Funtimes asked last week that all posts regarding this new law be posted on the Politics and Religion board.  Yet, there have been 2-3 more threads at least since then.  So, I am posting this thread to try and clear the air a little bit because all this talk of doom and gloom has got a lot of people freaked out!

First of all, thank you to all the parties that are trying dilligently to save us from this bill.  I/We all appreciate all the positive input on what can be done to try and save us from this.

However, lets take a realistic look at all this mass hysteria.  

The biggest problem with getting caught today, under the present law, is not so much the getting arrested and posting bail, getting a lawyer, going to court and that whole due process thing.  The biggest problem is the public exposure and the repercussions that this brings with wives, bosses etc.

In fact, I think if they said that they were going to reduce the legal penalties and instead were going to publish in the centerfold every Tuesday of every major newspaper in Illinois, the pictures of all the people who had been picked up for this, we would be more concerned than we are!

I mean lets face it...... once the cat is out of the bag.... what difference does it really make if the charge is a Class A misdemeanor or a Class 4 felony.  Just like now, a large percentage of these cases will be thrown out in the preliminary stages of due process.  An even larger percentage of the remaining cases will be negotiated to a lesser charge if only in the interest of costs!  In case you are wondering, a lesser charge than a class 4 felony is...........a misdemeanor.

I would venture a guess that 1 in a 1000 would end up in a class 4 felony conviction.  The real problem though is the same as it has always been.  The real problem starts when they take the picture, so the key to all this is not to get your picture taken!  Just like it has always been!

The constitution is not being rewritten so rs2k will not be any less protected by the constitution after the bill is signed than they are now!

Planets are not going to collide and the world is not going to come to an end.  Most importantly, neither is this business!  Be Careful Out There!  

-- Modified on 8/4/2010 12:22:24 PM

Isn't part of problem the fact of being convicted of class IV felony is those of us licensed by the state for our professions will lose our license and hence careers. Personally I have too much at stack. Just my 2 cents.

consult an attorney, ask him what would happen regarding this if you were caught.  If the risk is more than you are willing to put forth.....retire!

Or...... save your pennies and fly to Costa Rica or Amsterdam or a similar place once in a while and have fun there.

Just my 2 cents!

The border ladies may benefit here, like Holly Berry, who I think is from SE MI.  If you don't want to take the risk here, which IMO, practically, is no greater than before, at least you have this viable option.  Travel time will be longer, so you have to block more of your day for an appointment.

The end demand people are meeting weekly with the State's Attorney's office and with the Sheriff. They are coordinating the effort to make sure that if this law goes into effect, the prosecutors will not negotiate down. They want and need those felony convictions and fines so that they can get that grant money that is tied to this legislation. I would not want to be the person that becomes the "example" and this prosecutor goes forward with the felony count. I am not sure that people in our little community understand the amount of pressure and unwillingness to bend that the END DEMAND group has. They are like that little fly that you just cant swat away. They will be in L E 's face ecery day, THIS IS NOT A HOBBY IT IS THEIR FUCKING MISSION IN LIFE...
I would not disminss this legislation as a nuisance..

I'm surprised at the apathetic nature of these posts. I would think that in this community we would all like to see less penalties and more legislature along the lines of "decrim" rather than stiffer fines, penalties, and a felony charge. It's a felony on your record plain and simple and I certainly wouldn't take that lightly. The idea that you might be able to plea it down does exist but isn't it better to know that a felony isn't even an option? No, it's not the end of the world, but I think it's the wrong direction in this day and age.

The State's and District attorneys offices could give a rats ass about "end demands" grant money.  Why are you so hell bent on scaring the crap out of people on here.  

Are you a lawyer or simply some guy that has a law degree?  There is a difference.  There are guys at McCormack Place that carry union journeyman carpenters cards and have never sunk a nail!

Tell the part here where there could end up being two statutes on this..... one being a felony and the other a misdemeanor and the police departments individually could make the decision on which to charge you with.  The Cook County DA, whom apparently is opposed to this bill could instruct the entire Cook County LE entities to continue using existing statute!

I don't and anyone with any common sense cannot possibly believe that the LE community is going to dedicate gazillions of dollars in felony courts taking cases regarding this subject matter to trials!  I mean..... get real!

Once again, the problem with getting caught is for some, far more serious on a public exposure level than any criminal penalty level!

Be careful out there!

The people working on this are trying to help you, not hurt you.  The more you support the effort, the better for you in the long run.

I still think that the way to fight this is by reminding the gov that conventioneers and trade show attendees come th Chicago for more than just trade shows and conventions. By making them risk becoming felons, they will eventually take their business elsewhere.

It's not "follow the money." It's "lead with the money."

Why does Vegas get so much convention business, even when the temperature is well over 100 degrees?

He can leave the child protections in place. Just veto the adult provisions.

Hac McPier weighed in on this yet?

I'm not going to even try to count the errors in your post as to how criminal law, the courts, politics, etc. work on this planet.  I AM going to take issue with you continuing to poke Wrigs and Andrea in the eye.  What are you thinking?  These people are trying to help the hobby and yes, they do know what the fuck they're talking about.  You seem to be concerned with the INEVITABLE short term drop in revenue you're going to suffer, and a lot less clear on waht this means in the long run.  
You're good at what you do and you have the respect of a lot of people in this community.  But you've got to sit back and let others take the lead.  A felony statute DOES make a difference in enforcement.

TER in their infinite wisdom has provided the Politics and Religion board. It's a great board with many highly spirited topics and sometimes aggressively debated viewpoints.

Going forward I am requesting this topic be taken to that board. Me personally, I don't have enough knowledge of the topic to fairly moderate the discussions. Secondly, this board is not for the discussion of legal issues, we have another board for that as well and that Moderator is an attorney.

So, this thread ends here. It will remain so that everyone knows that the topic should be discussed on another TER board and we can stop making this moderator feel stupid and completely out of touch.

No more discussions period. No more posting to this period.

With all of the beautiful women up there, why the hell aren't you guys a little more focused on them? I say we have a "who has the hottest ass" or the biggest nipples contest. let's stay focused on this board for what it's intentions are.

Thanks,

FT61

unless there is a strategy to defeat End Demand then we loose.

Therein lies the problem. Providing is not legal and apparently there is not a huge demand outside of this community to make it legal. Decriminalization is not a loosing proposition, it is just very expensive. If providing and hobbying could be made constitutional issues then there could be justice.