This is an article I have been wanting to research on for awhile now. Why should marijuana be legal? What are the negative issues with marijuana. Well first lets talk about what it does to the average human when it is consumed.
Lets see.....it makes you fat dumb and happy, well pretty much. Lots of stuff: Short term memory loss, blood shot eyes, concentration loss, reaction time, fine motor skills. So very similar to alcohol. Marijuana's effect on the circulatory system is actually worse than that of nicotine. It actually speeds the heart up by fifty percent. It has also been determined to have the same carcinogens as tobacco.
Some other long term effects would be laziness, obesity, unemployment, child support, welfare and I am sure this list goes on.
Now are the things I listed above any worse than that of alcohol, probably not. Should alcohol be illegal as well? I don't think so but people will argue why should one be and the other not. I say it is legal now leave it alone. As for marijuana it is illegal leave it alone. Don't make it easier for a teenager to access. Do not put it at every Zip Trip, Stop n Go or 7/11 in America. Our nation already has a huge welfare issue. Creating another legal vice would be very foolish. I watched my 21 year old brother sell everything he owned to get the next bag of weed.
As for the people who think marijuana doesn't cause injury, accidents or even death the Office of National Drug Control Policy Shows that in 2006 there were 290,563 emergency room visits directly related to the use of marijuana.
For those who would argue the medicinal quality of marijuana I won't argue with that but it is far better if used in the form of marinol a synthesized form of mary jane. For more info visit. http://www.justice.gov/dea/ongoing/marinol.html
Monday, February 15, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Transitional Housing for Released Offenders. NOT IN MY BACKYARD!
Larry Durkin of New Hope Community Health was quoted in an article posted by KBOI as saying that he believes he can provide a service to the offenders at no cost to the public. Now that is a paraphrase and it is also a load of malarkey. This is out of an old article but I seriously doubt much has changed since Nov. 2008. I would venture to guess that the majority of the offenders staying at all transitional homes have received state funding for their rent at this place. At the time of this article New Hope was on the more expensive transitional homes in the state.
It is not my intention to bash New Hope though. A couple of years ago yes but today no. It is really hard for offenders to find a place to live once released. Seriously how many people want to rent an apartment or room to a burglar, meth addict or armed robber. So however much I despise Larry Durkin and his real estate investment company "New Hope", I do believe they provide a service to our state. I don't know what the numbers are but many offenders leaving correctional facilities receive funding for housing. That is OK though because one of the biggest keys to successful reentry is a stable living environment upon release.
I subscribe to corrections connection. It is a web page that provides news and forums about industry issues. I responded to a post about Homelessness and offenders and recently a Colorado couple responded to me I would like to share their web page with whom ever may be so fortunate to read this. http://maxcashflownow.com They operate a buisiness of renting to felons. They also advertise on their website how to do it in a profitable and responsible manner.
Living in rural northern Idaho there are not a lot of options for offenders. Nobody wants them in their backyard. New Bridges Church in Lewiston has attempted for several years now to get a transitional home up and running in Lewiston and has met with some resistance. In a November 2009 article on KLEW John DeThomas of the Idaho Division of Aeronautics has stated that the presence of a transitional home in a proposed area near the airport in Lewiston would create an aviation hazard due to the change of a high density residential zone. Sounds like more malarkey to me.
Listen I don't want them in my backyard either but I also don't want them robbing someone I care for, getting drunk and killing a loved one or any other number of possible new crimes. A transitional home operated by a church like New Bridges would bring positive change to the lives of the offender and in the long term to the taxpayers of the State of Idaho.
It is not my intention to bash New Hope though. A couple of years ago yes but today no. It is really hard for offenders to find a place to live once released. Seriously how many people want to rent an apartment or room to a burglar, meth addict or armed robber. So however much I despise Larry Durkin and his real estate investment company "New Hope", I do believe they provide a service to our state. I don't know what the numbers are but many offenders leaving correctional facilities receive funding for housing. That is OK though because one of the biggest keys to successful reentry is a stable living environment upon release.
I subscribe to corrections connection. It is a web page that provides news and forums about industry issues. I responded to a post about Homelessness and offenders and recently a Colorado couple responded to me I would like to share their web page with whom ever may be so fortunate to read this. http://maxcashflownow.com They operate a buisiness of renting to felons. They also advertise on their website how to do it in a profitable and responsible manner.
