Collateral damage of an absurd war
May 13, 2008 by Abhishek
Rachel Hoffman was a college student and a bit of a hippie. She tried drugs and got caught. Police threatened her with prison time unless she agreed to become an informant and set up a meeting with the supplier to buy $10000 worth of drugs and weaponry, a purchase drastically out of character for a person used to buying a few grams of weed once in a while.
She did as the cops told her to. The suppliers, not surprisingly, smelt something very fishy. She never came back from the meeting.
Welcome to the gruesome workings of the war on drugs, where collateral damage is normal and acceptable, where the enforcers are so steeped in morality that they would rather have people dead than high, where the only measure of success is how many people the cops arrest.
And where a young girl loses her life for daring to have a bit of fun.
To Ms. Hoffman’s family and friends, please accept my deepest condolences and heartfelt regret for your loss. The pain and suffering Ms. Hoffman and you have been forced into by those sworn to protect us is inexcusable. This heinous and absolutely unnecessary tragedy will not be forgotten. There is no excuse for this. The shameful unfounded defense offered by the authorities attempting to shift the tragedy of their own incompetent actions to the victim is nothing short of reprehensible.
This story should outrage all of Florida and all the USA. Florida has some of the toughest drug laws in the country. I’ve seen our ridiculous drug policy cause tragedy, corruption, waste of resources, harm to citizens and society beyond imagination and once again needless death. There’s a growing movement to change this but we must all take action or tragedy will continue. Visit the site referenced below and get on their mailing list. Take civic actions that will make a difference when they notify you. Sending an email or making a phone call to your elected representatives can do more good than you might think. If not now, when? If not you, who? Enough is enough! “Just Say Know” is working on your behalf and they deserve your financial and civic action support. Just shaking your head and saying “that’s a shame” will not stop this.
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