Sydney can't cop a break at the moment

Yep you've been done over again. It appears that you all live in a police state now.
http://
telstra.com/news/index.jhtml?descriptorid=%2Fcontent%2Fdescriptors%2Fsites%2Fnewsdesk%2Fna
tional_news%2F20011024_150925-14.desc.xml&moduletitle=National+News&pagegrouping=Today%27s
+News&pagename=Breaking+News&targetfolder=%2Fcontent%2Fsites%2Fnewsdesk%2Fnational_news&ta
rgetingfolder=national_news
(cut&paste link to view article)
Police swoop on 26 drug houses in Sydney
Source: AAP
More than 300 police swooped on 26 drug houses, wrapping up a major sting operation in Sydney's western suburbs.
Great Hume Region police said they had arrested 42 people across 10 suburbs.
Five people arrested in three houses on one suburban street at Tahmoor have been charged with various drug offences, including supply.
Region Commander Clive Small said sting targeting the business end of the drug trade is not just about the seizure of illicit substances.
"We have been working on this for months, making covert buys to improve our case," he told reporters.
"Much of our case was done by today - this is very much a wrap-up and getting icing on the cake."
Officers in the ongoing Operation Tira have so far seized heroin, cocaine, amphetamines and a hydroponic cannabis plantation.
Firearms and a zoo housing endangered reptiles had also been discovered.
"We have been successful in every one, we have not missed on any of them," Commander Small said.
NSW Premier Bob Carr, who visited the Wetherill police station at the hub of the investigations today, said the operation had been a success.
Mr Carr said much of this success was due to the use of new drug house legislation which came into effect on July 1.
"It enables police to crash into houses and arrest people even if there are are no drugs found," Mr Carr said.
"If they are on these premises and everything else points to the sale of drugs (they can be arrested).
"This has been a great police operation, mothers and fathers around the state can feel safer about their youngsters because drug dealers have been hit, and hit hard."
Mr Carr said there had been no fewer than 450 drug arrests in the Great Hume Region since July this year, resulting in 700 charges.
Mr Carr denied the sting was aimed at drumming up positive publicity in the wake of damning new corruption revelations and said this operation had been in the pipeline for months.
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Dancing, the eternal quest to mash my ankles into dust.
[edit: attempted to clean up the link - BT]
[This message has been edited by BigTrancer (edited 24 October 2001).]
[This message has been edited by BigTrancer (edited 24 October 2001).]

"It enables police to crash into houses and arrest people even if there are are no drugs found," Mr Carr said.
Oooo thats great sounds like.... Cold war Russia. On ya fellas!
"If they are on these premises and everything else points to the sale of drugs (they can be arrested).
Who exactly decides if everything else points to the sale of drugs?
Oooo he doesn't have a full time job and he has a car, lets raid him!! I mean, how easily can this law be exploited??
"This has been a great police operation, mothers and fathers around the state can feel safer about their youngsters because drug dealers have been hit, and hit hard."
hahahahahahahhaahahahahahaaha dear god, that is the lamest, most stereotypical, stupid comment I've heard!!! If only he knew the truth. Though he probably does, he just needs to show they're winning the war on drugs hehehehehehheehe
"Mr Carr denied the sting was aimed at drumming up positive publicity in the wake of damning new corruption revelations and said this operation had been in the pipeline for months."
Yes Mr Carr, we beleive you, we aren't complete imbeciles, really, we beleive every word you say

"It enables police to crash into houses and arrest people even if there are are no drugs found," Mr Carr said.
So are there *any* criteria for making arrests? "He looks like a dodgy character Sarge..", "Right then, into the van you go".
good grief.

Alexander Shulgin on Civil Liberties, Drugs and Society
That lecture would make good bedtime reading for some of the people that wrote the policies allowing the police the freedom to "crash into houses".

What happened to the reptiles???