To manufacture methamphetamine, so I'm told, you need a number of ingredients including many that can be purchased at retail stores. I read where cold pills, rubbing alcohol, batteries and other common ingredients are somehow combined in the manufacture of meth. And some of the ingredients such as farm chemicals are often stolen. Our area should know since Missouri is one of the top meth producers in the nation.
So many months ago I wondered outloud why retailers and police didn't cooperate and report extra large purchases of some of these essential meth ingredients. Obviously that same idea had surfaced countless other times since it seems much easier to address the source than to check every potential meth manufacturer.
So quietly across the country a number of retailers have taken it upon themselves to report large purchases they believe are intended for meth making. And it's working. One case involved a suspicious Wal-Mart clerk who alerted law enforcement who in turn arrested the culprit for the drug crime and a separate murder. It seems the bad guy (girl in this case) had killed her son in a meth explosion.
But now the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is jumping into the fray and threatening legal action against those retailers who alert police to potential drug activities. My question is this - Isn't it time for the ACLU to pack their bags and end their dismal service to this great nation? I can't help but wonder who funds the ACLU. And then I wonder why?
If newspaper ink were used to manufacture meth and someone came in and wanted to purchase a 50-gallon drum of ink, I would damned well be suspicious. And I would alert police that John Doe was trying to buy the product for some questionable purpose. By doing that, I believe I would be doing a public service. And if in fact John Doe were using the newspaper ink to print leaflets instead of making meth, then he has nothing to fear.
But this runs counter to the liberal philosophy of the ACLU. And I could mount an effective argument that groups such as the ACLU will potentially and eventually doom this country. When you ignore the greater good of society then you do a disservice to us all.
The retailers who join in this fight against meth should be commended not condemned. And those who argue otherwise should face public scorn and ridicule.