Living in rural northern Idaho there are not a lot of options for offenders. Nobody wants them in their backyard. New Bridges Church in Lewiston has attempted for several years now to get a transitional home up and running in Lewiston and has met with some resistance. In a November 2009 article on KLEW John DeThomas of the Idaho Division of Aeronautics has stated that the presence of a transitional home in a proposed area near the airport in Lewiston would create an aviation hazard due to the change of a high density residential zone. Sounds like more malarkey to me.
Listen I don't want them in my backyard either but I also don't want them robbing someone I care for, getting drunk and killing a loved one or any other number of possible new crimes. A transitional home operated by a church like New Bridges would bring positive change to the lives of the offender and in the long term to the taxpayers of the State of Idaho.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Arrest authority for tribal police
This is a topic that I see come to the surface every few years and apparently it is making a resurgence. I just finished reading an article from the Spokesmen Review about it. http//www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/feb/05/sheriffs-tribal-policy-protested/
Being in law enforcement in Idaho I have an opinion on this issue. I think some may agree and some may not. I would like to hear what others think about this. I also read a post from http://lawlib.lclark.edu/blog/native_america/?p=3323 a Native American blog. This blog basically state the Coeur d' Alene Tribe has submitted legislation that would allow Idaho POST certified officers working for tribal agencies to arrest Non-Tribal members and send them on to state courts.
It is my opinion that this would be a bad idea right now. While I believe the Coeur d" Alene tribe to be a good agency I don't feel that way about another tribal agency in the state. I won't say which one. I have had bad experiences with them and do not trust their officers. I have sources within their agency telling me that they have officers who were hired that had been arrested previously for felony drug charges on the reservation. I have been warned by law enforcement officers with several agencies from city to federal levels telling me who to trust and whom not to.
I don't know the particulars of all of their hiring practices but they should meet a minimum standard before they are allowed to have full peace officer status in the State of Idaho. The other issue and this is tied to their hiring practices (correct me if I am wrong) when a tribal member is arrested for a crime on the reservation by a tribal officer that crime is not reported to the state court system. With that in mind when POST (Peace Officer Standards and Training) completes a background investigation the charge will not show up. If this is true then members of the tribe that apply for tribal officer positions should not be able to be POST Certified.
Being in law enforcement in Idaho I have an opinion on this issue. I think some may agree and some may not. I would like to hear what others think about this. I also read a post from http://lawlib.lclark.edu/blog/native_america/?p=3323 a Native American blog. This blog basically state the Coeur d' Alene Tribe has submitted legislation that would allow Idaho POST certified officers working for tribal agencies to arrest Non-Tribal members and send them on to state courts.
It is my opinion that this would be a bad idea right now. While I believe the Coeur d" Alene tribe to be a good agency I don't feel that way about another tribal agency in the state. I won't say which one. I have had bad experiences with them and do not trust their officers. I have sources within their agency telling me that they have officers who were hired that had been arrested previously for felony drug charges on the reservation. I have been warned by law enforcement officers with several agencies from city to federal levels telling me who to trust and whom not to.
I don't know the particulars of all of their hiring practices but they should meet a minimum standard before they are allowed to have full peace officer status in the State of Idaho. The other issue and this is tied to their hiring practices (correct me if I am wrong) when a tribal member is arrested for a crime on the reservation by a tribal officer that crime is not reported to the state court system. With that in mind when POST (Peace Officer Standards and Training) completes a background investigation the charge will not show up. If this is true then members of the tribe that apply for tribal officer positions should not be able to be POST Certified.
Economy and Law Enforcement
This is the time of year for those of us that follow it anxiously await our agencies budget. At least here in Idaho. Our director spoke to the Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee. It sounds as if he did a good job pleading our case.
In Idaho we are not guaranteed a pay increase. We are completely at the whim of the legislature. We did not got a raise last year. We got a fairly small raise the year before. With the economy the way it is there is a good chance we won't get a raise this year.
Currently many of us are taking leave without pay or "Furloughs" in order to help meet the budgetary needs. For me it is 72 hours of pay. My wife is also an employee in state law enforcement and her department has to take 28 hours of furlough time. It adds up to...well too much.
The question I would pose to anyone who may read this is how much should be cut from public safety and for how long can cuts go on before it haves a negative effect? I think that morale will suffer. Staff will begin to suffer from anxiety due to higher cost of living thus increasing use of sick leave thereby increasing overtime for other staff which then creates stress at work and home. What should be done?
