The Bong Store - Bongs, Glass Pipes

[Blair Anderson]

4 Aug 2003 Mild Greens Press Release

NZ Police milking 'P epidemic'
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Mild Greens say TV1's 'operation flower' special demonstrates that in
busting hard-line crims for 'p', the people really 'taking care of
business' are the prohibition administrators, police, courts, judiciary
and lawyers and prison builders.

"It would be much safer and less expensive to the community, to have
speed pills prescribed by doctors in a harm-reduction/health-promotion
context, than have the police milking a predictably irrepressible and
dangerous black market" say the Mild Greens.

TV1's Sunday special on the big Auckland 'P' bust, never once questioned

the efficacy or ethics of the 'prohibition' mode of control. (Although
the police investigator Brazier noted that for every operation shut
down, 3 or 4 more new meth labs are springing up to take its place....)

While the police argue for 'more resources' the Mild Greens argue for
'less stupid policing' via progressive 'decriminalisation'.

In focusing on the 'harms caused by p' the documentary makers ignored
the fact that these mainly are 'side-effects' and 'unintended
consequences' of the prohibition, and criminalisation policy.

Dozens of police, working and snooping on the case over 3 years, $1.1
million in legal aid, plus untold millions spent in prison housing the
hard-line meth suppliers featured in the bust, is money being extorted
off the taxpayer, say the Mild Greens.

The reformers say that the public are being beguiled into feeding a
large prohibitionist workforce in NZ (and wholesale abuse of civil
liberty), for no net gain in 'harm minimisation'. (and where is the
cost-benefit analysis?)

Of course NZ's famously unworkable cannabis prohibition forms the 'bread

and butter' of policing in NZ, and ensures there is a ready market of
tens of thousands of people alienated from the disreputable, bullying
rule of law, more than willing to partake in outlaw activities,
including meth.

"With the double standards and hypocrisy surrounding drug use in NZ -
including alcohol and tobacco, Police couldn't promote speed and other
drugs better if they tried", say the Mild Greens.

It is anticipated the upcoming report of the health select committee
into appropriate health strategies associated with cannabis "and
consequently the most appropriate legal status" will enlighten New
Zealanders as to how much they are being taken for a ride via
manufactured consent, media-fuelled 'anti-drug' hysteria, and
discriminatory law.

The 1998 inquiry into the mental health effects of cannabis found
existing policy to be ineffective (and inappropriate by implication) in
reducing cannabis use, and that prohibition double standards impeded
drug prevention efforts.

While the police and public health administrators ignore the HSC 1998
admissions and insight, one must be extremely skeptical of the motives
of those police and politicians advocating 'tougher' prohibition, and
'additional resources to crack down', say the Mild Greens.

"Prohibition dis-ease is the root of all that is sick and dysfunctional
in NZ society".

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Blair Anderson
50 Wainoni Road, WAINONI
Christchurch, NZ 8006
phone ++64 3 389-4065 025 2657219

Mild Green Initiatives, for your liberty, pleasure, health and safety.

http://mildgreens.com
_______________________________________________

[Matthew Poole]

In article <3F2E7C8C.69DD5201@mildgreens.com>, Blair Anderson <blair@mildgreens.com> wrote:
*SNIP*

[BilZ0r]

[owend]

Blair Anderson wrote: