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4. The police in my area do not ask for help nor do they rely on tips for enforcement because it is not necessary. Obviously this is not the case where the LEO works.

Dang, and you were doing so good with your argument!

 

Right up till you made that silly comment. Of course the police want tips!

 

A simple Google search on "honolulu hawaii police tip" turns up page after page of your police acting together with citizenry through tips.

 

Interestingly, and something for Honolulu cachers to think about, is this theft-from-light-pole article;

http://www.khnl.com/Global/story.asp?S=6061761

 

Your police department, in fact, has a link on their home page telling people how to report drug activity!

http://www.honolulupd.org/nv/report.htm

 

Totally and obviously false statements like "The police in my area do not ask for help nor do they rely on tips for enforcement because it is not necessary." cost the rest of your arguments any credibility they might have had.

 

I suppose I need to be really clear about what I am trying to say there in #4.

 

We were talking about the war on pot growers which was a huge problem in Hawaii about 20 years ago. A lot of the detection techniques and technology used other places was developed here as a result. The authorities are very proud of their results here and it is their own claim that they have won the war against the growers. Sure, you still see busts (as this is probably most ideal climate in the world to grow in) but they are fast to tell you how well they have done with it and that it is no longer a threat that it once was.

 

As you rightly point out they would accept a tip if given them , but they do not spend money on PR campaigns encouraging people to turn in growers anymore which is what I meant by them not asking for tips. That link you supplied was to turn drug dealers which is another subject altogether. The local rub is that they were actually so successful in curtailing the pot growing and dealing activity, that meth has taken its place.

Post number five in this thread makes the case that it is still an issue in your area.

 

You sure have a lot of questions about a place that you never want to visit. I never said it doesn't occur. I think I mentioned more than once that our environment is probably the most ideal on the planet for it and most of the growing happens in very very remote places in the outer island. That is where I have encountered it.

 

I did say that they have a handle on it however. Our enforcement is very sophisticated and the eradication efforts are very organized and effective. As a result, people (Geocachers) are not, and should not be, afraid to go into the outback for fear of all the things mentioned in this thread.

 

I'd say we've pretty much covered this topic eh?

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Depending where you are, this can be quite dangerous. It's not unheard of for growers to pin snakes around gardening stakes to frighten or wound thieves. Another popular method is to rig a shotgun shell to a trip wire, it likely won't kill you but could cause severe trauma.

Also, you wouldn't want to be around when the owner shows, depending on who they are.

 

I have no problem w/ marijuana, but it doesn't need to be on public land. A anonymous tip would be my choice. I'd also notify the cache owner.

 

How long is a snake going to live pinned to a stake?

 

I'm no snake expert, but from what I understand, they pierce through the rattler on the end which doesn't contain any organs, nerves, blood, etc. they then tie it w/ a length of cord, wire, rope, or whatever to the base of a plant or a garden stake. So, I think the danger to the snake may be lack of food over time rather than death due to physical trauma.

I don't know what areas of the states that Rattle Snakes are indigenous to.

 

That sure seems like a mighty dangerous trap for someone to set up. I bet it leaves the snake in a pretty nasty mood too.

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Depending where you are, this can be quite dangerous. It's not unheard of for growers to pin snakes around gardening stakes to frighten or wound thieves. Another popular method is to rig a shotgun shell to a trip wire, it likely won't kill you but could cause severe trauma.

Also, you wouldn't want to be around when the owner shows, depending on who they are.

 

I have no problem w/ marijuana, but it doesn't need to be on public land. A anonymous tip would be my choice. I'd also notify the cache owner.

 

How long is a snake going to live pinned to a stake?

 

I'm no snake expert, but from what I understand, they pierce through the rattler on the end which doesn't contain any organs, nerves, blood, etc. they then tie it w/ a length of cord, wire, rope, or whatever to the base of a plant or a garden stake. So, I think the danger to the snake may be lack of food over time rather than death due to physical trauma.

I don't know what areas of the states that Rattle Snakes are indigenous to.

 

That sure seems like a mighty dangerous trap for someone to set up. I bet it leaves the snake in a pretty nasty mood too.

 

That's the idea! I guess that's why legit gardeners and farmers don't use such methods.

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4. The police in my area do not ask for help nor do they rely on tips for enforcement because it is not necessary. Obviously this is not the case where the LEO works.
Dang, and you were doing so good with your argument!

 

Right up till you made that silly comment. Of course the police want tips!

 

A simple Google search on "honolulu hawaii police tip" turns up page after page of your police acting together with citizenry through tips.

