-Caveat Lector- > ===================================== > Op-Ed: Time to Change Strategies > Libertarian Party > 2600 Virginia Avenue, NW Suite 100 > Washington DC 20037 > ===================================== > For additional information contact: > Political Director Ron Crickenberger > E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Phone 202-333-0008 Ext. 227 > ===================================== > > The following Op-Ed by Bill Masters, America's first Libertarian > Sheriff, was published in the Mother's day edition of the Denver Post. > It is reprinted by permission. > > Bill Masters has served as Sheriff of San Miguel County (Telluride) for > 20 years. He is the author of the forthcoming book, "Drug War > Addiction." More essays by Bill Masters may be found at > www.libertybill.net. > > Time to Change Strategies > By Bill Masters > Special to The Denver Post > > Sunday, May 13, 2001 - Roni Bowers and her baby Charity were killed not > by drug-dealing gangs or criminal thugs, but instead by government > agents. They were "collateral damage" in the War on Drugs. > > In late April, a United States spotter aircraft, flying with a Peruvian > air force officer on board, thought a civilian plane might have been > transporting drugs. However, the only cargo was a human one of Baptist > missionaries and their children, including 7-month-old Charity and her > mother. > > After spotting the civilian aircraft, the U.S. jet contacted the > Peruvian air force, which then scrambled fighters to shoot at the > helpless civilians. > > A bullet went through Roni and into her baby, killing them both > instantly. > > Witnessing this horror were Roni's husband, Jim, and their 6-year-old > son, Cory, who were passengers on the plane. During the attack, the > pilot of the civilian plane continued contact with civilian Peruvian > air traffic controllers. According to press reports, he said > repeatedly, "They are killing us! They are killing us!" > > After the plane was strafed, the American pilot working for the Baptist > church was able to crash the burning plane into a river. The injured > pilot, together with Jim and Cory were able to escape the wreckage and > float down the river grasping dislodged pieces of aircraft. One fighter > plane continued to shoot at them. Reuters reported that the U.S. plane > watched the incident from about a mile away. > > We shouldn't be surprised that this occurred. Mad as hell maybe, but > not surprised. After all, we are in a war, a War on Drugs. And during > times of war innocent people get in the way. > > This tragedy has played itself out scores of times in recent years. > U.S. Marines shot and killed teenage goat herder Esequiel Hernandez in > 1997 near his home in Texas, mistaking him for a drug runner. > > Drug agents flew over 62-year-old Donald Scott's ranch and claimed they > saw marijuana growing on his property. They raided his home, pushed his > wife to the ground, and shot him to death. No drugs were found. > > Police, acting on false information about a $30 drug deal, raided the > home of 84-year-old, bed-ridden Anna Rae Dixon, and shot her with a 12- > gauge shotgun, killing her instantly. > > In Denver, Ismael Mena was killed in September 1999 after a cop filed a > false search warrant affidavit and the SWAT team raided the wrong home. > Reportedly the last word from the father of nine was a questioning > "Policia?" as the dressed-in-black SWAT team stormed into his small > room. > > The list goes on and on. It includes children, mothers, fathers, > elderly ladies and teenage goat herders. All "collateral damage," > according to common military parlance. > > The increasing militarization of the Drug War and our local police > forces is a dangerous trend. Today most of the tactical and firearms > training for "peace" officers comes straight out of military doctrine. > The tactics taught are not of negotiations or individual bravery but of > concentration of forces and firepower. > > In our own state, the legislature has passed laws requiring the > governor as "commander in chief" to use the soldiers of the Colorado > National Guard for drug interdiction and enforcement. > > To that end, the soldiers are providing "aviation assets and ground > assistance units trained for the specific mission of cannabis > suppression and eradication." They are available to local law > enforcement in "narcotics-centered investigations with surveillance > platforms, thermal imagery and night vision equipment, case support and > intelligence analysis." > > The soldiers are also training local officers at the County Sheriffs of > Colorado facility in Douglas County on issues like "non-urban tactical > operations" and "airmobile drug enforcement operations." > > It is only a matter of time before our increasingly militarized tactics > will result in more unintended deaths like those in Peru. I question > whether it is worth it. > > Policing and blaming Peru, Colombia or Mexico for our nation's drug > problems is a little like blaming Saudi Arabia for traffic jams. This > is a demand problem, not a supply problem. > > We shut off the cocaine supply, then some people start cooking meth in > their homes. We stop the meth and many will get high on Ecstasy, booze, > the doctor's pills or whatever. Controlling the drug supply is like > holding water in a fist, it just leaks out and goes on to something > else. > > Eventually, we will realize a fist won't work against what is > fundamentally a spiritual problem. > > Before we suffer more innocent deaths at the hands of those sworn to > protect us, before we lose touch with our local peace officers, and > before more children overdose because we haven't identified or > addressed the demand problem, we must rethink the Drug War. We must > change strategies. > > > > > > > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- > Version: 2.6.2 > > iQCVAwUBOwXJR9CSe1KnQG7RAQFsmQP+NZ51SHoaJnilj9UvTJGVAIFK+lGjshCu > 0dFCnYBHvLv2WBV86bFnhtY9BUV0xYaZ2Zbuwm1trLLCK6h9DrQAYGbOPpyyepGF > Ox9uEL6/CrmScJk86WcFA7SbEk0jWdPYGE7XX9olJ7f4+wX6PmnfDj96v8IO6ujp > Swi1tOdCmY8= > =eQLK > -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- > > > > ----------------------------------------------------------------------- > The Libertarian Party http://www.lp.org/ > 2600 Virginia Ave. NW, Suite 100 voice: 202-333-0008 > Washington DC 20037 fax: 202-333-0072 > ----------------------------------------------------------------------- > For subscription changes, please use the WWW form at: > http://www.lp.org/action/email.html > Alternatively, you may also send a message to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > with just the word "subscribe" or "unsubscribe" in the subject line. > <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. 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