August 21, 2003


More Overreaching

If the 1600 Crew tried any more overreaching, they might as well just start becoming like that character in the Fantastic Four comic, you know the one who could stretch and bend any which way...the new and improved Patriot Act II, AKA the "Victory Act", which I suspect has as much to do with Victory as "Clean Skies" does with clean air, and "Healthy Forests" does with actual, growing green things is on its way to the Senate Judiciary Committee if Orrin Hatch can help it.

The alleged "Victory Act" seems to be all about melding the oh-so-successful "War on Drugs" with the War on Terra™, and we know how successful the War on Drugs has been. If that merger takes place, let's just save us all some time and tax money and hand the keys to the country over to Osama and his ilk now.

Here are some of the proposals being backed by Orrin Hatch (R-Loves Leather):

  • Allow the FBI to get a wiretap order on a wireless device, such as a cell phone, from any district court in the country
  • Force defendants who are trying to exclude illegal wiretap evidence to prove police intentionally broke the rules
  • Further restrict judges' sentencing discretion in drug cases
  • Ease restrictions on government access to sensitive financial records
  • Increase penalties for selling drugs to people under the age of 21
  • Make it easier for the government to seize or freeze assets of people accused of money laundering
  • Remove gradations of sentencing for those convicted of selling amphetamines so that anyone convicted of possessing more than 250 meth pills would automatically go to jail for 200 years
  • Increase the ability of the FBI to self-issue subpoenas for terrorism investigations without having to consult a judge
Now I have a small problen with this...allow the FBI, which has shown its willingness to be used as a a partisan political tool and has had some extraordinarily bad folks employed there in past years, the ability to self-issue search warrants? No, don't really think so.

And what makes them think that someone knowing they are goiing to face 200 mandatory years (where the fuck did that come from?) is going to go peacefully? Not to mention, all the draconian laws on the books have not stopped the use of other illegal substances...let's choose Crack and Pot, if the laws worked, then both would be but a really bad memory...but I don't see that.

As for all the changes to sentencing guidelines, let's just skip all the expensive and boring judicial stuff and go straight to the stocks and pillory...hell, there's even an football stadium in Kabul that might be available for some events.

Why not just take down that statue with the ridiculous drape and put up what Asscrack really wants; statues of Lavrenti Beria and Heinrich Himmler, with a portrait of Reinhardt Heydrich between both statues.

Seig Heil, Baby - Lorenzo St. Dubois
posted by Jo Fish on 08.21.03 at 11:28 PM





Comments:

It amazes me that people believe that draconian sentencing laws for drug offenses will work. Haven't so far. I reside in South Georgia and in the mid to late 80s there was a Major in the highway patrol who became famous for making a series of drug busts on Interstate 95. He made a half dozen or so arrests involving 20+ kilos. All of these began as "routine" traffic stops. Now, I am not a criminal mastermind, but if I get pulled over for speeding and I have 50 kilos of cocaine in my trunk and I KNOW I am going to jail for 20 years, what are my options? Submit peacefully or shoot the police officer? Simple arithmitic if you are a criminal.

I think you are right Jo, these laws make the jobs of law enforcement more dangerous. The rest of the provisions in the Act are equally poorly thought out.

 posted by: TrophiesofWar on 08.22.03 at 06:05 AM [permalink]

In my younger drinking days, "Down the hatch" was celebratory good times with good friends. Now, "Down the Hatch" should be the goal of those interested in protecting civil rights. Orrin should spend more time identifying the polygamists in Utah and bringing them to justice. I'll drink to that; "Down the hatch".

 posted by: Shag from Brookline on 08.22.03 at 07:16 AM [permalink]


On the other side of the hyperlink below, you'll find a modest proposal for a survey to measure quite accurately the likelihood of President Bush's re-election

By rights, this missive has to start off with a small confession. Information about the proposed survey is buried within the article, whose hyperlink is found below. Nonethess, recipients shall, for the most part, enjoy the read that precedes and succeeds.

Your Friend A Alexander "Bogey" Stella considered the following article
interesting and wanted to send it to you.


''battleofthepoptarts'' O Corleone
(Date: 2003-08-19 21:32:40)
Topic: A. Alexander Stella

URL: http://www.bcvoice.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=139

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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 posted by: A Alexander Stella on 08.22.03 at 04:01 PM [permalink]

"Increase the ability of the FBI to self-issue subpoenas..."? INCREASE? They can already do that??

 posted by: Tom on 08.23.03 at 04:29 AM [permalink]

um, could you provide a link to a copy of the full text. I think I want to read it in the original.

Anyone possessing more than 250 amphetamines pills gets 200 years? I have ADHD; that describes a four-month supply of my prescription meds...

 posted by: Anon on 08.23.03 at 11:12 PM [permalink]

Meth is a horrible, horrible thing. But, in case you aren't aware, meth is a big fat problem among teenagers. Are we suggesting that instead of drug treatment, we should be putting most of our youth in jail?

The "war on drugs" has been a disgrace already--with a lot of mostly orderly, well educated, middle class taxpaying folks getting long jail time for smoking weed. These folks are fine with other people's vices putting them in jail for most of their productive life--they haven't been getting the big drug lords, they've been getting the little users. Of course, this is all very well and good for the prison industrial complex. Their motto? "You nail 'em, we'll rail 'em."

 posted by: Ellen on 08.26.03 at 10:28 PM [permalink]


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All the original material © 2002-2003 Jo Fish
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