 

Interestingly, and something for Honolulu cachers to think about, is this theft-from-light-pole article;

http://www.khnl.com/Global/story.asp?S=6061761

 

Your police department, in fact, has a link on their home page telling people how to report drug activity!

http://www.honolulupd.org/nv/report.htm

 

Totally and obviously false statements like "The police in my area do not ask for help nor do they rely on tips for enforcement because it is not necessary." cost the rest of your arguments any credibility they might have had.

I suppose I need to be really clear about what I am trying to say there in #4.

 

We were talking about the war on pot growers which was a huge problem in Hawaii about 20 years ago. A lot of the detection techniques and technology used other places was developed here as a result. The authorities are very proud of their results here and it is their own claim that they have won the war against the growers. Sure, you still see busts (as this is probably most ideal climate in the world to grow in) but they are fast to tell you how well they have done with it and that it is no longer a threat that it once was.

 

As you rightly point out they would accept a tip if given them , but they do not spend money on PR campaigns encouraging people to turn in growers anymore which is what I meant by them not asking for tips. That link you supplied was to turn drug dealers which is another subject altogether. The local rub is that they were actually so successful in curtailing the pot growing and dealing activity, that meth has taken its place.

Post number five in this thread makes the case that it is still an issue in your area.

You sure have a lot of questions about a place that you never want to visit. I never said it doesn't occur. I think I mentioned more than once that our environment is probably the most ideal on the planet for it and most of the growing happens in very very remote places in the outer island. That is where I have encountered it.

 

I did say that they have a handle on it however. Our enforcement is very sophisticated and the eradication efforts are very organized and effective. As a result, people (Geocachers) are not, and should not be, afraid to go into the outback for fear of all the things mentioned in this thread.

 

I'd say we've pretty much covered this topic eh?

You can go around and around as much as you want, but it doesn't change the fact that you are doing no one a service by not reporting these locations.
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4. The police in my area do not ask for help nor do they rely on tips for enforcement because it is not necessary. Obviously this is not the case where the LEO works.
Dang, and you were doing so good with your argument!

 

Right up till you made that silly comment. Of course the police want tips!

 

A simple Google search on "honolulu hawaii police tip" turns up page after page of your police acting together with citizenry through tips.

 

Interestingly, and something for Honolulu cachers to think about, is this theft-from-light-pole article;

http://www.khnl.com/Global/story.asp?S=6061761

 

Your police department, in fact, has a link on their home page telling people how to report drug activity!

http://www.honolulupd.org/nv/report.htm

 

Totally and obviously false statements like "The police in my area do not ask for help nor do they rely on tips for enforcement because it is not necessary." cost the rest of your arguments any credibility they might have had.

I suppose I need to be really clear about what I am trying to say there in #4.

 

We were talking about the war on pot growers which was a huge problem in Hawaii about 20 years ago. A lot of the detection techniques and technology used other places was developed here as a result. The authorities are very proud of their results here and it is their own claim that they have won the war against the growers. Sure, you still see busts (as this is probably most ideal climate in the world to grow in) but they are fast to tell you how well they have done with it and that it is no longer a threat that it once was.

 

As you rightly point out they would accept a tip if given them , but they do not spend money on PR campaigns encouraging people to turn in growers anymore which is what I meant by them not asking for tips. That link you supplied was to turn drug dealers which is another subject altogether. The local rub is that they were actually so successful in curtailing the pot growing and dealing activity, that meth has taken its place.

Post number five in this thread makes the case that it is still an issue in your area.

You sure have a lot of questions about a place that you never want to visit. I never said it doesn't occur. I think I mentioned more than once that our environment is probably the most ideal on the planet for it and most of the growing happens in very very remote places in the outer island. That is where I have encountered it.

 

I did say that they have a handle on it however. Our enforcement is very sophisticated and the eradication efforts are very organized and effective. As a result, people (Geocachers) are not, and should not be, afraid to go into the outback for fear of all the things mentioned in this thread.

 

I'd say we've pretty much covered this topic eh?

You can go around and around as much as you want, but it doesn't change the fact that you are doing no one a service by not reporting these locations.

 

Okay.

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Some of the advice, if not all is good but I think people are being a little melodramatic here.

 

He said there were 12 plants. This is just some stoners garden that you stumbled upon. I seriously doubt anyone is booby trapping 12 plants. Certainly not with $400+ shot guns.

 

If it were me. I'd create a waypoint. Take a few pictures. Walk out the same way I came in. Probably, call it in via 911 with the lat/long once I was in my car and moving, depending on how my day was going.

 

If I was a serious waymarker, I'd submit it, hoping to score a new category. Then log my cache adventure as a DNF. A month later I'd go back and find the cache without the plants in the way.

