Last week, Governor Bobby Jindal, while speaking to the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, spoke about two major problems facing our students.He said that the discipline in our schools was scaring away many of our teachers and as a result, the legislature has passed a Teacher’s Bill of Rights.He also frequently alluded to sexual predators and how they should stay away from schools and other places where kids frequent.
However, the one area that he and the legislature and our communities must focus upon, as soon as possible, is the overwhelming prevalence of drugs being used by our kids.While private school students are not immune to the temptations, as a state, we have control and greater rights over the kids who frequently use our public facilities whether they be our junior or senior high schools or our institutions of higher education.As a result, it is time that all of our public schools to engage in random drug testing of the students who do use these public institutions.
Often parents do not know their kids are loaded or blasted out of their young minds until somehow they find out the frightening facts from friends, from finding drugs at the house or from strange behavior.Frequently, kids are able to hide their drug use from their parents and teachers.Then, suddenly, the adults are surprised that little Johnny or Susie has a problem spiraling out of control.
As a result, the schools are a hotbed for stoned students populating our facilities who are loaded during school hours, or after school empties or even during the weekends.Yes, the drug use might not take place within the confines of the school yards, but often the students talk about drugs at lunch or between classes or in the case of our universities, on campus, and the peer pressure continues builds.
Also, as a public policy our schools and our communities should be as drug-free as possible.We are paying for students to use public facilities and their minds should be clear, not polluted or damaged even if the drug use is remote from the school hours.
Louisiana already has in place random drug testing for a range of public-related scenarios ranging from testing of some individuals needing certain public assistance to testing of public employees.
Yet, there is no group of people who are more vulnerable to public peer pressure and abuse than our own kids.And, those children are the very people who turn to crime to further their habits.
Without question, the American Civil Liberties Union would threaten or file a lawsuit on the basis of the testing being a violation of the 4th Amendment and other legal grounds.But, with a more conservative Louisiana Supreme Court in place, it is possible that the drug testing would prevail in our judicial system.Also, there are other communities in the United States that do allow such drug-test intrusions in junior and high-school environments.
We must have drug-free kids and safe communities.I realize that parents can test their kids privately at their homes, but, if students prevail upon the use of public facilities on a regular basis then our schools should be able to ensure general public stability even if the drug use is remote from the school facility or from “school hours”.
Nancy Reagan’s program “Just Say No” was well-intended but the population of students in high schools in particular taking drugs have swollen horribly.More importantly, public schools are the one place where the government can “weed” out the habitual offenders.
We must get a grip on our students and our future generations.The permissive society of the sixties through the nineties has produced youngsters who now partake in drugs of all kinds.Now, even worse, instead of drugs being prevalent in our universities, our younger kids have become the frequent users.
“Just Say No” should be “Just You Dare”.The war on drugs has failed miserably.Governor Jindal talked often about sex offenders being “monsters”.The real monsters are the very communities which have allowed four decades of drug tolerance.Unfortunately, the kids we raise are both the victims and the perpetrators.
Homeland security begins at home and in our schools.There is no greater way to protect society in general, our students in our schools but to randomly test our public school and public university students and penalize those who are frequent violators.Clean minds that are getting “wasted” is a terrible thing to waste.We are losing our young talent to drug predators who are causing terror to our greatest resources.Teenage drug use is a war against ourselves that we must win before it is way too late.
