[microgood]

From what I understand, the law they are breaking is the public display of pot. The way the cops get these busts is by stopping people and forcing them to empty their pockets. If they have pot, they then arrest them for public display of pot.

So the cops are basically committing a felony (violation of 4th Amendment) so they can bust some low level pot offenders.

Glad I do not live in that fascist hell hole.

[babble-on]

Which fascist hell hole do you live in?

[SamuraiScot]

So the cops are basically committing a felony (violation of 4th Amendment) so they can bust some low level pot offenders.

No. It's like nailing "fare-beaters" who jump over the turnstiles instead of paying the subway fare. When they turned their attention to busting them, they found that a huge percentage were already wanted for assault, robbery, rape, and so on. Same with weed on the street, in about 90 percent of the cases. That's what the cops are looking for.

The change in safety for normal grown-ups—those not flying on drugs as they walk down the street—after Giuliani started these "public order" enforcement policies changed the city overnight. People started going out at night again, business boomed, hiring soared, etc.

Most small-use marijuana stops are winos and thugs, rather than white-knuckled, principled, Ron Paul-ites who talk about Ayn Rand, who are scarce in NYC. The real reason for this "relaxation" in enforcement is because it means fewer black arrests. That's good for those NYS Assemblymen who represent the relatives of felons from Brooklyn and upper Manhattan.

Giuliani understood law enforcement. Bloomberg understands . . . I'm not sure, maybe homosexuality?