 

Stupid stoners....you buy land first, then plant the garden. Pot gets your priorites so out of whack.

 

As I just started reading this thread, you said exactly what I was thinking.

 

Most major "growers" who do this as a profitable business and booby trap and all that junk aren't going to do it in some public forest or area because it's too easy for someone to stumble upon it. The big ones have their own land in the middle of nowhere and such. If you are there, maybe you could get wacked. In a public place, it's most likely some stoner who is growing enough for him, his friends and maybe a few others he pawns off a little so he can make a few bucks.

 

Around here, I know there are some of these on public lands. Haven't personally seen any yet, but have been told by others they've seen them. They just walk around them and do what they have to do. Personally, I'm not sure I'd know if I stumbled upon one or not. And I'm pretty sure the growers around here wouldn't even consider wasting time on booby traps for a 12-20 plant crop.

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I have NEVER seen a single pot plant growing anywhere outdoors.

 

Wild hemp can be found most anywhere. Ran into some just Sunday at the Nerstrand Big Woods State Park in Minnesota. Just chuckled and kept walking.. Wild hemp is good for nothing more than making rope.

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Wild hemp can be found most anywhere. Ran into some just Sunday at the Nerstrand Big Woods State Park in Minnesota. Just chuckled and kept walking.. Wild hemp is good for nothing more than making rope.

The ditch weed is all over the Mississippi River bottoms. We use to find college kids who would plot where the wild stuff was growing, draw up a map, and then when they'd return home they'd sell the maps to their buddies. We'd then catch their buddies coming down and stripping the leaves, taking garbage bags full of ditch weed back home.

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Wild hemp can be found most anywhere. Ran into some just Sunday at the Nerstrand Big Woods State Park in Minnesota. Just chuckled and kept walking.. Wild hemp is good for nothing more than making rope.

The ditch weed is all over the Mississippi River bottoms. We use to find college kids who would plot where the wild stuff was growing, draw up a map, and then when they'd return home they'd sell the maps to their buddies. We'd then catch their buddies coming down and stripping the leaves, taking garbage bags full of ditch weed back home.

Well there ya go! Law enforcement at it's finest! :laughing:

 

The question started out as essentially 'what would you do if...' and has turned into a control-fest of people telling other people what they should do.

 

If the thread is to remain of any value at all maybe we ought to get back to simply answering what WE would do.

 

This is why I wish polls worked here... you could ask "Would you report this?" and get simple yes / no responses.

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Wild hemp can be found most anywhere. Ran into some just Sunday at the Nerstrand Big Woods State Park in Minnesota. Just chuckled and kept walking.. Wild hemp is good for nothing more than making rope.

The ditch weed is all over the Mississippi River bottoms. We use to find college kids who would plot where the wild stuff was growing, draw up a map, and then when they'd return home they'd sell the maps to their buddies. We'd then catch their buddies coming down and stripping the leaves, taking garbage bags full of ditch weed back home.

Well there ya go! Law enforcement at it's finest! :)

 

The question started out as essentially 'what would you do if...' and has turned into a control-fest of people telling other people what they should do.

 

If the thread is to remain of any value at all maybe we ought to get back to simply answering what WE would do.

 

This is why I wish polls worked here... you could ask "Would you report this?" and get simple yes / no responses.

I think that you've misinterpreted their posts.

 

The point was made that ditch weed often grows wild. 'ditch weed' differs from the marijuana that would be cultivated for illegal use and sale because it has a very low level of THC. Bflentje recognized this in his post. Wadcutter's post merely referred to the chuckle heads who would harvest ditch weed in hopes of getting high. Sadly, they will be very disappointed.

 

Neither post made a statement as to whether the cacher would notify the local authorities if they wandered up on a crop of 'real' marijuana.

Edited by sbell111
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I think that you've misinterpreted their posts.

 

The point was made that ditch weed often grows wild. 'ditch weed' differs from the marijuana that would be cultivated for illegal use and sale because it has a very low level of THC. Bflentje recognized this in his post. Wadcutter's post merely referred to the chuckle heads who would harvest ditch weed in hopes of getting high. Sadly, they will be very disappointed.

 

Neither post made a statement as to whether the cacher would notify the local authorities if they wandered up on a crop of 'real' marijuana.

 

My statement indirectly said exactly what I'd do. I chuckled and kept walking.. If it were a large operation I would most likely turn it in to LE.

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Well there ya go! Law enforcement at it's finest! :)

The question started out as essentially 'what would you do if...' and has turned into a control-fest of people telling other people what they should do.