Poor-poor-poor Mr. Magoo on 1/14/2009………………….. Written by
on 1/15/2009
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Yet... the "War on Drugs" is an all too typical response by government. Their constituients want them "to do something" - so they do. Housing prces are falling (yeah, so what prices go up and down; when you buy a car it is worth less than what you owe on it, so what? Same for a home you buy... unless... you bought a home you couldn't afford in the expectation of selling it at a profit... wow...that's not a good idea, is it?) so "government must do something" - people are reluctant to take on more debt (perhaps we have TOO MUCH debt already???) so they spend less money - and as demand decreases prices fall (yep, that's exactly how that works <duh>) .... falling prices!!! (oh my, oh my) government must "DO SOMETHING." So the War on Drugs, the bailouts, our war in Iraq, our war on poverty, public education - you name it - all done for a good reason, with the best of intentions.... but the one thing that never seems to happen is... when government intervention actually makes things WORSE.. that government will admit to it and change its course. "Just imagine".... how much more effective government would be... it it would simply admit where it goes wrong and changes course.... I think "imagine" is all we can hope for....or... perhaps... Obama will be the man to get our government to change course on matters, admit mistakes, end counterproductive programs, eliminate needless spending to free up these funds for more useful initiatives... we'll see... but make no mistake about it... he will have to fight BOTH political parties as when it comes to the status quo - both political parties are "Conservative." Written by kpf
on 1/15/2009
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Stone Concrete or Written By....or whatever you call yourself. I am convinced that you are on drugs or should be. Written by Mr. Magoo
on 1/14/2009
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That's exactly right...we've had this War on Drugs all these years and yet people still kill each other. If anyone really wants to use any kind of drug they could get it -- for a price -- which is another issue of whether trying to keep drugs from being used strictly by keeping their use illegal and "cracking down with tough law enforcement" only serves to help the underground market going and drug lords racking up profits. The late William Buckley, certainly no liberal, urged immediate legalization of marijuana and studies about what would happen if other drugs became legal. What would happen? How many *more* people would use drugs? How many more would suffer lasting ill effects? What evidence is there that social costs, i.e. violence, ruined lives, lost productivity and so on, would be higher than as we are now? Do we really know for sure (what we do know is that there already are social costs and that drugs of all kinds are still widely available in spite of all efforts to prevent their movement)? Written by Facing Reality
on 1/14/2009
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"... a worsening epidemic of the problem they pretend they are trying to stop. In fact, the government profits from the mega bureaucracies it creates..." - if only....if only more Americans realized this..... held elected officials feet to the fire to prevent this from occuring.... we could eliminate so much waste... so much... that we could have everything important to us all (healthcare for all, gazillion-year flood protection, etc.). Unfortunately, far too many trust government to do the right thing - despite ALL the evidence to the contrary. We simply are too trusting of our elected officials, while they screwing us up, down and sideways too. Written by kpf, pardon the metaphor
on 1/14/2009
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I will have to agree, sadly, with the post below....... Where has the common sense and virtues gone? Written by
on 1/14/2009
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Stephen you are so naive. Whenever this country declares a "WAR ON___________Drugs, Poverty, Terror blah blah(fill in the blank) hold onto your wallet and prepare for a worsening epidemic of the problem they pretend they are trying to stop. In fact, the government profits from the mega bureaucracies it creates, and is invested in the problem expanding and continuing. Prisons are profit machines where non violent people languish. You have lost your mind and need to get out of the box you are living in and educate yourself.
