KirstyEkua Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Buying coffee, newspapers, going on the internet, wearing clothes that may not be ethically made etc, etc is not illegal. Taking drugs is. The cocaine industry is devastating communites in Latin American countries and is ultimately driven by the demand in Western societies. I hope he gets some sort of punishment, although maybe public humiliation is enough. For once though, i'd like to see a celebrity treated like a 'normal' person and not excused becasue of their celebrity status. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emmasi Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Alcohol is perfectly legal, and yet "alcohol-fueled violence" (the media's tag-line, not mine) is the main reason that this police crackdown was happening in the first place. If Todd had been found with a beer in his hand, no-one would have cared at all. But because he was found with drugs - with no stated evidence of him actually being intoxicated by them, mind you - we assume that he's an immoral deviant, simply because that particular substance is illegal. The only thing that makes drugs illegal is that the government is unable to regulate the manufacture of drugs, and therefore can't ensure that it is properly taxed. It's about money, not human well-being. If legality had anything to do with human well-being, cigarettes would be made illegal in a heartbeat, but they are worth too much money, and so children continue to be born with asthma and other complications because their mothers are too heavily addicted; waitresses and bartenders get lung cancer from being in smoke-filled rooms all day; every day people on the street are assaulted by toxic clouds of tobacco and tar, spewing from the lungs of strangers, because those strangers are perfectly within their legal rights to be smoking outdoors. I do not smoke, but I'm still afraid of developing lung cancer because I have several friends and family members who do choose to smoke around me. To me, smokers are more irresponsible and callous than people who take illegal drugs which will only affect their own bodies, because smoke can so easily be inhaled by anyone nearby. It is of course true that someone who has taken illegal drugs may then behave in a way that is harmful to other people, but as I said, it was alcohol-fueled-violence that sparked the crackdown, and I'm sure we have all encountered people who are terrifying after they've had too much to drink. (If you haven't, I sincerely hope you never do). But alcohol is legal, so... have another one. Why not drive home drunk and "glass" your girlfriend in the face? It's all good! Just don't get caught with with a tiny scraping of white-powder in your pocket, because THAT stuff with screw you up! To reiterate my original point in this thread (because I feel I'm starting to sound like I'm contradicting myself), I don't care that Todd was taking drugs. I have taken illegal drugs too, and I probably will again. I believe that that is a personal choice, as much as doing any legal drug, such as alcohol or nicotine or caffeine, is a personal choice, and I don't judge anyone too harshly for that. I do however judge those people who do drugs too excess, and who let drugs control or ruin their lives, and the lives of those around them. I've seen no evidence that Todd has done that, EXCEPT for the fact that he did this so publicly and at such an incredibly stupid time (during a blitz! WHY!?!?). THAT's what I'm angry about, not the fact that he happened to be taking an illegal substance. Illegality is such a tainted concept. I would not do anything illegal that I believed was going to harm someone else, like murder or rape or even petty theft. And yet, as I've already shown, I do so many LEGAL things that I KNOW are harming other people and animals. But my conscience allows me to get away with that because the law's on my side. Go figure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Natleon1976 Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Alcohol is perfectly legal, and yet "alcohol-fueled violence" (the media's tag-line, not mine) is the main reason that this police crackdown was happening in the first place. If Todd had been found with a beer in his hand, no-one would have cared at all. But because he was found with drugs - with no stated evidence of him actually being intoxicated by them, mind you - we assume that he's an immoral deviant, simply because that particular substance is illegal. The only thing that makes drugs illegal is that the government is unable to regulate the manufacture of drugs, and therefore can't ensure that it is properly taxed. It's about money, not human well-being. If legality had anything to do with human well-being, cigarettes would be made illegal in a heartbeat, but they are worth too much money, and so children continue to be born with asthma and other complications because their mothers are too heavily addicted; waitresses and bartenders get lung cancer from being in smoke-filled rooms all day; every day people on the street are assaulted by toxic clouds of tobacco and tar, spewing from the lungs of strangers, because those strangers are perfectly within their legal rights to be smoking outdoors. I do not smoke, but I'm still afraid of developing lung cancer because I have several friends and family members who do choose to smoke around me. To me, smokers are more irresponsible and callous than people who take illegal drugs which will only affect their own bodies, because smoke can so easily be inhaled by anyone nearby. It is of course true that someone who has taken illegal drugs may then behave in a way that is harmful to other people, but as I said, it was alcohol-fueled-violence that sparked the crackdown, and I'm sure we have all encountered people who are terrifying after they've had too much to drink. (If you haven't, I sincerely hope you never do). But alcohol is legal, so... have another one. Why not drive home drunk and "glass" your girlfriend in the face? It's all good! Just don't get caught with with a tiny scraping of white-powder in your pocket, because THAT stuff with screw you up! To reiterate my original point in this thread (because I feel I'm starting to sound like I'm contradicting myself), I don't care that Todd was taking drugs. I