Try to follow along. You got lost in the conversation. My response was a reply to Bflentje's comment concerning ditch weed and it not being good for anything.

 

The point was made that ditch weed often grows wild. 'ditch weed' differs from the marijuana that would be cultivated for illegal use and sale because it has a very low level of THC. Bflentje recognized this in his post. Wadcutter's post merely referred to the chuckle heads who would harvest ditch weed in hopes of getting high. Sadly, they will be very disappointed.

Correct. And my post was also to point out that not only were "chuckle heads" harvesting ditch weed but also other "chuckle heads" were making money selling maps to the "chuckle heads" where they could find ditch weed. And from the quantities of ditch weeds the "chuckle heads" would harvest they were no doubt taking it back and selling ditch weed to their friends who probably didn't realize they were buying ditch weed.

Edited by Wadcutter
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The point was made that ditch weed often grows wild. 'ditch weed' differs from the marijuana that would be cultivated for illegal use and sale because it has a very low level of THC. Bflentje recognized this in his post. Wadcutter's post merely referred to the chuckle heads who would harvest ditch weed in hopes of getting high. Sadly, they will be very disappointed.

And my post was also to point out that not only were "chuckle heads" harvesting ditch weed but also other "chuckle heads" were making money selling maps to the "chuckle heads" where they could find ditch weed. And from the quantities of ditch weeds the "chuckle heads" would harvest they were no doubt taking it back and selling ditch weed to their friends who probably didn't realize they were buying ditch weed.

They were all doing a service to the community in irradicating the invasive plant.

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Wild hemp is good for nothing more than making rope.

Hemp is good for a lot more than rope, including food and clothing.

 

It also grows amazing well in all conditions, including conditions where corn would fair poorly and it can be grown where ever cotton is grown but without the horrific amount of chemicals used to grow the latter.

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Wild hemp is good for nothing more than making rope.

Hemp is good for a lot more than rope, including food and clothing.

 

It also grows amazing well in all conditions, including conditions where corn would fair poorly and it can be grown where ever cotton is grown but without the horrific amount of chemicals used to grow the latter.

There's one thing that it's not good for. :)
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Wild hemp is good for nothing more than making rope.

Hemp is good for a lot more than rope, including food and clothing.

 

It also grows amazing well in all conditions, including conditions where corn would fair poorly and it can be grown where ever cotton is grown but without the horrific amount of chemicals used to grow the latter.

There's one thing that it's not good for. :)

 

That depends... If you enjoy the aroma of burning hemp but have no imterest in getting high.

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Wild hemp is good for nothing more than making rope.

Hemp is good for a lot more than rope, including food and clothing.

 

It also grows amazing well in all conditions, including conditions where corn would fair poorly and it can be grown where ever cotton is grown but without the horrific amount of chemicals used to grow the latter.

There's one thing that it's not good for. :)

 

That depends... If you enjoy the aroma of burning hemp but have no imterest in getting high.

Then there's still one thing it's not good for.
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The ditch weed is all over the Mississippi River bottoms. We use to find college kids who would plot where the wild stuff was growing, draw up a map, and then when they'd return home they'd sell the maps to their buddies. We'd then catch their buddies coming down and stripping the leaves, taking garbage bags full of ditch weed back home.

Well there ya go! Law enforcement at it's finest! ;)

The question started out as essentially 'what would you do if...' and has turned into a control-fest of people telling other people what they should do.

Try to follow along. You got lost in the conversation. My response was a reply to Bflentje's comment concerning ditch weed and it not being good for anything.

 

The point was made that ditch weed often grows wild. 'ditch weed' differs from the marijuana that would be cultivated for illegal use and sale because it has a very low level of THC. Bflentje recognized this in his post. Wadcutter's post merely referred to the chuckle heads who would harvest ditch weed in hopes of getting high. Sadly, they will be very disappointed.

Correct. And my post was also to point out that not only were "chuckle heads" harvesting ditch weed but also other "chuckle heads" were making money selling maps to the "chuckle heads" where they could find ditch weed. And from the quantities of ditch weeds the "chuckle heads" would harvest they were no doubt taking it back and selling ditch weed to their friends who probably didn't realize they were buying ditch weed.

 

I didn't get lost, my "Law enforcement at it's finest" was a comment on busting (I assume that's what you meant by "We'd then catch their buddies coming down and stripping the leaves, taking garbage bags full of ditch weed back home." college kids for collecting ditch weed. :unsure:

 

I hate to sound naive, but I am not up on my dopology... is harvesting found-by-a-ditch 'ditch weed' illegal? If you're "catching" people with it I suppose it must be.