I recommend the following brilliant documentary shown repeatedly on cable and available online for free:
American Drug War: The Last White Hope (2007) http://www.moviesfoundonline.com/american_drug_war.php
"The War on Drugs has become the longest and most costly war in American history, the question has become, how much more can the country endure? Inspired by the death of four family members from "legal drugs" Texas filmmaker Kevin Booth sets out to discover why the Drug War has become such a big failure. Three and a half years in the making the film follows gang members, former DEA agents, CIA officers, narcotics officers, judges, politicians, prisoners and celebrities. Most notably the film befriends Freeway Ricky Ross; the man many accuse for starting the Crack epidemic, who after being arrested discovered that his cocaine source had been working for the CIA. AMERICAN DRUG WAR shows how money, power and greed have corrupted not just dope fiends but an entire government. More importantly, it shows what can be done about it. This is not some 'pro-drug' stoner film, but a collection of expert testimonials from the ground troops on the front lines of the drug war, the ones who are fighting it and the ones who are living it." -imdb.com
Written by
on 1/14/2009
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Wut, you thought you could read my mind and beat me to the punch thinking I was going to come up with some kind of dumb suggestion like leaglizing drugs? You ain't that smart Noladude............ Put your pshycoanalytical voo-doo bs back in the trick bag.... It doesn't work on people with exceptionally high IQ's. Written by
on 1/14/2009
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Obviously "Got a headache? Take a pill!" wasn't to the point for you..... And "Oh silly wabbits, drugs exist because they are GOOD FOR THE ECONOMY!!!!!" wasn't understood, and you think you are going to 'identify' users? That's easy, go outside your door and start counting people.... 1.... drug user... 2..... drug user... 3..... drug user... 4 drug user..... 5...... drug user..... 6...... drug user..... 7...... drug user.... 8............................. Get the picture..?? Now tell me, where would you build a jail big enough to house them all? Perhaps "I'm going to be a happy idiot - - - And struggle for the legal tender………. Where the ads take aim, and lay their claim, to the heart and the soul of the spender……….. And believe in whatever may lie, in those things that money can buy… Thought true love could have been a contender - - - Are you there? - - - Say a prayer - - - for the pretender…… Who started out so young and strong, Only to surrender" is closer to the truth there Noladude....... In the meantime, help our leaders beg for more federal aid to fix problems we are seemingly incapable of fixing ourselves.......... Written by
on 1/14/2009
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One only has to look at the guy that shot his mother in order to get money to buy drugs to see how obsurd it is to suggest that drugs should be legalize. If other drugs, besides alcohol which causes much hardship by itself, were leagalized we would see much more of this. Written by Nolaboy
on 1/14/2009
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As if it's not bad enough with the local druggies, kiliing people in the turf wars, if we don't get a handle on the drug problem, then next thing will be the vicious gangs from south of the border. It's a shame our police are so useless, and they, and the feds, will be overwhelmed soon. If we could identify the users, who after all, are the ones who support the drug lords and criminals, then we wouldn't have these problems . . . and I do mean all strata from our society who use illicit drugs. Written by Noladude
on 1/14/2009
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Oh silly wabbits, drugs exist because they are GOOD FOR THE ECONOMY!!!!! If there weren't illicit drugs, what would we pay DEA agents, or police officers, or jailers, or judges, or lawyers to do instead?????? You are ALL slaves to the system you helped create..... Sooooooooooooooooooooo,,,,, 'pop' a pill, it surely will give you a different outlook on life before the morning comes again...... And then you can get up and do it again..... My friend................. - - - - - {Intro} * * * * * * I'm going to rent myself a house in the shade of the freeway,,, I'm going to pack my lunch in the morning, and go to work each day……. And when the evening rolls around - - I'll go on home and lay my body down,,,, And when the morning light comes streaming in - - - I'll get up and do it again - - Amen - - Say it again - - - Amen……. I want to know what became of the changes we waited for love to bring…… Were they only the fitful dreams of some greater awakening - - - - I've been aware of the time - going by,,, They say in the end it's the wink of an eye…… And when the morning light comes streaming in - - - - You'll get up and do it again- - - - Amen……. Caught between the longing for love, and the struggle for the legal tender……… Where the sirens sing, and the church bells ring -And the junk man pounds his fender………. Where the veterans dream of the fight, fast asleep at the traffic light - -And the children solemnly wait for the ice cream vendor…….. Out into the cool of the evening strolls the pretender………… He knows that all his hopes and dreams begin and end there…… Ah the laughter of the lovers - as they run through the night, leaving nothing for the others - But to choose off and fight, and tear at the world with all their might, While the ships bearing their dreams sail out of sight……I'm going to find myself a girl - Who can show me what laughter means…… And we'll fill in the missing colors in each other's paint-by-number dreams……. And then we'll put out dark glasses on -- - And we'll make love until our strength is gone….. And when the morning light comes streaming in, we'll get up and do it again -- - - - - Get it up again…….. I'm going to be a happy idiot - - - And struggle for the legal tender………. Where the ads take aim, and lay their claim, to the heart and the soul of the spender……….. And believe in whatever may lie, in those things that money can buy… Thought true love could have been a contender - - - Are you there? - - - Say a prayer - - - for the pretender…… Who started out so young and strong, Only to surrender - - - Jackson Browne Written by
on 1/14/2009
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Interesting article - i disagree with the condemnation of "3 strkes" laws - that is the original intention of 3 stries laws, which was that it would apply only to violent criminals. Still, a lot of money in private prisons..... lobbying.... campaign contributions..... our oficials doing what is best for themselves, not the general public. Why should incarceration and drug laws be any different from anything else they do?
