Posted on 11/24/2013 12:33:39 PM PST by kristinn
Trey Radel owes Big Government. Big time.
Like other tea partiers, the freshman political newcomer from Fort Myers went to Washington to keep government out of our lives and to fight government spending.
At the same time, Radel and some buddies were snorting cocaine. In his private tea parties, the question of one-lump-or-two of sugar had a whole different meaning.
On Oct. 29, the two parties collided.
Radel was busted after an undercover agent in Washington sold him what’s known as an “8 Ball,” an eighth of an ounce of cocaine, or 3.5 grams for $260.
So time to rail against Big Government telling a private citizen what he can do, right? Time to question the governmental costs of the drug war, eh? Maybe even wonder about equal treatment under the law? Growing police power and the Fourth Amendment?
Nope.
Radel, 37, just apologized and went to rehab.
All the talk of less government, big spending, personal freedom and the Constitution were blown away amid the Republican’s expressions of contrition in a case that highlights our political contradictions, especially when it comes to drugs.
“A lot of Republicans say they’re against big government, but they’re not,” said Jeffrey Miron, a Harvard University economist and fellow of the libertarian Cato Institute.
“Most politicians are for big government,” Miron said. “The question is: Which big government are they for?”
SNIP
Now Radel owes that government a solid after the federal cops appeared to cut him some significant slack.
When he was busted in the undercover federal sting, Radel wasn’t taken to the station. It appears he wasn’t even jailed or handcuffed.
(Excerpt) Read more at miamiherald.com ...
Pardon my innocence here but I am not even sure what an 8 ball is supposed to be. A pill? Something injectable? Could he have wanted to use it in parts, as being something cheaper than the same amount bought in parts?
It’s not necessarily “making excuses” to not try to read the worst possible interpretation into events.
There are misdemeanor cocaine charges. It depends on the state. New York had them, Georgia does not. I do not know about Florida. Amounts to qualify for a misdemeanor are small.
“8 ball” is short for an eight of an ounce. A little over 3 grams.
Correct.
Thanks for the info. Would I be correct to read that as, powder in an envelope or vial?
The thing that really bugs me about this man in particular is that while he battles his own demons, he seeks to increase the punishment of others with the same demons.
It may be beyond me to forgive people such as this. I’m flawed, I have grown to despise some types of people on this earth, and liars and hypocrites such as this man are among them.
I just find myself running very short of sympathy or empathy for many, many people these days, and I think that your term of spiritual insanity is as accurate as it possibly can be.
We as a species have strayed far form the Shepherd.
Hey man, whatever makes you feel good, who cares.
It’s I/8 of an ounce of cocaine, which is a considerable amount.
It is by no means indicative of a small or beginner’s habit at all
Yeah I see that is the case in DC. however this man had no small amount, he had a large amount, and he had more than one amount in separate locations.
So I’m a little curious as to why he was neither jailed nor cuffed nor charged with a felony.
Stinks to me.
Well it’s beyond any of us really to forgive.
Forgiving is a God sized task.
Forgiving doesn’t mean excusing. Forgiving may come along with a chastisement of trials.
Could one split this up and use it in parts. This is a bizarre world.
In addition to the legal problems you’ve listed there is an even more basic problem with this guy being a congressional representative. My favorite late drug and alcohol expert, Townes Van Zant had this to say about cocaine use:
“Cocaine, cocaine,
‘Round my heart and runnin’ ‘round my brain,
Cocaine, aw, you ol’ cocaine.”
Van Zandt not Van Zant. I’m definitely getting careless.
One could, but considering he had an additional undisclosed amount at his apartment, it makes me wonder why he needed more.
You know the problem I have with this is that I have been down this road in my life.
I did not travel far before I realized that I had taken a very wrong turn and should I continue, the results would be very bad.
While I was on this path, I had the unfortunate opportunity to meet people such as this man, and all I can say is that it is my experience that those who use cocaine extensively are some of the worst people on this earth.
Cocaine will relieve you of your soul, and I mean that literally. It is an awful, evil drug.
Nothing good can come of this man.
He walks with demons.
He needs to defeat them, and he does not need nor is he fit to represent anyone.
From a news story: "Radel, 37, was charged with misdemeanor possession of cocaine in D.C. Superior Court on Tuesday."
So, it appears that you are wrong, there is in fact a misdemeanor possession law in DC for which a person can be charged.
Marion Barry was also charged with misdemeanor possession, back in 1990. So it appears DC has had this misdemeanor possession law for a very long time, the one you claim does not exist.
From another article: "it is uncommon for first-time offenders to receive jail terms for a misdemeanor possession. So apparently, Leno is also wrong that it is common for jail terms for first time misdemeanor possession charges.
Hopefully, this guy will resign. I'm not saying that all drug uses should resign, but if you vote to punish people for recreational drug use, and then you are caught using recreational drugs, you should resign.
BTW, I don't oppose requiring that people on welfare to stay off drugs. Even if you support decriminalization, it doesn't mean that our tax dollars need to go to people who use money to buy drugs.
I aware of the DC laws now.
Still, he committed two offenses here, not one.
At least in my opinion.
I support drug testing for welfare recipients too, however I support drug testing for all federal employees too, from the janitor to the prissy president.
Because they are welfare recipients too.
He may have committed more than two offenses. Presumably, he’s been taking drugs for some time, and each time he did so was a crime. But the usual treatment is that the first time a person is caught, they treat it as a first offense, rather than taking the time to go back through history.
That is, if the person is willing to plead guilty. Otherwise, like in the case of Marion Barry, they go back and try to build up a much as they can, to pressure the person into accepting a deal, or to punish them for not accepting a deal.
BTW, it is this notion of “first caught, first time” that kind of indicates that the “war on drugs” is not so much a societal assertion that taking drugs is horribly bad, but that “darn it, we made it illegal, and people aught to obey”.
And I say that as a person who doesn’t particularly want to decriminalize drug use, and a person who has never been tempted to take drugs (although frankly I think it is stupid that it is illegal in all cases, and if I could legally smoke a joint I’d do so once to experience it, just as I got drunk once just to see what it was like).
Well what I mean by two offense is that he bought 3.5 grams from a cop and they further found a separate undisclosed amount at his apartment when they searched it.
For him to be neither jailed nor cuffed stinks to high Heaven.
I’ve nothing against legalized weed at all. I’ve smoked it before and no doubt I’ll do so again, because I like it.
That being said, I’m not for legalizing hard drugs at all.
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