 

If it is then according to some in this thread as I understand them it should be reported wherever found.

 

What I understand from Wadcutter's comments is that police know that it's growing wild, know where it is, but ignore it until someone comes along and grabs some of it. Hopefully I am wrong about that.

 

But that begs the question... I wouldn't know ditch-weed from Mowie Wowie, so do I report this wild-growing plant whenever and wherever I find it?

 

I have more than a passing interest in the debate - as I have mentioned in posts here before on this topic there is a small patch of pot plants growing at the end of a dirt road not 4 miles from my home. When I found it there were 14 plants, now there are but 9. I found it three years ago when looking for a place to hide a cache. I did report it to a fellow geocacher friend who is a Deputy Sheriff, and I have mentioned it to other cops since. The dozen or so plants evidently get harvested every season as they have not gone to seed, and the cops have so far ignored them.

 

I started to put a cache there because I thought that it was interesting, but some small remaining shred of common sense prevented me. I've never worried about booby-traps, as I've walked all over the area before I noticed what those plants were, but I can't pass by there without the feeling that I am on somebody's police video camera!

 

"Whatcha gonna do when they come for you" is not a question I ever want to have to answer!

Edited by TheAlabamaRambler
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Be very carefull, in this area, lots of the plots are boobytrapped, so leave the very same way you came in and then let the owner of the cache now to take it off the site. If I was the owner, I'd not go back for the cache as its just not worth it. Think the rest has been said.

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Wow, some of you guys are really freaked out by pot!!

 

I know, I know, it's illegal. But so is speeding. Speeding, the leading cause of accidents on the road. Accidents cause 20 times the deaths than all drug use. And Accidents kill the innocent too. The main negatives from drug culture are from the fact that it is illegal and therefore attached to other aspects of crime (robbery, murder, rape etc.).

 

I'm not a druggie and haven't smoked pot in a decade. but how many people screaming about not calling the cops being such a travesty are going to call the cops on their wife or husband or parents for speeding.

 

chill out....

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A few tips I've received in my training as a park volunteer.

 

1. Don't touch anything and leave the area quickly by retracing the route you used to enter the area. You never know if the growers may have set traps or tripwires and you happened to miss them on the way in.

2. Take a fast waypoint if you can.

3. Once someplace safe, notify the law enforcement agency responsible for the area. Tell them what you saw and the coords. You can make the report anonymously if you want but I wouldn't worry about being a suspect. How many criminals report their own activity to the cops?

 

Ignoring the situation or pretending you didn't see it is a cop out. It's my public land as well and I shouldn't be afraid to use certain parts of it.

Works for me.

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Wow, some of you guys are really freaked out by pot!!

 

I know, I know, it's illegal. But so is speeding. Speeding, the leading cause of accidents on the road. Accidents cause 20 times the deaths than all drug use. And Accidents kill the innocent too. The main negatives from drug culture are from the fact that it is illegal and therefore attached to other aspects of crime (robbery, murder, rape etc.).

 

I'm not a druggie and haven't smoked pot in a decade. but how many people screaming about not calling the cops being such a travesty are going to call the cops on their wife or husband or parents for speeding.

 

chill out....

You said it yourself, it's not the pot, but the the other issues that are attached to it. Growers can do some pretty wicked things to protect their crops. Therefore, it is in the best interest of future cachers to report any of these locations to the authorities.
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...I know, I know, it's illegal. But so is speeding....chill out....

 

The real problem with drugs is the price everbody has to pay for the use. Seldom does the impact only hit one person. You used speeding as your example. I think DUI is closer. If drunks only hurt themselves and totaled their own cars pepole would hand them a beer on the way out the door to clean up the roads quicker. It doesn't work that way.

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Every year there are hundreds of grizzly and black bear that are injured in booby trapped pot fields that are not reported and hidden next to geocaches, and I'm glad this thread has made us aware of it. :rolleyes:

 

Yeah, and if those bears weren't going after the pot...they'd be fine. You know they're just trying to get stoned. Silly bears! LOL

Edited by Voodoo7
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...I know, I know, it's illegal. But so is speeding....chill out....

Seldom does the impact only hit one person.

 

tell me how many people that have ever done pot do you think had to steal a stereo, mug an old lady, or murder someone to use it. A percentage would be find, even a conservative estimate. My guess is pretty darn low...

 

(I've read estimates as much as 50% of college goers using pot. Doesn't make me think of gangbangers.)

Edited by kusojijii
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...I know, I know, it's illegal. But so is speeding....chill out....
Seldom does the impact only hit one person.
tell me how many people that have ever done pot do you think had to steal a stereo, mug an old lady, or murder someone to use it. A percentage would be find, even a conservative estimate. My guess is pretty darn low...