http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/2797/follow_the_prison_money_trail/ Written by too late to wake up, freedom is gone forever
on 1/13/2009
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Steve: So the war on drugs has failed, and your solution is to redouble our efforts? Maybe we need a different approach. Written by Daniel Z
on 1/13/2009
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Almost every society everywhere around the world and throughout history has had some intoxicant of choice. The cliche of "society has been too permissive and we have to reverse" is not going to fly in actual practice no matter how good it may feel to express such sentiment. Prohibition of alcohol was a failure! Well-intentioned but still a failure, and if anything, encouraged even greater criminal activity by the likes of the Capone's, Bugsy Siegel's, Lucky Luciano's and so on. Wide-scale random drug testing is, yes, exactly Big Brother but the thing to grasp is exactly that we keep trying to "crack down" harder and harder, which this concept of more extensive drug testing is in the same vein as, on this but it's still not working. At all. Time to try a different approach and a different focus. Look at Canada. Are there higher social costs there because they do not share the same attitude as the U.S. in thinking that cracking down harder and harder on any and all users is the only way to go? It's time to try a smarter approach. Written by Facing Reality
on 1/13/2009
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What's really corrupt about all of this is our government. A government that would allow thug drug traffickers and dealers to take control of our inner cities, suburbia, and now many rural communities. How is it with all of our tax dollars that we spend each year (and I don't mind paying taxes) that these domestic terrorist are allowed to continue to grow and prosper in our communities. And the constant talk of Homeland Security. And the expense of Homeland Security. But the homeland is not by any means secure. How can we be secure from international terroism and we can't control or eradicate domestic terrosim. Or does our government pick and choose who it will allow to be terrorized. And somebody at the highest level in this nation should cut the bull and answer the questions. Can we stop drugs in this country? Do we have what it takes? Is it that we don't have what it takes and we're embarrased to say so? Governor Jindal, instead of coming up with dim witt solutions like take away the freedom of law abiding citizens, should gather in Washington with the rest of the Governors and DEMAND a solution. Demand that drug trafficking is stopped in this country by whatever means neccesary. This country and this government has become weak beyond elief.
Al Written by Al
on 1/13/2009
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I too believe in the freedom that we so sorely need; I also backed Mr. Paul with $1100 in donations - knowing he wouldn't win but wanting to help get the word out. However, I do not consider the Republican Party to be a champion of the ideals and principles that I hold dear. Perhaps I agree with more stances on the Republican side than on the Democratic side, but neither party is about freedom, or at least not as I envision it to be. Both parties are about control, both parties believe they know better than the public when it comes to ... oh... what car companies should succed or fail for example. Both parties are willing to both use your money for their ends and live like kings while they're at it. They are far too similar to me to ever give a candidate of either party a dime (RP excepted). Written by kpf
on 1/13/2009
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So alleged pot smokers are now a matter for HOMELAND (Fuhrerland) SECURITY!!??? Really Stephen, did you pass Constitutional Law? I realize that most of the Bill of Rights has been castrated, all in the name of "security", but I am not a eunuch and will resist every step of the way on this country's death march. We need more FREEDOM, not less. And stop equating respect for the Bill of Rights with the "left", and the ACLU. I am a real REPUBLICAN of the Barry Goldwater/Ron Paul school, and am actually for LESS government, less taxes, less intrusion, less goons pretending to protect me. I am for MORE freedom to run my business, live my life, drive my car, raise my own family, send my kids to school, speak , protest and vote without the foul breath of Big Brother in my nostrils. And I can guarantee you that no government goon is going to TOUCH my children in the name of drug testing. You have really pushed the limits this time. I will move my business, my kids, my money and everything out of here if your neanderthal idea gains traction. As Benjamin Franklin said: "HE WHO WOULD SACRIFICE LIBERTY IN THE NAME OF SECURITY DESERVES NEITHER". Written by NOT "Just a GD piece of paper"
on 1/13/2009
