Photo Red, Blue Crabs, and The War on Drugs
By James Simpson
Potomac News
June 27, 2007

As I have been absent for some time, I wanted to take today and catch up by providing my feedback concerning some recent columns.

On June 21, 2007 John Merli wrote a piece pointing out that legislation finally passed allowing widespread photo-red ticketing camera deployment in Virginia. Unfortunately, most people don’t realize what this will lead to. In England, the police watch citizens and can track individuals for many blocks in some areas. Not only that, but the cameras are being fitted with speakers so the police can tell citizens what they are doing (or potentially might do) wrong and how to adjust their behavior to become more compliant.

A system known as ALPR is being tested in North America that will actively check every car it passes on the highway or in parking lots. The intention is to catch stolen or car-jacked vehicles, or even vehicles that are part of an Amber Alert. However, it will be very easy to modify this system to issue tickets for cars that are passed with lights that are out or broken, or for cars that are passed going too slow or too fast. Automated revenue collection at its best.

Add to that face scanning at events and in crowded areas such as malls, as well as cameras placed in trashcans and car grills to catch speeders … well, before you know it we will be living in a much different society. Remember that liberty, once lost, is difficult to regain.

On June 19, 2007 Alfred Biddlecomb pointed out the ever dwindling blue crab population.

I am no marine biologist, but I happen to comprehend an economic concept known as “tragedy of the commons”. Can you imagine what would happen to corn or soybean crops if there were no such thing as private property and everyone was allowed to take what they could from farm crops on the side of the road? While privatization of the bays and oceans is a distant hope, there are changes that can be made now to improve crab populations.

For instance, we have laws that limit the number of crabs that can be taken, and the size of the crab (5 inches last time I checked), however, in my humble opinion, that is not where the crux of the current problem exists. You see, most crabs taken for restaurant use are “jimmies”, which are the male crabs. People say that they taste better than the female crabs or “sookies”.

However, much of the crab meat sold in packages in grocery stores is taken from female crabs. And there is no law against taking females known as “sallies”, which have not reached sexual maturity yet, nor sookies that are carrying an egg sack. One egg sack, also known as an egg sponge, can hatch as many as a million blue crabs. Unfortunately I have witnessed the harvesting of many of these crabs with the egg sacks simply being detached and thrown in the trash. Such a loss is terrible.

On June 18, 2007 Davon Gray said that “there is still a war out there that every American should agree is worth fighting.” He was referring to our 30+ year war against drug use. The thing is … I can’t agree with him.

I think that fighting a war against drugs is as stupid as our attempt was to fight a war against alcohol in the early part of the twentieth century. We have spent billions on it and it is as bad now as it has ever been. Why should we keep fighting a war against people who have mental, emotional and spiritual problems? Why should we fight a war against our own citizens? Why do we continue on the same path that has created a black market which is the foundation of most of our crime, not to mention the source of funding for terrorism?

If we keep doing the same thing, and keep getting the same results, why is no one willing to look at the problem from a different perspective? I think we need to seriously consider what the war on drugs has cost us over the past 30 years. We have made criminals out of people whose lives are in such bad shape that they need to avoid reality at the risk of death from drug overdoses. Making drugs more expensive and difficult to obtain will not help the individuals who are hurting.

People are now turning to inhalants and home made concoctions to relieve their personal pain and suffering. We can’t even buy Nyquil off the shelf any more because of the war on drugs. And the majority of our gun laws are a result of the war on drugs and the gangs the war has created.

Sorry Davon, I think it’s time we stop the war on drugs and consider helping the people who are in such bad shape that the only way they can continue their existence is by finding their next hit.

James Simpson lives in Lake Ridge.