 

(I've read estimates as much as 50% of college goers using pot. Doesn't make me think of gangbangers.)

This thread isn't really about pot users, it's about pot growers. That should get your mind back on gang bangers and off of coeds. Edited by sbell111
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...I know, I know, it's illegal. But so is speeding....chill out....
Seldom does the impact only hit one person.
tell me how many people that have ever done pot do you think had to steal a stereo, mug an old lady, or murder someone to use it. A percentage would be find, even a conservative estimate. My guess is pretty darn low...

 

(I've read estimates as much as 50% of college goers using pot. Doesn't make me think of gangbangers.)

This thread isn't really about pot users, it's about pot growers. That should get your mind back on gang bangers and off of coeds.

 

From the parts of the drug culture I have seen, pot farmers are more often white middle class hippie types not inner city gangbangers. From the OP's account it sounded like a small grove of plants not a full scale operation. My guess is they are college kids.

 

besides, I'd much rather think of coeds... :rolleyes:

 

 

and to keep on topic I would have left it all alone and told my buddies a funny story over a beer...

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...I know, I know, it's illegal. But so is speeding....chill out....

Seldom does the impact only hit one person.

 

tell me how many people that have ever done pot do you think had to steal a stereo, mug an old lady, or murder someone to use it. A percentage would be find, even a conservative estimate. My guess is pretty darn low...

 

(I've read estimates as much as 50% of college goers using pot. Doesn't make me think of gangbangers.)

 

You qualified your question. Impacts are larger than the moment of use.

Since this thread is about growers and most of the posts have people leaving the site lest they get caught and the person defending their livelyhood with deadly force uses it...there's one impact.

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...From the parts of the drug culture I have seen, pot farmers are more often white middle class hippie types not inner city gangbangers....

 

That would put you in or near your 40's by my guess. But it's just a guess. Guessing age based on the bygone era of middle class hippie types pot farmers isn't my area of expertise.

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...I know, I know, it's illegal. But so is speeding....chill out....

Seldom does the impact only hit one person.

 

tell me how many people that have ever done pot do you think had to steal a stereo, mug an old lady, or murder someone to use it. A percentage would be find, even a conservative estimate. My guess is pretty darn low...

 

(I've read estimates as much as 50% of college goers using pot. Doesn't make me think of gangbangers.)

 

You qualified your question. Impacts are larger than the moment of use.

Since this thread is about growers and most of the posts have people leaving the site lest they get caught and the person defending their livelyhood with deadly force uses it...there's one impact.

 

I agree, leave the site immediately. Call the cops if you want. I just thought it was kind of strange how a couple people seemed to take the stand that to do anything besides calling the cops the instant you saw it would be accessory to growing the pot. ( I of course exaggerate a little)

 

and yes I'm 35!!! wavey[1].gif

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I'd report it to the cache owner, but other than that why bother? The "war on drugs" is a joke. Illegal drugs are illegal because the government hasn't figured out how to make money off of them yet.

 

If they want to stop illegal drugs they should take all the confiscated drugs and lace 'em with syanide, (Spelling?), or some other deadly drug and send it back out on the street.

 

Example;

The next pot or meth party you're at and get to watch 5 or 6 of your friends die, you'll think twice about the next party. Sooner or later there won't be a market and drug sales will cease.

 

Maybe it's not a nice way to deal with it but it's the only effective way to deal with it. Humans are relatively stupid creatures. They only understand one language, and that language is pain. He who carries the biggest stick makes the rules. That's the way it's always been and the way it will always be.

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i wouldn't go to hawaii, not for any amount of money.

 

first, i consider connecticut to be the deep south, and second, if i have to get on a plane to go there, i don't want to go.

 

i'd be irritated about pot growing on public land in terms of a nuisance in my field of recreation, but i so strongly disapprove of our nation's stupid drug laws that i doubt i'd report it.

 

additionally, i've not enjoyed my last encounters with police, so nuts to them.

 

cops come in two flavors: good people who want to help, and jerks who love to be able to push you around. in the past year i have been involved with mostly this second group.

 

helpful hint: once you have determined that you are dealing with this second kind, do not inform him that he is "an officious self-important prick". he WILL cuff you and toss you face down in a snowbank.

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additionally, i've not enjoyed my last encounters with police, so nuts to them.

 

cops come in two flavors: good people who want to help, and jerks who love to be able to push you around. in the past year i have been involved with mostly this second group.