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I hear what you're saying Al, we simply do not have the "want to" to "get-er done." However,it has been my experience that those who want stiff penalties for drug users change their minds when their child is one who is using them ("my daughter/son just fell into a bad crowd"). Written by kpf
on 1/13/2009
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I am in complete agreement with "Facing Reality" on this. While not desiring to see children on drugs (including alcohol) or seeing adults ruin their lives due to drugs (including alcohol) I nevertheless hate to see non-violent people locked up. Especially when locking up non-violent offenders often forces prisons to release violent offenders (which, BTW, was the original driving force behind "3-strikes" legislation). Written by kpf
on 1/13/2009
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Stephen,
I appreciate your comments. But unfortunately for the kids that need help the most, drug testing would be like trying to cure cancer with a band aid. How can our leadership invade a nation thousands of miles away, on the premise that we will install a democracy, which is a dumb notion, then and now.. But we can't stop a speedboat or small drug laden plane off the coast of Florida. We can't stop people from going back and forth across our borders at will? Do we not have the intelligence? Do we not have the resources? The bigger question is do we really want to stop the flow of drugs. Is it to big of a mission. If so, then the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan should also be too large a undertaking. By all accounts it is truly hard to believe that this country WANTS to stop the flow of drugs. How will you stop drugs on our streets and our schools if we can't stop them from entering our country. America is becoming a shell of a country. A facade of the good ole days. How ironic that we used to be a country of "Yes We Can"
Al Written by Al
on 1/13/2009
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Got a headache? Take a pill! Afraid you might be pregnant the morning after? Take a pill? Can’t get a boner? Take a pill! Can’t take a dump? Take a pill! Don't want to get pregnant? Take a pill!! Kids talk too much in school? Give the kid a pill! Suffering from hair loss? Take a pill! Feel sad or dissociated from those around you? Take a pill! Got bad breath? Chew on something that looks like a pill! Still can’t take a dump after taking a pill that is supposed to gauantee you can crap your pants at the blink of an eye? Shove something up your arse that looks like a pill! Constantly pissing your pants? Take a pill! Can’t concentrate at work? Take a pill! Pills, pills, pills, pills, pills………. This is a society that is based on drugs….. Oh, but to scare kids and show them examples of what could happen to them if they do drugs use homeless people on posters and say: “This could be you!!!! DON’T DO DRUGS!” But as it turns out, the person on the poster was a bank teller that was raising 3 kids and all of sudden couldn’t keep contributing to the system because of a slowdown… So that person's employment was terminated..... And you know why? Well every time that worker got a headache, it took a pill, every time it was tired, it took a pill, every time it was constipated from eating on the run it took a pill, and when its kid was doing poorly in school, and the parent was too busy working to be able to take time to care for its kid, it gave the kid a pill, and on and on and on and on……… Just so it could keep working....... But the system failed, and so is that former workers body.... Now America has succeeded in making sure that the family doesn’t sit down to the breakfast table or the dinner table together anymore, and Micky D’s is the norm, but this drug/pill thing? Wellllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll, I am afraid we made it ‘pop’ culture, soooooooooo….. Quit yer belly aching and take a “chill pill”…… Either that or change your act…. But don't look to the Government for the solution... Part of the answer is probably best found in church..... Written by
on 1/13/2009
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While he's at it, let's do random drug testing on all school and university personnel and definately on all city and state government employees. Written by Titch
on 1/13/2009
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Trying to scare kids and also trying to drug-test so much and also incarcerate people at such a high rate which is exactly what we currently do is not working at all. Except to hassle a lot of people who are not such hardened threats to the social well-being. What is an alternative? OK, for sure, cocaine, crack and heroin should remain as they are, as in the subject of very serious focus with those who sell such still being subject to the harshest penalties and the major investment of law enforcement and other effort. But let's also stop being so naive about this. Interdiction as the main strategy is not working. Stop wasting so much effort over marijuana. Stop clogging up the judicial system and taking up so many resources and prison space with the small-time offenders and instead focus on