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Stop Cops’ Carjacking

“Civil asset forfeiture became law over 40 years ago as part of the failed and insane ‘War on Drugs.’ But seizures from ACTUAL drug couriers are a small expense for the drug lords. Police also have an incentive to ALLOW drug deals to be made so they can seize more money afterward. That’s because the wealth they steal helps fund their departments and often pays for their bonuses. As a result, cops become carjackers. Police stole a woman’s car because she loaned it to her son, who was carrying a handgun. Police stole $28,500 in church offerings. Police stole FORTY cars in one night at an art gallery event. An outdated Detroit ‘speakeasy’ law was the excuse. Of course, the police also steal houses and other valuables. In Philadelphia, the police steal 100 houses each year.” Continue reading →

Stop Cops’ Carjacking

Black people in London twice as likely to be charged with drug possession

“Black people are not just significantly more likely to be searched by police for drugs than their white peers, but face almost double the chance of being charged if any are found, according to a study of racial disparities in the way drug laws are enforced. The study showed, for instance, disparities for cocaine possession in London, with 78% of black people charged, compared with 44% of white people. Black people were also almost twice as likely to be charged for possession of cannabis in the capital. There were also stark differences with the way courts deal with drug possession, with black people being jailed for the offence at six times the rate of white people.” Continue reading →

Rapper 2 Chainz arrested following a nine-hour tour bus standoff

“After police stopped the rapper’s vehicle in an Oklahoma traffic stop, its occupants refused to let officers climb on board and search for drugs. According to Sergeant Jennifer Wardlow, the vehicle was stopped due to a broken taillight. Once the driver was outside the bus, the people inside closed and locked the door. They reportedly insisted on seeing a search warrant – setting off a night-long deadlock. Around 7:30 am, officers towed the rapper’s bus to a police training centre and finally served the occupants with a warrant. 2 Chainz and his entire entourage were arrested ‘on complaints of interfering with official process.'” Continue reading →

Chilean farmers export pet tarantulas around the world

“A farm in Chile exports the palm-sized critters to Asia, Europe and the United States for sale as exotic household companions. They go for $25 each plus shipping, and need to be fed just once a week, preferably live cockroaches or worms. And they live a long time — up to 25 years in the case of females. The farm is owned by one Juan Pablo Orellana, an agronomist who gathers and raises these Chilean rose hair tarantula (Grammostola rosea). Orellana’s farm exports about 30,000 of them a year. They travel in boxes with holes in them and a certificate that could be seen as a pedigree.” Continue reading →

Scientists: Legalize horn sales to save endangered rhinoceroses

“Attempts to discourage the use of rhino horn have failed, the scientists said, and, without a legal avenue to obtain the ingredient, the black market has stepped in. ‘Rhino horn is now worth more than gold,’ the scientists noted, saying that a kilogram that cost $4,700 in 1993 would fetch around $65,000 in 2012. Poachers, enticed by the high price tag, have swarmed, and ‘poaching in South Africa has, on average, more than doubled each year over the past 5 years.’ They liken their proposal to the legal trade in farmed crocodile skins, which has saved the endangered reptiles from over-hunting. A similar proposal for the rhinoceros was rejected 20 years ago.” Continue reading →

The war on African poaching: is militarization doomed to fail?

“Governments have given game rangers better weapons, engaged intelligence analysts, and put spotter planes, helicopters, and unmanned drones into the air. Some have deployed their national defense forces into national parks. Private wildlife custodians have spent millions on their own armed anti-poaching guards, sniffer dogs, mini-drones, and informants. The continental-scale slaughter of rhinos and elephants continues to intensify, despite rising arrests and killings of poachers and increasing interdiction of illegal shipments of rhino horn and ivory. Some drug policy experts liken the uphill battle against African poaching to the war on drugs, an extraordinarily expensive, bloody failure.” Continue reading →

Invasive starfish species threatens Philippines coral reef

“A coral-killing starfish has begun infesting a channel of water in the Philippines famed for having some of the most diverse marine life in the world. The appearance of the crown-of-thorns starfish in the Verde Island Passage could cause great damage to the area’s biodiversity, Jacob Meimban, head of the wildlife bureau’s coastal marine management office, told AFP. ‘The crown-of-thorns starfish really kills the corals. It eats the polyps of the corals, leaving the bleached, white bodies. Then it moves elsewhere… until it leaves the reef dead,’ Meimban said. Environmentalists have warned for years that the passage, a popular dive location, is under grave threat from pollution and overfishing.” Continue reading →