 

helpful hint: once you have determined that you are dealing with this second kind, do not inform him that he is "an officious self-important prick". he WILL cuff you and toss you face down in a snowbank.

 

I've heard about those cops. Delt with alot of 'em but never ran across those of the first flavor. Are you sure they exist? I think that's just a rumor... :)

 

No snow here right now....LOl

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My dad told me a story of when he was in college and harvested some (what must have been) ditchweed. Unfortunately, they were unable to dry it properly, so it molded, but they smoked it anyway, and he failed that semester of college! :)

 

As far as the original question: not enough info, I'd have to be in that situation before making a decision.

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Don't snoop around the field. Backtrack exactly the way you came. We've found several booby trapped fields protected with shotguns rigged with trip wires, punji pits, dead falls, and others. We've also found them protected by guards and trained attack dogs. It's not unusual for the growers to "seed" their plots using $1 bills scattered around the area. That way if someone picks up the money they know someone has been there.

It can be very dangerous. Not something to mess around with. Doesn't matter at all what your feelings are one way or the other about if it should be legalized or whatever. A trip wired shotgun, punji pit, and a trained pit bull don't ask your political beliefs. Some of these people will kill you - dead and forever.

Should you report it? Ask yourself this question. If the field you come upon is boobytrapped (and you most likely would never know it unless you set off a trap), you decide because you think pot should be legalized or that you don't have any right messing with someone else's business so you don't report it, and then later on some young kid or innocent family hiking thru the area is killed or seriously maimed because you didn't report it so it could be removed. You are responsible they were killed or seriously injured because you didn't report it. Is that something you would be proud to tell your friends and family?

 

You are right. Too many pot growers are not the gentle, green minded souls you might think. Some can be VERY nasty and have been known to do a great deal of environmental harm to boot.

Edited by Tresco
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Have any of you ran into a growing operation, big or small, while out looking for a cache? What would you do? Ignore it? Leave the area? Call authorities? I found a local spot on public land where someone has a dozen or more plants growing. These plants are in a cache area, and it is almost impossible to not find them while searching. I took my son and left the area.

 

It's not so much that I am against pot. I don't do it, but what you do in the privacy of you own home is none of my business. But when you are using public land to do this, and it interferes with my recreation, it kind of irks me. And you never know how defensive (or offensive) a grower might be if he caught you around his plants. What would you do?

You have raised a timely issue of growing importance. At least here on the East Coast of the USA, illegal non-native plants have become a big issue that threatens to loom even larger over the next few years. As just one case in point, wavyleaf basket grass (Oplismenus hirtellus ssp., including Oplismenus hirtellus ssp. undulatifolius) and the lookalike Japanese stiltgrass (Microstegium vimineum) have been identified by MD DNR and by federal authorities as a major threat. In fact, the invasion of wavy-leaf basket grass has strongly impacted geocaching in some our state parks, as MD DNR has prohibited the placement of geocaches in some large areas of Maryland state parks which are already infested by this illegal invasive species in order to help to prevent its spread. One example of such a recent administrative "no-geocache placement" action is the McKeldin area of Patapsco State Park, and all areas of Patapsco State Park north of Woodstock Road.

 

MD DNR and federal officials are also waging a never-ending but somewhat hopeless war against some invasive species of aquatic plants on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, although this battle has not yet affected approval of geocache placements, to my best knowledge.

 

While some previous posters have advocated NOT reporting sightings of such illegal invasive species to authorities, at least in the case of the above-mentioned wavy-leaf basket grass in the state parks, DNR has made clear that they much appreciate reports from geocachers and hikers of sightings of the plant, and if the reports include accurate GPS waypoint coordinates for the sites, so much the better.

 

By the way, at least here in Maryland and in the neighboring state of Virginia, the problem of illegal non-native invasive species is not limited only to illegal invasive plants, but rather, there are also ongoing problems with the illegal snakehead fish (Channidae sp., an ambulatory Asian fish, including Chana argus, the most common variety) and two illegal species of invasive oyster as well. And, there is a big problem in Maryland and surrounding states with an illegal non-native algae, Didymosphenia geminata (also known as Didymo or "rock snot".) This diatomaceous alga forms heavy mats during its growing period and can coat stream bottoms, boats, docks and manmade equipment, including pumps and pipes. The dense wavy mats formed by these algae look like soggy toilet tissue floating in water and have given rise to the slang term "rock snot" for this algae. In fact, this illegal non-native algae has become such a problem here in Maryland that last month (April 2008) it was named the Invader of the Month by the esteemed Maryland Invasive Species Council.