other angles. Actually, the day is coming at some point when it will be de-criminalized one way or another as more and more states are seeing the wisdom in this, whether through some means such medical marijuana permits. Let's see if those states' crime rate goes up as they change while here at home we still think we can win by holding the line and yet crime persists. Crack users and heroin users routinely commit armed robbery and kill others. Has there ever been even one marijuana user who has even committed a robbery to get some much less committed murder? Yet, what do police usually do, though, except go after the "low-hanging fruit" of the less violent marijuana user while they can't stop the more serious threats to society? I envision that this drug testing program would have a similar effect. It's not difficult to test; marijauna stays in the body for a long time and longer than other drugs. The kids who might be otherwise decent kids but who like to smoke some every so often would get caught. And then what? Expel the kids? More kids on the streets with nothing to do is a good idea? Also, talking about scaring kids is just silly. Most kids are anxious to take risks of all kinds just for the heck of it and do not believe that something would go wrong. The average street thug thinks only about living in style while they can and having no fear of anything is a point of pride on the street. Obviously parents have to take care of getting their kids to be able to make sound decisions on their own and evaluate risks wisely. There probably cannot be enough "midnight basketball" or whatever other such opportunities to give people something to do. Also, bona fide community policing wherein cops work to gain peoples' trust as opposed to random checkpoints that mainly work to hassle people. And, as for cost, there's simply no way that having random drug testing in each and every school would not be enormously costly. Written by Facing Reality
on 1/12/2009
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Al, thank you for writing. You are right, there are many more people other than those who are invoved in the ACLU who would be opposed to this idea. I appreciate a number of the causes of the ACLU but they have opposed similar type of actions and so I summarily assumed they would be opposed to this. I know that others would feel it is a violation of civil rights and privacy. I have many concerns in this area of intrusions upon our civil rights and our privacy interests. However, this is not a Republican versus Democrat issue or a white versus black issue or Latino or Vietnamese or Indian issue. Kids of all races and nationalities and political leanings areinvolved and are affected by drugs. As a "No Party" voter, I have no political persuasions on this issue. I do believe that the left would oppose the idea more than the conservatives, however, but kids of parents on the "left" are just as impacted as kids of parents on the "right". The bottom line is that we have a major problem that needs a solution and I am proposing one, The cost of randomly testing would be minimal compared to the opportunities to prevent harm to our kids and to society in general. I believe having our kids on drugs is much more dangerous than the relatively small number of sexual predators about which we passed a number of laws last session. We must put an end to the drug problem and if anyone has a better solution than to scare the willies out of our kids, then, come forward with it. Again, let me emphasize that the problem impacts kids of all races, economic groups, ethnicities. It includes high schools and colleges. The private schools and colleges are free to do what they want since they are private. I would hope they would also engage in the practice. It is our kids who are at risk and our families and friends who could be victims of the harm. In my view, the risk to our kids and to our society far outweighs the loss of privacy and civil liberties. The intrusion would be very slight in terms of testing. We need to stop the damage which is being inflicted upon everyone as our permissive society over the past few decades has caused major problems that we really need to fix, again, before it is way too late. Thank you again for writing. Written by Stephen Sabludowsky, Publisher of Bayoubuzz
on 1/12/2009
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Everyone hates the ACLU. However, they've never claimed to be in business to win a popularity contest. We've kept chipping away at individual rights in the name of greater security for years. We already have the cameras that we know that do work very well catching red light runners. We already incarcerate people like crazy and heavily for small-potatoes transgressions. We already have drug testing for some private schools and for many occupations. All this does is clog up the judicial system and punish some people while being a burden for many rather than alleviate the problem. And how far away are we, given the direction we seem to keep moving as a society, from the world depicted by Orwell where the cameras are everywhere, they work quite well and are used for the wrong reasons? The whole War on Drugs concept has been a national failure, unfortunately, and on this the ACLU is exactly right. The worst, most-hardened criminals and thugs still persist while the good people get hassled more and more. Go after the violent offenders and focus on that and also keep our individual rights protected, remembering how Ben Franklin once said that those who are content to give up a few individual liberties in the name of greater security do not deserve either liberty or security. Written by Facing Reality
