It is odd to do this...giving someone a place to conduct illegal behavior.

But what do you guys think a solution is to this epidemic? Arrest them all? Honest question.

Dedicated rehab prisons for heroin users?

quote:

Originally posted by john1:
I just started reading "Homeland Seige-Tactics for Police and Military" by H. John Poole. The author's case is that the PRC is waging 4th Generation Warfare against the USA and is behind the all the drug smuggling to work to undermine the nation.

I suggested the same thing, and was roundly ridiculed.

Funny that others see this problem the same way.

quote:

Originally posted by Sig2340:
I'd rather give junkie a safe place to inject themselves with illegal narcotics, if only to ensure the hypodermics they use get dispose of properly and not scattered around children's playgrounds.

I'll tell you, I had a pretty skeevy experience on the ship a few weeks ago. It was during that stretch of very cold weather on the east coast, particularly around the Philly area on the delaware river. With practically the whole river freezing up, we occasionally will got ice in our sea strainers to the point of losing cooling pump suction for our main engines. With the strainer completely full of crushed ice, it sometimes calls for digging the ice out in order to empty the basket. Below is a pic of one of our clogged strainers. Eventually we would get the ice loose enough to dump it all on the deck or in the bilge and then reinstall it in its strainer housing. Later on when the ice melted, we found a hypodermic needle lying there.

We always find all kinds of things in our sea strainers, but the needles are the worst. I try to impress upon my guys to never stick your hand blindly into one. Use a tool. God forbid you prick yourself with a needle. Ick.

Wow, that's crazy. What else does it suck up?

quote:

Originally posted by RAMIUS:
Wow, that's crazy. What else does it suck up?

Anything and everything that floating around in the river. Fish, crab (many times still alive and pissed off), garbage especially. Condoms are pretty popular.

You get into some waters overseas and you just might lose a finger sticking your hand blindly into a sea strainer with some of the creatures they have swimming around over there.

quote:

Originally posted by RAMIUS:
It is odd to do this...giving someone a place to conduct illegal behavior.
But what do you guys think a solution is to this epidemic? Arrest them all? Honest question.
Dedicated rehab prisons for heroin users?

I believe it needs to follow the path laid out by the anti-tobacco movement.
The Great American Smoke Out was started in the '70s. Today, there are *many* more people in the country but fewer smokers.
It would take at least one generation, likely two and more likely three.
There's no guarantees of course, since opiate use/abuse has been around for thousands of years.
Minimize is probably the best we can hope for.

quote:

Originally posted by RAMIUS:
Wow, that's crazy. What else does it suck up?

any of Luca Brasi's parts?

That because we have this shitbag in office...

Total fucking demicrap...

Philadelphia's last Republican Mayor ended his term in 1948.

City went down hill since then.

My wife (a Philadelphia girl) has a much better explanation:

The plan is to keep the addicts alive through medical supervision, Narcan on-hand, and clean needles. The only useful task the city will EVER expect of them is staggering to the appropriate polling place and voting D on command.

She's rarely wrong in her analysis.

A good friend of mine was born and raised in Philly. I spent alot of years working with him. He grew up in the row homes and that's where his family began. He finally moved out to Oxford (working at APG) but he is Philly through and through. He took me back through his old neighborhood years back and man it was amazing. He has two daughters and he would never let them grow up there.

There are so many good stories and good Americans from Philly. Years ago I worked with a retired Army Msgt from South Philly. He got in trouble in 1964 and instead of time he joined the Army. He decided he loved it and retired in the 80's. He then became an FSR for tanks (where I met him). Taught me more about the Abrams than any book, and much more about just being a good human being.

I have been to Philly exactly one time but the two guys I know from there are absolutely the opposite of what is happening. And I know they both hate it.

Ernie has retired to Colorado Springs and Gene is still plugging away from Oxford. Both still miss the Philly of their youth.

Ha, that story above sounds exactly like mine!

Row homes rule!

I can see both sides. If the facility can provide a safety net/rehab for junkies, it is worth it. But if it merely provides a hammock with a supplier, it will make the problem worse. Given many gov't assistance programs do more harm than good, and given this is Philly, my bet would be on the latter.