>Perhaps changing this from a legal or law enforcement issue into a medical issue would help. The root of the issue is that millions of North Americans are using crack and heroin regularily. The criminals are just catering to a need.

Evan;

I must agree with you this is a medical issue as well as a social issue.

Something I have noticed on television news as of late is the reports that “arrests nation wide are down”. Now, being named Thomas does put me in a position to question and brother I think I drove my mother crazy as I grew up with so many questions. The statement quoted above to me is a flag that asks if the police are arresting fewer people because they want to. The media wants you to think this is because crime is “down” in the United States. Recent events with police departments in California (Los Angeles and Oakland) indicate police are afraid to make an arrest for fear of public outcry. This will be an interesting period over the next few years observing where all this leads.

Just think if we did not have bad guys we would not need cops. Sometimes it is hard to tell one from the other. Being a cop is a very difficult task. I grew up in a Irish Catholic neighboorhood in San Francisco. Several neighbors were cops and when I told Captain Meehan I wanted to be a cop, he took me aside and told me not to do it. Looking back I realize he was right - not everyone can preform the duties of a policeman. I think I would last about one microsecond-maybe less.

Tom