on 1/12/2009
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Stephen,
I guess the saddest part about this commentary , and there are many.....is that you tend to believe that the only folks concerned about loss our civil liberties is the ACLU? And you do so with this slant that they are automatically wrong for doing so. If the ACLU was wrong and operating outside of the constitution it wouldn't matter who sat on the Supreme Court. As opposed to being stacked with conservatives as you suggest. You should be more bothered by your own statements suggesting the court is ANTI civil liberties. Aside from that, you didn't breathe a word about the Governors plan for kids that test positive. Or maybe he hasn't thought that out yet. Maybe it's because we can't afford treatment for the drug users we know of already. How much will the whole plan cost? Not just testing, but treatment? We don't have the money for this. Why have Republicans become so fiscally irresponsible? Republicans have for the last 8 years squandered billions of taxpayer dollars with only negative and devastating effects to show for it
Al. Written by Al
on 1/12/2009
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Right on Steve. This is a major solution to a absolutely terrible problem. If we can check school bags, we can randomly check students. We must stop the drugs at the national borders and within the borders of our schools. Written by Simone
on 1/12/2009
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The Fourth Amendment is part of the United States Constitution. A more conservative Louisiana Supreme Court will not change the outcome. Written by David Quidd
on 1/12/2009
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Steve, drug testing for university students is out of line, and will be vigorously resisted. Nearly all of us are adults [and some of us potentially are older than you! Civil liberties concerns are ligitimate. As with other healthcare issues -- drinking and drug taking illicitly is a public health issue as well as a criminal justice issue -- we need the evidence that is peer reviewed to verify this sort of thing is the correct response. Written by gobraduno
on 1/12/2009
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I'm with you Sid; let our elected officials lead by example. I am of two minds about this: 1) it is more than a little hypocritical to allow alcohol consumption and not allow marijuana to be smoked; why not just punish violent behavior and not jail those who are peaceful; 2) I failed a drug test and went to rehab rather than lose my job back during the Edwards/Nazi governor's race (91?). There is no doubt I changed by having stoped smoking weed. I matured in many ways, becoming a better worker and changed my party affiliation to Republican. I also - with the money I saved on weed - bought assault weapons and stock-piled hugh ammounts of ammo - all legal of course. Now, I get high on alcohol, the approved drug of choice in America today. A happy ending indeed!!! Written by kpf
on 1/12/2009
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DAMN the ACLU. Something must be done and we say do it. It addition, teachers are leaving because of LACK of discipline in the schools. Time to take the action there too. Once we start treating the students as students and not as little protected by parents gods, then and only then will we start getting some action. Teachers must not be afraid to fail a student. Parents must make the students study and work. Our parents did and they acted responsibly. Plus some morals and ethics taught even in public schools would be an asset to the future. Let's start the movement Stephen, dear, let's start it from the steps of the Capitol let the movement start. Tell our reps and senators to start acting like moral and ethical people by putting actions behind their words. Finally, a journalist who states the truth about drugs and the need to test for their use. Written by RhettsWife
on 1/12/2009
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Drug testing WORKS! Many private schools have implemented this program and it has made a HUGE difference. Written by Nolaboy
on 1/12/2009
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I would much rather see all elected officials including Congressmen tested. Written by Sid
on 1/12/2009
REPORT SPAM OR ABUSE
Last week, Governor Bobby Jindal, while speaking to the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, spoke about two major problems facing our students.
