Unfortunately, you have misinterpreted the data. The poor and uneducated reproduce much more than others. The demise will be ours.

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that. -George Carlin

haha well i didn't mean those "drugs". if america is profiting from heroin sales, then maybe it is american..

The Constitution was written on hemp paper.

__________________
I am very disappointed in you.
-Mayor Michael "Nut" Nutter.

Heroin, invented by Bayer to get people off morphine addiction from WWI. Regularly prescribed in America until 1924.

Drugs currently prescribed, sold, abused and profitted from in America:
-Oxycodone (basically heroin)
-Percaset
-Demarol
-Vicadin
-Rittalin
...and the list goes on.

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that. -George Carlin

I have not read the entire thread, but it seems we have gotten on a discussion about pharmacuetical manufacturers. Well, to put it in a controversial way, the poor people who are using these drugs are not the ones who are shipping this stuff into the country. It is the rich, powerful industrialists, (WELL SOME OF THEM). the only way we are going to stop this epidemic is to legalize it. then it can be taxed heavily by the government for health care purposes. In spite of taxation, the costs of narcotics would go down because it would be legal.

I have been reading about Michael Nutter's "Stop & Frisk" policy in the news. I believe this initiative gives the police way too much discretion as to whom they can stop legally. Stop & Frisk means... patting down the outer clothing of those who police have "reasonable suspicion" of carrying a firearm... NOT going thru ones pockets and treating law abiding citizens like criminals and violating their civil rights to meet arrest quotas.

However, I believe most of the law abiding people in this city are unaware of what REALLY goes on regarding this poilcy.

I have been working in the Mental Health field as a case manager for years now and I have to make many trips daily into drug infested neighborhoods in this city in order to make contact with the clients I serve. I have heard stories from these clients AND experienced first hand Philadelphia Police stopping & frisking people unilaterally without any "reasonable suspicion" other than being in a neighborhood where they are of a different ethnic backround or race other than the one that is predominate to that particular neighborhood. I have been stopped many times by the Philadelphia Police in my daily travels for work in these drug infested neighborhoods, as I am a white male, and treated very poorly by the police who also scared the hell out of me by their behavior during these stops. This so-called new "stop & frisk" policy has been going on for quite a long time well before Mr. Nutter proposed it.

I believe Mr. Nutter's is either out of touch with what is really going on regarding this issue or perhaps he sees this as a platform for his own election as Mayor. Either way, I certainly hope we the residents of Philadelphia will elect someone who is more on top of the REAL issues in this city instead of pretending to be.

LETS TREAT THE CAUSE OF PROBLEMS IN THIS CITY INSTEAD OF THE SYMPTOMS!!!

Unfortunately we live in a city thats predominately Democrat and as a result it looks like Mr. Nutter will be our next mayor.

You know, I just so happened to pick up a paper this morning and they were discussing this issue. I've known that the cops have always had the power to do this I just wasn't aware that the numbers have been climbing steadily, over the last few years. I'm also suprised that with all these stops that their conducting, that I haven't witnessed or heard of anyone getting caught up in this.

I feel for ya R-Man. Hopefully they'll let up, because like I've mentioned before, they know the real criminals.

__________________
I am very disappointed in you.
-Mayor Michael "Nut" Nutter.

It's almost impossible to treat root causes while you are busy dodging bullets. Most people who live in "drug-infested" neighborhoods support more not less police enforcement including stop and frisk, in my experience.

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A song that says it all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqITJFGyq4s

I wasn't suggesting LESS police... just more professionalism and less cowboy antics from the them. When you get stopped by the police in one of these drug infested areas THEN come talk to me.

It is most certainly NOT impossible to treat "root causes" for the problems in this city. Treating the "causes" may actually be a fiscally prudent and more efficient way of dealing with problems here. If we continue to treat the "symptoms" we are constantly throwing money and man power at the by-products of problems. If we treat the "causes" then we can possibly eliminate the problems. As far as "dodging bullets", I don't see the police being shot at to the point of where they cannot do thier jobs in a professional manner. Gimme a break!
I have had my car broken into several months ago right outside my home and called the police to have them come out. My window was broken and the car stereo was RIPPED OUT breaking the console. During this phone call with the police I was told they DO NOT come out to your house to make a report. However, I see they DO have the time to ticket my car when parked illegally due to limited parking accomodations on my street.
Who's kidding whom here?