subsidies to our enemies."