Patrick Kennedy, Drugs and Situational Journalism

phoenix80

Banned
Unless people have been vacationing on another planet, just about everyone is aware of the latest Kennedy Clan scandal -- or what should be a scandal. Actually the story is scandalous because it illustrates how too many members of the elite news media are blatantly biased. Somehow the term "double-standard" seems to be an incredible understatement. The Kennedy story is a perfect example of the new trend in news coverage by the mainstream media -- situational journalism.
This particular scandal has more to do with whom a story involving drug abuse is about. If the "perp" is a conservative -- such as Rush Limbaugh -- the ladies and gentlemen of the press have a million questions about Limbaugh's drug use and exposure to arrest and prosecution. If the "perp" is a liberal, then the story becomes the effects of Ambian, the types of drugs not to mix with Ambian, and should Americans beware of using prescription sleep medications such as Ambian.

Katie Couric and Matt Lauer interview physicians and drug counselors about topics such as drug-interaction, disorientation, and substance abuse. Even Fox News Channel brought out "Dr. Manny" in order to explain how there are cases of Ambian users sleepwalking. However, he didn't say there were cases of sleep-driving.

Here's the gist of the original story which, by the way, was first uncovered by the blogosphere's king of scoopmeisters, Matt Drudge.

Rep. Kennedy was driving with his headlights off and somehow struck a security barrier in DC. Officers from the Capitol Police were already on the scene (he allegedly swerved to avoid hitting their cruiser prior to hitting the barricade) and one officer described the accident scene in a letter:

“The driver [Patrick Kennedy] exited the vehicle and he was observed to be staggering. Officers approached the driver, who declared to them he was a Congressman and was late to a vote. The House had adjourned nearly three hours before this incident,” Baird's letter states.

Baird wrote that Capitol Police Patrol Division units, who are trained in driving under the influence (DUI) cases, were not allowed to perform basic field sobriety tests on the congressman. Instead, two sergeants, who also responded to the accident, proceeded to confer with the Capitol Police watch commander on duty and then “ordered all of the Patrol Division Units to leave the scene and that they were taking over.”

Kennedy then began to make excuses and statements such as he wasn't drinking (allegedly a false statement or the technical term "a lie). He apparently was able to make clear and concise statements immediately following the accident. But then a strange phenomenon occurred: Kennedy suddenly had a blackout. He couldn't remember what happened. One moment he remembered what he did and said prior to and after the accident, next moment the poor man's memory went blank.

While the news media concentrated on a steady stream of news stories about Ambian, Kennedy changed his story. Instead of the Ambian sleepwalking defense, Kennedy decided to use the prescription painkillers defense. Big difference. Ambian is a non-narcotic sleep aid, while painkillers are narcotics, some of which are extremely potent. Oxycontin comes to mind, as does Vicodin, Percocet, Tylox, Hycodin, and numerous others.

Now, here's my point about double-standards: the reader will agree we heard much about Rush Limbaugh's addiction, the allegations of "doctor shopping" and the buying of pills from his housekeeper. To his credit, Limbaugh immediately copped to abusing drugs and was clear about his "drug of choice." And the media asked some tough questions and rightly so. A man who commands the attention of a Rush Limbaugh should be held accountable for his behavior. And Limbaugh did acknowledge his accountability. But the media kept the pressure up.

In the end, the news media even lied about Limbaugh being arrested. He was not arrested. As a former law enforcement officer who, for a while, specialized in drug enforcement, I know what occurred. In New York, it's called the Second Chance Program. In New Jersey it's called Pre-Trial Intervention, or PTI. Different states and cities have different names for these programs. The drug abuser is fingerprinted, photographed and processed the same way police process suspects. However, documents, fingerprint cards and other materials are set aside pending the outcome of the agreement.

Then the drug abuser is mandated to enter a treatment program, undergo periodic urine analysis, meet with a case worker and fulfill other stipulations in the agreement. If after 12 -18 months the substance abuser is genuinely in recovery, does not get re-arrested during that time, and fulfills all provisions of the agreement, the documents, fingerprint cards, mug shots, etc., are turned over to the suspect's attorney for disposal. The suspect is rewarded with a clean record. But the news media didn't care if that was the real story regarding Limbaugh's agreement with the prosecutor. They simply said that Limbaugh, after over three years, was arrested.

Okay, fast-forward to Patrick Kennedy's bout with drug addiction. Not one story about where he gets his drugs or how much he's taking. No stories about who's providing him with large amounts of painkillers. One of the drawbacks of drug addiction is that the addict must continuously up his or her dosage. I've personally dealt with suspects who were abusing Vicodin, a powerful narcotic. Some would take up to 40 pills per day. Federal law and some state laws prohibit doctors and pharmacists from dispensing that many pills to any one patient. Usually a prescription for Vicodin entails dispensing 30 pills per month.

