Atlanta rapper T.I. was arrested over the weekend by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, alleged to be trying to purchase through his bodyguard machine guns and silencers, and charged with possession of firearms by a convicted felon. While it is unclear if the rapper still has time left to his sentence from a drug conviction-based probation violation in 2004, for these new charges it makes little difference. If T.I. did not have a drug conviction, he would be on the other side of a thin legal line, one in which his possession of firearms in most cases would be legal, and if illegal, would only present fines and registration requirements; only in an extreme case would he be imprisoned.
Instead, his drug conviction means that he faces up to fifteen years in prison, depending upon the sentence the prosecution seeks, and what deals his lawyers can negotiate. T.I. is fortunate enough to have money; most other African-American men in his position (having a drug conviction and arrested for felon in possession of a firearm) are not so lucky. What faces the average African-American man in this circumstance is a long prison sentence.
The foundation for these harsh penalties is the notion that felons, including drug traffickers, should not be armed because of the risk of life-threatening violence. The foundation is tenuous at best -- most drug traffickers are not armed to hurt others. Drug traffickers carry weapons to protect themselves, a consequence of unregulated black markets that involve substantial amounts of currency, and no recourse to settle disputes legally.
Proliferation of firearms is its own concern in our society, and one that represents a lot of different problems. The argument for what is right and wrong in regards to firearms is a different discussion than what is happening, legally, to T.I. right now. The denial of firearm rights to convicted felons, and the inclusion of almost any drug-crime (outside of possession of certain drugs) into felony classification has created an entire group of second-class citizens, who are more harshly punished, enjoy less rights, and in most cases are discriminated against for conduct that they might have completed turned away from. Surely T.I., being a multi-platinum recording artist and budding film actor, is at little to no risk of becoming a controlled-substances trafficker again.
Despite this lack of risk, T.I. must continue to suffer consequences from choices made a decade ago. The law does not distinguish between who has changed their circumstances, and who are not so fortunate and caught in the cycle of prison, release, and violations or new charges starting the incarceration cycle again.
This is not to support T.I.'s purchasing and possessing of firearms. It is to say, however, that his circumstance illustrates that drug laws currently hurt society through the costs of prosecution, incarceration, and the loss of a productive taxpayer. Drug law also hurts the individual by the pain and suffering of imprisonment, as well as the collateral consequences to his or her family and loved ones. Finally both society and the individual suffer, because post-drug conviction, the individual is a second-class citizen, who never can pay their debt fully and resume life as a restored citizen.
Drug law hasn't stopped drug use. Instead, prohibition has created the financial incentives that create the opportunity for black market drug trade. Since its inception, it has failed to meet any of its espoused goals. What it has done, however, is create a permanent underclass in our society. This underclass includes our family members, but also the rich and famous -- drug use and addiction does not discriminate. The only discrimination that takes place is who is accepted into the underclass: the rich and famous are rarely admitted (T.I. wasn't rich when he was made part of this underclass), the poor and unfortunate are admitted in every city across the country every day. I sincerely hope that T.I. manages to beat the allegations against him -- not because of beliefs concerning guilt or innocence, and not because I approve or disapprove of firearms. I hope that T.I. manages to beat the case against him because a long prison sentence for possession of weapons by an ex-felon serves no societal purpose whatsoever, makes him suffer needlessly, and wastes taxpayer money.
Color doesn't matter. If you're a convicted felon and trying to facilitate murder by purchasing the MOST ILLEGAL WEAPONRY, you should just go away.
T.I has shown a pattern of lack of respect for existing laws and I have no sympathy for him. He willing gave up his right to legally own firearms so deal with it. There is no justification for him having illegal weapons and, as with the drugs previously, he must deal with the poor choice that he has made. 15 years seems excessive but he knew that going in. Deal with it.
Poor little thug rapper, all he did was try to buy illegal silencers and machineguns. I'm sure they were intended to be used for good deeds.
However, the way I see it, had those machine guns made it into his hands, and then out onto the streets, there's no telling how many deaths they could have caused.
I agree with you with regards to drug laws, most certainly, but I have to draw the line at weapons.
Whatever his sentence is, let's hope its long enough to make him realize the error of his ways.
It only took Paris about a month; we'll see how long it takes T.I.
The author correctly points out that status as a convicted felon creates a permanent underclass, one of the many burdens of which, is the inability to exercise the constitutional right to bear arms. Of course some assumptions about people w/convictions may be accurate (as to the criminality to which they'd use those guns) but such stereotypes don't apply to all people; it's unjust to use stereotypical assumptions so as to discriminate against those people to whom the stereotypes don't apply.
And the only reason the author brought up the hypocrisy and ineffectuality of the war on drugs is b/c TI's past felony conviction was for a drug crime and it's common knowledge that the drug laws in this country are far from fair or just.
But none of this would be the case had he not been convicted of DRUG CHARGES. His 2nd amendment rights have been taken away because he was categorically classified as less than human.
If you think about it, it's an easy sorting system for the government to handle to poor and ethnic minorities (though statistically, most users are white and upper middle class), whom TIIC (the idiots in charge) seem to regard as less than human.
I weep for the future of this country if garbage like this is allowed to continue.