Who should get the deepest cut? Where should the money come from? Should it come from Education, Health and Welfare, Transportation I don't really know. Should we just suck it up be good Idahoans and weather the storm? I am inclined to say the latter. The problem is I have been sucking it up for years. I want to live in Idaho and raise my children in this state of small towns. The problem is these small towns are getting big town prices. We are getting big town crimes along with big town criminals. Are jobs are getting more dangerous. We are not getting compensated for what we do.
Who would of known we would have Crips and Bloods, Surenos and Noretenos, Juggalo's Gypsy Jokers, Aryan Nations amongst many others. Then there is the scourge of middle america the redneck meth addict. For my fellow Probation and Parole Officers in 2008 eleven sworn officers were killed by supervised felons. I haven't seen the stats for 2009 but I know of four right here in the Northwest that were killed by Maurice Clemmons. Our jobs are not getting any safer. Today are criminals are smarter, younger and more dangerous than ever before. So my brothers and sisters fight the good fight and stay safe.
So if anyone reads this and you are in law enforcement be it from behind the walls or out on the streets i would like to here what is going on in your state. Also if there is anything you would like to discuss shoot me an email I love to do research and would also entertain a good argument.
In Idaho we are not guaranteed a pay increase. We are completely at the whim of the legislature. We did not got a raise last year. We got a fairly small raise the year before. With the economy the way it is there is a good chance we won't get a raise this year.
Currently many of us are taking leave without pay or "Furloughs" in order to help meet the budgetary needs. For me it is 72 hours of pay. My wife is also an employee in state law enforcement and her department has to take 28 hours of furlough time. It adds up to...well too much.
The question I would pose to anyone who may read this is how much should be cut from public safety and for how long can cuts go on before it haves a negative effect? I think that morale will suffer. Staff will begin to suffer from anxiety due to higher cost of living thus increasing use of sick leave thereby increasing overtime for other staff which then creates stress at work and home. What should be done?
Who should get the deepest cut? Where should the money come from? Should it come from Education, Health and Welfare, Transportation I don't really know. Should we just suck it up be good Idahoans and weather the storm? I am inclined to say the latter. The problem is I have been sucking it up for years. I want to live in Idaho and raise my children in this state of small towns. The problem is these small towns are getting big town prices. We are getting big town crimes along with big town criminals. Are jobs are getting more dangerous. We are not getting compensated for what we do.
Who would of known we would have Crips and Bloods, Surenos and Noretenos, Juggalo's Gypsy Jokers, Aryan Nations amongst many others. Then there is the scourge of middle america the redneck meth addict. For my fellow Probation and Parole Officers in 2008 eleven sworn officers were killed by supervised felons. I haven't seen the stats for 2009 but I know of four right here in the Northwest that were killed by Maurice Clemmons. Our jobs are not getting any safer. Today are criminals are smarter, younger and more dangerous than ever before. So my brothers and sisters fight the good fight and stay safe.
So if anyone reads this and you are in law enforcement be it from behind the walls or out on the streets i would like to here what is going on in your state. Also if there is anything you would like to discuss shoot me an email I love to do research and would also entertain a good argument.
Hello my name is CHZBURGR.
I tried blogging a few years ago when I was in college but I could never find the time to be committed to it. I am finished with college well into my career and am looking forward to hopefully inspiring some debate and maybe informing fellow officers and others about our jobs and our lives.
I would like to tell you a little bit abought myself. I am a Probation and Parole Agent in Northern Idaho. I have worked inside as well. While inside I belonged to SORT (Special Operations Response Team).
I have worked as an investigator and a work projects supervisor amongst many other things. I have been witness to things that I would wish upon no one. I feel that with my experience I can offer some good insight into our field and hopefully moderate some good discussion.
I welcome compliments and criticism. So let us begin.
I would like to tell you a little bit abought myself. I am a Probation and Parole Agent in Northern Idaho. I have worked inside as well. While inside I belonged to SORT (Special Operations Response Team).
I have worked as an investigator and a work projects supervisor amongst many other things. I have been witness to things that I would wish upon no one. I feel that with my experience I can offer some good insight into our field and hopefully moderate some good discussion.
I welcome compliments and criticism. So let us begin.
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