only answer to drug problem

From the Washington Post and distributed on neighborhood list serve - It's Time to Legalize Drugs By Peter Moskos and Stanford "Neill" Franklin Monday, August 17, 2009 Undercover Baltimore police officer Dante Arthur was doing what he does well, arresting drug dealers, when he approached a group in January. What he didn't know was that one of suspects knew from a previous arrest that Arthur was police. Arthur was shot twice in the face. In the gunfight that ensued, Arthur's partner returned fire and shot one of the suspects, three of whom were later arrested. In many ways, Dante Arthur was lucky. He lived. Nationwide, a police officer dies on duty nearly every other day. Too often a flag-draped casket is followed by miles of flashing red and blue lights. Even more officers are shot and wounded, too many fighting the war on drugs. The prohibition on drugs leads to unregulated, and often violent, public drug dealing. Perhaps counterintuitively, better police training and bigger guns are not the answer. When it makes sense to deal drugs in public, a neighborhood becomes home to drug violence. For a low-level drug dealer, working the street means more money and fewer economic risks. If police come, and they will, some young kid will be left holding the bag while the dealer walks around the block. But if the dealer sells inside, one raid, by either police or robbers, can put him out of business for good. Only those virtually immune from arrests (much less imprisonment) -- college students, the wealthy and those who never buy or sell from strangers -- can deal indoors. Six years ago one of us wrote a column on this page, "Victims of the War on Drugs." It discussed violence, poor community relations, overly aggressive policing and riots. It failed to mention one important harm: the drug war's clear and present danger toward men and women in blue. Drug users generally aren't violent. Most simply want to be left alone to enjoy their high. It's the corner slinger who terrifies neighbors and invites rivals to attack. Public drug dealing creates an environment where disputes about money or respect are settled with guns. In high-crime areas, police spend much of their time answering drug-related calls for service, clearing dealers off corners, responding to shootings and homicides, and making lots of drug-related arrests. One of us (Franklin) was the commanding officer at the police academy when Arthur (and well as Moskos) graduated. We all learned similar lessons. Police officers are taught about the evils of the drug trade and given the knowledge and tools to inflict as much damage as possible upon the people who constitute the drug community. Policymakers tell us to fight this unwinnable war. Only after years of witnessing the ineffectiveness of drug policies -- and the disproportionate impact the drug war has on young black men -- have we and other police officers begun to question the system. Cities and states license beer and tobacco sellers to control where, when and to whom drugs are sold. Ending Prohibition saved lives because it took gangsters out of the game. Regulated alcohol doesn't work perfectly, but it works well enough. Prescription drugs are regulated, and while there is a huge problem with abuse, at least a system of distribution involving doctors and pharmacists works without violence and high-volume incarceration. Regulating drugs would work similarly: not a cure-all, but a vast improvement on the status quo. Legalization would not create a drug free-for-all. In fact, regulation reins in the mess we already have. If prohibition decreased drug use and drug arrests acted as a deterrent, America would not lead the world in illegal drug use and incarceration for drug crimes. Drug manufacturing and distribution is too dangerous to remain in the hands of unregulated criminals. Drug distribution needs to be the combined responsibility of doctors, the government, and a legal and regulated free market. This simple step would quickly eliminate the greatest threat of violence: street-corner drug dealing. We simply urge the federal government to retreat. Let cities and states (and, while we're at it, other countries) decide their own drug policies. Many would continue prohibition, but some would try something new. California and its medical marijuana dispensaries provide a good working example, warts and all, that legalized drug distribution does not cause the sky to fall. Having fought the war on drugs, we know that ending the drug war is the right thing to do -- for all of us, especially taxpayers. While the financial benefits of drug legalization are not our main concern, they are substantial. In a July referendum, Oakland, Calif., voted to tax drug sales by a 4-to-1 margin. Harvard economist Jeffrey Miron estimates that ending the drug war would save $44 billion annually, with taxes bringing in an additional $33 billion. Without the drug war, America's most decimated neighborhoods would have a chance to recover. Working people could sit on stoops, misguided youths wouldn't look up to criminals as role models, our overflowing prisons could hold real criminals, and -- most important to us -- more police officers wouldn't have to die. Peter Moskos is a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the author of "Cop in the Hood." Neill Franklin is a 32-year law enforcement veteran. Both served as Baltimore City police officers and are members of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition.

fast cars - can they be eco?

