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Originally Posted by Christian Benteke
I think everyone understands smuggling drugs from one country to another is illegal and it is for this reason that they deserve the punishment. Whether you think the punishment fits the crime or not is irrelevant because they knew the risks.
'Shall we smuggle drugs from Peru and risk spending the best years of our lives in prison? No, that's a silly idea.'
Or...
'Shall we smuggle drugs from Peru and risk spending the best years of our lives in prison? Yes but if we get caught let's just say we didn't do it.'
They made the choice. The punishment is there for a reason. If they get something pathetic like 5 years and they serve half in a British jail that's not much of a deterrent to other people thinking of doing this is it? Nobody on this message board would attempt to smuggle 1.5m of cocaine back from South America because we know the penalties involved. This is a crime that everyone knows is illegal in pretty much every country in the world, a crime that will get you sent away for many years anywhere where you are caught. If they had been caught doing something that they didn't know was illegal I would have a bit of sympathy for them, however they committed a crime that even the most stupid of idiots would know about and would know that if you were caught it wouldn't be very nice for the next few years.
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Yes we all know it was an extremely silly idea, but not everybody can think things through in a logical manner and fully understand the consequences of what's involved, hence the reason why some in life make a lot more mistakes than others. Personally I see the smuggling of drugs not much worse than smuggling alcohol and cigarettes for mass consumption. All are addictive and all help to destroy lives. Yet the punishment for smuggling the former over the other two is grossly unfair. That's the issue that I was raising here.
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Would you go to an Arab country wearing nothing but shorts whilst swigging from a can of lager while your missus is in a thong and nothing else swigging a WKD? No you wouldn't because regardless of whether in England that would get you locked up, in the country you are in it is illegal, and as such you abide by their rules whether you think they are stupid and the punishment fits the crime or not.
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And how do you know all this? Quite easily really, because the strictness of the Arab World is extremely well publicized that everybody here and his pet hamster knows what to expect. I think you'd be surprised though, at just how little the average Brit would know about the strictness of smuggling in a country like Peru prior to what's happened, in fact what does the average Brit even know about Peru and how many have even travelled there! If I'm going to a new country, I'd find out all the things that will or could affect me, a lot of people though wouldn't really bother and I've known loads of people over the years that have travelled to various countries and when you ask them about their location and what to expect, they hardly know!
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Originally Posted by Trollheart
I most certainly do mean what I say. There was nothing "naive" about the way they got involved. The reports show that they were having drug-fuelled parties, meeting these "drug barons" and their representatives, and actively preparing to, as one of them said, "see a man about a dog", so they had more than enough cop-on to know what they were getting into. They tried to screw the system and the system screwed them. Not content with that, they tried to play the "little miss innocent" card, and when the evidence that blew that away surfaced they looked stupid and also manipulative, certainly of public opinion.
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The above paragraph just proves my point on how 'naive' that they actually were. They got involved due to the circles that they got mixed up with and right through the whole process they have been naïve and have had no real understanding of the seriousness of their crime until now.
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I don't agree with your contention that the drug industry provides employment and so it should be left alone. That's a specious argument. You could use that to justify any illegal enterprise. Anyhow I'm not necessarily saying the production of the cocaine is the problem, it's the fact that it's destroying lives and dividing families. I have no time for hard drugs --- or any drugs really, but I know some of you extol the harmlessness of things like weed and cannabis (are they the same thing?) and I have nothing terribly against them --- and no excuse will work as far as I'm concerned when it comes to these.
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I'm not saying it should be left alone, but I'm stating the importance it plays in employment especially in rural areas of Latin America and its importance for certain elements of the population in order for them survive and if it is going to be abolished an assessment surely needs to be made here. At the end of the day, what's more important the survival of the local workers who rely on the industry there, or the well-being of addicts and potential addicts here in Europe? In an ideal world, the locals wouldn't need to grow it to survive and potential addicts would be so well educated that they wouldn't touch it, but as I said that's in an ideal world.
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The punishment has to be harsh. Some people could do a three/five year stretch and go on to do the same thing again. A serious, tough message has to be sent and I think this is a good thing. You think any other stupid European girls or guys thinking about doing the same will be having second thoughts now?
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It's all very well having tough punishments, but it's hardly just when the mules get 25 years and the cartel dealers when they get caught, usually just end up paying off the police and the local judges, either for drastically reduced sentences or to turn a blind eye. It's all very well applying a European justice model, but in an extremely corrupt Latin American society the same rules just don't apply for everybody.
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I stand by my original comment. I respect your opinion but that is mine and it's not going to be changed. If as I said they had owned up then fine, but they tried to pretend they were all innocent, made up a cock and bull story and frankly deserve everything they get, and more.
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Like I said they deserved to be punished, but let's just say I'm far more forgiving than some and think there are far worst crimes than what they've done.