Police Restraint

I had the pleasure of meeting Paul Reynolds at a NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) meeting about a year ago.

As vice president of San Diego NORML, Paul was a courageous and articulate spokesperson for those of us who believe that marijuana is relatively mild and harmless, and that it is hypocritical for a sports bar society to criminalize and bad-mouth marijuana.

I also believe that the prohibition of certain drugs is a cynical political manipulation, which indirectly resulted in the death of Paul Reynolds, among others.

The most directly relevant aspect of the war on drugs is that domestic police were given an excuse and a green light to become more “aggressive” on the streets.

The killing of Paul Reynolds took place in this context, and is a signpost on the road to a police state. When it happens to a middle-aged white man in a beach community, you know that things must be very bad in the ghettos and barrios of our country.

Police officers already tend to think “it’s us versus them.” To them, we are all the enemy. The “us versus them” mentality is reflected in the police saying that the only important thing is that Deputy Jeffrey Jackson went home at the end of his shift.

This lack of concern about people must change, especially in this time of recession and economic dislocation.

More and more people have lost their jobs and their security, resulting in widespread emotional problems.

Are the police going to react to all these “strange” people by shooting them down in the streets?

RICHARD EIDEN, Oceanside