have taken illegal drugs too, and I probably will again. I believe that that is a personal choice, as much as doing any legal drug, such as alcohol or nicotine or caffeine, is a personal choice, and I don't judge anyone too harshly for that. I do however judge those people who do drugs too excess, and who let drugs control or ruin their lives, and the lives of those around them. I've seen no evidence that Todd has done that, EXCEPT for the fact that he did this so publicly and at such an incredibly stupid time (during a blitz! WHY!?!?). THAT's what I'm angry about, not the fact that he happened to be taking an illegal substance. Illegality is such a tainted concept. I would not do anything illegal that I believed was going to harm someone else, like murder or rape or even petty theft. And yet, as I've already shown, I do so many LEGAL things that I KNOW are harming other people and animals. But my conscience allows me to get away with that because the law's on my side. Go figure. Thanks Emmasi for going to the trouble of typing this. I've been meaning to make a similar comment over the past couple of days but to be frank have been too lazy and now you've gone and made my point for me. Todd was incredibly stupid to do what he did when he had so much at stake and now stands to lose it or at the very least have it delayed but I am not going to condemn him as a nefarious, evil doer because of this (before anyone jumps down my throat, I'm not implying other people have, I'm just saying I'm not prepared to condemn him outright). I imagine that, right now, there's no one feeling worse about these recent events than he is and if he's not then he really is a muppet. The other thing that I keep thinking is that if I made a stupid mistake like this and went to my friends andfamily, I would want and expect their support not their condemnation. I wouldn't be looking to be let off the hook and obviously people would be disappointed in me but I would like to think they would be compassionate and understanding that I have made a mistake. I also like to think that if the roles were reversed and someone I knew did this I would be a support rather than a wagging finger and a disapproving shake of the head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mokhashin Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 How inredibly stupid of him. I find it sad, that such a talented actress does something this incredibly dumb. If he wanted to use illegal drugs, or carry them in his posession, he should have done it in a less public place, and not in his ex-employers Christmas party. For sure he's not going to get any support from them, and if he won't make it in or even to LA, well, he just minimized his chances of being emplyed by them again, and his other options in Australia. There are thousends of as talented actors with cleaner images dying for job opportunities, so one stupid night partying just might keep him out of work for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayley1978 Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 I can't believe Todd was stupid enough 2 get caught with hard drugs in his posession, surely if u were in the public eye & felt the need 2 take drugs you'd go out of your way 2 make sure u didn't get caught??? I'm disappointed but not shocked, unfortunately it's a road that plenty of young celebrities go down. Let's just hope he's learnt from his mistakes & that he hasn't ruined what could've been a fantastic future all for the sake of a night of 'fun', i don't condone what he's done at all & yes he should be reprimanded for it but everyone deserves a second chance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jodlebirger Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Buying coffee, newspapers, going on the internet, wearing clothes that may not be ethically made etc, etc is not illegal. Taking drugs is. The cocaine industry is devastating communites in Latin American countries and is ultimately driven by the demand in Western societies. I hope he gets some sort of punishment, although maybe public humiliation is enough. For once though, i'd like to see a celebrity treated like a 'normal' person and not excused becasue of their celebrity status. Well, he has already not being treated like a "normal" person... A "normal" person would never have been in the news and having the story written over and over again and a lot of it being excagerated and twisted, being debated over for a long period of time by people who don't know him...just his family, friends and jobs (his environment that you are living in) would have known about this, and would have had a much better chance to get his life back on track. But since he is a known person, and this have been in the news all over everyone - and potential future work places would have noticed this, and someday in the future when he is going to apply for a job it will be like "oh, don't you remember him?..." And he is not known enough to get excused for what he has done... In other countries (except Australia, UK and Ireland maybe) he will just be a wannabe who has done drugs and being on a crappy soap (he has not much excperience in the business comparing to many others). And I don't think he has high enough status to get excused in Australia either, the discussion and how this has been written in the media shows that... when I read on this forum I get a feeling that people want him to get a really hard punishment, much more than normal. Just because he is famous, because he is supposed to be a "role model". But is that right? I know that most young people look up to famous people (and some adults too) and want them to be perfect. But isn't it times like this that we learn that those people are just normal people? I know that a lot of parents are afraid that their child will get into drugs because he/she is seing some of his/hers idols doing it... But then it is important to learn that famous people are people too, because its not excactly good to look up to a person just because they are a face on television or singing a song... It is like to look up to somebody at school just because they have nice clothes... Sooner or later we are all going to find out that, and superstars are going to die as a result of drugs or an unhealty lifestyle every year just like you and