A few ideas........

5 Eco-Cars Faster than the Porsche 911

by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 10.15.08

Why the Porsche 911?
There's nothing inherently special about being faster than the Porsche 911 which can get from 0 to 60 mph in 4.5-5.0 seconds (I'm talking about the regular 911s, not the $194k GT2). It's not like you actually need that kind of acceleration in regular driving... But, it does strike the imagination of gearheads everywhere and create a halo effect. If that can help make eco-cars more desirable, why not?

Lets check out 5 green cars which are actually faster off the line than the Porsche 911.

TZero by AC Propulsion

The TZero is an all-electric sports car made by AC Propulsion. Launched in 1997 with the goal of bringing it to production, three hand-made prototypes were built. They originally used lead-acid batteries and could do 0 to 60 in 4 seconds, but in 2003 a new prototype with lithium-ion batteries was made and it could accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds. Unfortunately, it was also in 2003 that plans for commercial production were dropped.

Roadster by Tesla Motors

The Tesla Roadster is also all-electric. Compared to the TZero above, you could say that it is part of the new generation of electric cars. More refined and higher-technology, it even made the Forbes list of most coveted cars. Using a lithium-ion battery pack, a 248 hp (185 kW) electric motor designed to spin at 14,000 RPM and a new 1-speed transmission, the Tesla Roadster can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds. Sadly, the financial crisis is affecting Tesla Motors and it just announced a change of CEO, a delay for its next model, and some layoffs.

Ultimate Aero EV by Shelby SuperCars

Shelby SuperCars makes the kind of cars that have over a 1,000 hp and can reach 250 mph. Not what you'd immediately associate with "low emissions" and "powered by clean energy", but the times they are a-changin'. Shelby's next hyper-fast car will be an electric vehicle, the Ultimate Aero EV. It's supposed to use a 500 hp electric motor, though 1000 hp twin-motor version, possibly with 4WD, is also on the drawing board. Unfortunately, we don't know yet the acceleration numbers for the electric version, but the regular Ultimate Aero accelerates from 0 to 60 in 2.78 seconds. We trust that the EV will be in the same ballpark, if it isn't faster.

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Tango Electric Car

The Tango is another all-electric vehicle, and while it isn't exactly the most practical car on the road, it can't be faulted for lack of originality... Or lack of acceleration. Its twin electric motors can make it accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 4 seconds, and it can do the quarter mile in 12 seconds. You can see a video of the Tango here. Hey, if it's good enough for George Clooney...

Wrightspeed X1

According to Wrightspeed: "The X1 prototype is a concept car, and a test platform. It is not a production car, and never will be. It's a proof-of-concept vehicle that will lead to a production car in the future." It uses a modified Ariel Atom chassis, but the drivetrain is all electric. So what you see above isn't likely to end up in the showroom, but many parts of it, including the drivetrain, have a chance to make it. What's so special about the Wrightspeed X1? How about an acceleration from 0 to 60 of 3.07 seconds (in 117 feet)?

Honorable Mention: Karma by Fisker

With an acceleration from 0 to 60 mph of 5.8 seconds, the soon-to-be made in Finland Fisker Karma is not technically not faster than a Porsche 911, but it is a halo car that helps change the public's perception of greener cars. The Karma is a plug-in hybrid vehicle (similar to the GM Volt) with an all-electric range of 50 miles. Over that distance, a gasoline generator kicks in.