 

For all of the above-mentioned illegal species, both MD and VA authorities do seem to appreciate being notified by geocachers (and others) of sightings, along with GPS coordinates for infestation sites, if possible. And, at least in Maryland, authorities are actively recruiting hikers and geocachers as volunteers to receive training in ferreting out and removing illegal non-native species in an ongoing program.

 

So, bottom line is that the issue you raised in your post about illegal plants is a timely one! Thanks!

 

Sounds like a great CITO Project

 

Make it an event CITO project and then everyone will get :blink: for the event.

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Well, at least it's American made pot, and not imported. That foreign stuff hurts the economy. I'd hate to interfere with an ambitious start-up business like that.

.. And you never know how defensive (or offensive) a grower might be if he caught you around his plants. What would you do?

Offer them any munchies you may have. Trail food, chocolate bars and peanut butter cups works well.

:blink:

Edited by 4wheelin_fool
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Have any of you ran into a growing operation, big or small, while out looking for a cache? What would you do? Ignore it? Leave the area? Call authorities? I found a local spot on public land where someone has a dozen or more plants growing. These plants are in a cache area, and it is almost impossible to not find them while searching. I took my son and left the area.

 

It's not so much that I am against pot. I don't do it, but what you do in the privacy of you own home is none of my business. But when you are using public land to do this, and it interferes with my recreation, it kind of irks me. And you never know how defensive (or offensive) a grower might be if he caught you around his plants. What would you do?

I have not come accoss any grow operations. If I were to some accross one I am not sure what I would do, I am not sure I still know how to roll a faty, the las time was forty years ago :blink:

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This is getting to be an interesting debate between the "Letter of the law" faction, and the "Leave it be" faction. Let's not forget the "I used to get high" faction.

 

As for the OP, the question was, "What would you do?". Personally, I would gather a few and leave quietly.

 

Has anyone looked up the statistics on innocent people being killed or injured as a result of stumbling upon a growing op? ...........................I thought not. :blink:

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FYI if you are in Lake County, Ca, 50 plants is absolutely legal per person, in Mendocino County, CA 25 plants is absolutely legalper person. In both areas one can grow for others so there is a possibility, depending on how many prescriptions you have (yours and others), you could grow substantial amounts of pot perfectly legally! Just the facts!

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This is getting to be an interesting debate between the "Letter of the law" faction, and the "Leave it be" faction. Let's not forget the "I used to get high" faction.

 

As for the OP, the question was, "What would you do?". Personally, I would gather a few and leave quietly.

 

Has anyone looked up the statistics on innocent people being killed or injured as a result of stumbling upon a growing op? ...........................I thought not. :blink:

Where would one find those statistics? Also, I suspect that they would report a very low number because they would simply give raw numbers, rather than report the number of problems experienced by people who actually stumbled on these operations.

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Has anyone asked if the OP knows the difference between MJ and wild hemp? I sure wouldn't. I'm not even sure I'd recognise a field of the stuff as anything other than garden variety weeds (the non-smoking kind.)

 

The closest I've ever come to seeing any was a field of industial grown hemp beside the motorway in Europe that had a big sign telling the local pot heads not to pick it "Because it would take a joint the size of a school bus to get high." From that statement I would guess they look a lot alike.

 

AK

Edited by ar_kayaker
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Being new to this sport/hobby, I have already ran across an "illegal" item. We were out cache'n in a public park and I found a crack pipe. Law Enforcement was called, they came, took the thing, thanked me and drove off. The drughead that stashed it there is prob POed, but oh-well. Now the kids can play a little safer....

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In my opinion, people that grow pot are criminals. If you do not report it, you are just as bad as the growers. Without people reporting crimes, getting involved, there would be alot of criminals on the streets. Who knows, you walk away from it and ignore it, that pot may be sold to your 14 or 15 yr old child. Lives will be ruined because you did not want to make a phone call to the police. You will not be involved other then the phone call. No-one will know it was you! My Opinion!

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As Katt Williams says (almost) while talking about pot:

 

"It ain't no drug, I done done the research, it's just a plant, it just grows like that. And if you should happen to set it on fire, there are some effects. But that's not the same as drugs. Drugs you got to do stuff to it chemically - you gotta add baking soda, water, stir it up - I don't know the recipe I'm just sayin. There's some stuff you gotta do to it. But why the heck it's illegal I don't know. Asprin is perfectly legal but if you take 13 of them it'll be your last headache.

 

As long as you been livin you aint never heard of anyone overdosing on marijuana. You may have thought that guy was dead, he ain't dead. He's gonna wake up in 30 minutes hungry enough to eat up everything in your house. That's the side effects: Hungry, happy, and sleepy. That's it."

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