I would have done if we had being doing drugs,pills or drinking alcohol everyday. People are people no matter what kind of job they have, and everybody deserves to get a fair treatment. And he will get his punishment like he deserves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KirstyEkua Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 To me, smokers are more irresponsible and callous than people who take illegal drugs which will only affect their own bodies, because smoke can so easily be inhaled by anyone nearby. But taking illegal drugs has an enormous effect on the men, women and children involved in the production and dealing of them. As i've previously stated, thousands of children in Columbia (for example) are trafficked, beaten, exploited and sold to cope with the demand for coccaine in the Western world. Yes they're only harming their own bodies, but what about the effect it has on their friends and family? Watching someone you love suffer from drug addiction is not something anyone would wish to go through. And as someone else said previously, what about the drug dealer and the lives they are ruining? It's not just the person taking the drugs who is affected - you can trace it back to thousands of people. There's a reason why drugs are illegal and alcohol is not. I believe when someone choses to pursue a career that puts them in the public eye they have to accept the responsibility that people are going to look up to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jodlebirger Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 To me, smokers are more irresponsible and callous than people who take illegal drugs which will only affect their own bodies, because smoke can so easily be inhaled by anyone nearby. But taking illegal drugs has an enormous effect on the men, women and children involved in the production and dealing of them. As i've previously stated, thousands of children in Columbia (for example) are trafficked, beaten, exploited and sold to cope with the demand for coccaine in the Western world. Yes they're only harming their own bodies, but what about the effect it has on their friends and family? Watching someone you love suffer from drug addiction is not something anyone would wish to go through. And as someone else said previously, what about the drug dealer and the lives they are ruining? It's not just the person taking the drugs who is affected - you can trace it back to thousands of people. There's a reason why drugs are illegal and alcohol is not. I believe when someone choses to pursue a career that puts them in the public eye they have to accept the responsibility that people are going to look up to them. What??? People who really have a alcohol problem harming their bodies just as much (sometimes) as a drug addict does. Liver problems, kidney problems, heart problems and some suffers from brain stroke too and last but not least also the behaviour problems.... I have seen a lot of examples of people who are not ruining their own lives but also their familymembers'. Maybe it happens faster with drugs, but it depends how much you are drinking and how your body are respond to it. Smoking is also causing a lot of problems in the society and for individuals who are smoking. A lot of problems are listed by emnasi above. My both grandfathers and my father died of lungcancer as a result of smoking. And of course it has affected the rest of us in my family a lot. Drugs have probably a quicker dangerous effect on our bodies and more criminal things are connected to it, and thats the reason it is illegal, and are also more newer issues in our part of the world. We didn't talk about human trafficking a hundred years ago, but we had problems with alcohol and smoke but we didn't knew the whole effect those things have on our body, and thats the reason they were more or less accepted and that we still have some of that attitude (alcohol and smoke have been a part of our social life for so long). There are cultural differencies of how we're thinking of the subject too. In Norway it is not allowed to smoke in public areas (just allowed outdoors) as pubs, shops, schools, hospitals, work places etc... And the alcohol limit when we are driving are 0,2 per thousand (alcohol level). Do you have an anti-smoke-law in Australia?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bikinikill Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 Drugs and alcohol both have bad effects. But there are some more immediate bad effects that drugs can have ie the link between marijuana (the softest drug of all) and schizophrenia. And because of the backyard manufacture of drugs, the side effects that come from not knowing what is in them. Alcohol is still a type of drug, as is caffeine. But in our society, the laws state that certain drugs are illegal. WE did talk about human trafficking a hundred years ago, except it was just called slavery. Human trafficking is not a new problem, it just has a new name. Our laws in Australia prevent anyone from smoking inside in a pub/club/shopping centre/workplace etc. Someone mentioned earlier about bar workers getting cancer from passive smoking, that has been prevented now in Australia. Our legal driving limit for alcohol is 0.5. I don't want him to be treated any differently by the courts, and to be honest I don't think he will. Unless the judge is an avid home and away fan, they might not even know who he is, apart from potentially through the media. I think how he chooses to deal with this in court will show his character. Of course he will have lawyers advising him and what not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matticus01 Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 well Im not going to judge him just because he had cocaine on him... just because he did doesn't mean he was taking it... and no one knows if he bought it or if it was given to him or what he was even going to friggen well do with it... I have a friend who is going through drug withdrawals but I'm not judging her just because she made a bad choice. oh and did anyone else notice that in that article it said Fellow Former home and away star Jodi Gordon? Does that mean she is also leaving the soap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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