If indeed Rep. Kennedy is hooked on prescription drugs, then chances are he's getting them from more than one physician and pharmacist. The DEA closely monitors physician and pharmacy Schedule II drug prescriptions and if a physician is writing prescriptions for large amounts of opiate-based painkillers, red flags go up all over the place. So of a necessity, a man or woman hooked on painkillers will need more than one or two "connections."

Get my drift? None of the inquisitive minds in our nation's newsrooms seem even the slightest bit interested in digging into the real story behind Patrick Kennedy's accident: A powerful government official making important decisions while he's high as a kite. Don't be surprised if you see a docu-drama being aired on TV about Kennedy fighting his addiction. It's good to be a liberal.

Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police and he's a staff writer for the New Media Alliance (thenma.org). He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country.


Kouri writes for many police and security magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and others. He's a news writer for TheConservativeVoice.Com. He's also a columnist for AmericanDaily.Com, MensNewsDaily.Com, MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com. He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc. His book Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com. Kouri's own website is located at jimkouri.us

http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/14394.html

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This family is screwed up. His dad almost killed his girl friend back in 70s.
This guy is on drugs himself and the entire story is a joke and a tragedy for DemocRatic party having people like him.

I wonder why no body makes a big story out of this in the leftist media either.
 
phoenix80 said:
I wonder why no body makes a big story out of this in the leftist media either.

Because they are used to these kind of stories. It isn't the first time, is it? And it is so much more fun to nail a republican who attributes this kind of behaviour only to the democrats. :)
 
Because they are used to these kind of stories. It isn't the first time, is it? And it is so much more fun to nail a republican who attributes this kind of behaviour only to the democrats. :smile:

That is so true.
 
Camelot is not dead ...

Ted said:
Because they are used to these kind of stories. It isn't the first time, is it? And it is so much more fun to nail a republican who attributes this kind of behaviour only to the democrats. :)
Bullsh*t ...it has nothing to do with the political party .......... it's a "name" thing. The Kennedy's have some magical property that allows this type of "accident" to slip and slide out of their lives like water off a duck's back.

Look at all of the various stories that have impinged on the lives of the Kennedy family and one thing is very obvious ... Camelot is not dead.
 
right, the Marilyn Monroe affair, the fact that the Kennedeys have a reputation for getting knocked off early, the Chapaquiddick accident, stange things just follow these guys around? It's like weird incidents just swoop in like vultures with these guys. Now, go through the proper channels and put P. Kennedy in rehab.
 
I am agreeing with the double standard in regards to Rush. If the standards are the same, then Patric Kennedy should be investigated for how he got the pain killers for which he was on that night. Better yet, every hollywood star who checks into rehab should be investigated. I am sure the FBI would nab more than a few big time drug dealers.
 
It's a simple fact. The Kennedy's aren't normal folks, samething with movie stars. They are "above" us common folk so the law doesn't apply to them as it applies to us.

What really pisses me off is the liberal leftwing Washington DC police. SOP dicates that a Blood Alcohol level test be applied, did they do it. Nope, the LT on duty told the patrolmen to drive him home and sweep the situtation under the rug.

That department is at fault as much as the Kennedy Clan is.

'Nuff Said...

Luis

PS - I hate any and all Kennedy's because of JFK betrayals of Brigada 2506 at the Bay of Pigs. Also, the Kennedy money was made by JFK's father. He was a rum runner during the days of prohibition.
 
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Well they do enjoy certain priviliges, but they paid the price for the fame as well. Two assassinations and every single move makes the tabloids. And they still pack enough clout that a DC police leutenant doesn't want to burn himself. Maybe the Bush's can make it to the Kennedy's on the conservative party!
 
Doody said:
I am agreeing with the double standard in regards to Rush. If the standards are the same, then Patric Kennedy should be investigated for how he got the pain killers for which he was on that night. Better yet, every hollywood star who checks into rehab should be investigated. I am sure the FBI would nab more than a few big time drug dealers.

The difference with Rush was he was 'doctor-shopping', was is highly illegal. So far, there has been no allegation of this with Kennedy though I'm sure the Capitol PD will look into the source. If Kennedy did anything illegal, then like Rush he should be prosecuted. The reason Rush got picked on was that he routinuly told his radio listeners that Drug addicts should be incarcerated, and then he winds up doing the same thing and is doing everything he can to avoid the that fate. Now that's hypocritical.
The left certainly has its faults, but it is not the holier-than-thou 'Morals' party. Thats always been a conservative schtick.
 
mmarsh said:
The left certainly has its faults, but it is not the holier-than-thou 'Morals' party. Thats always been a conservative schtick.

I don't know what a "schtick" is, but I agee with the rest.
 
mmarsh said:
The left certainly has its faults, but it is not the holier-than-thou 'Morals' party. Thats always been a conservative schtick.

Your bias is showing. The Left and the Right are just as guilty in this area. They're cut from the same exact cloth, just in different shapes.
 
PJ24 said:
Your bias is showing. The Left and the Right are just as guilty in this area. They're cut from the same exact cloth, just in different shapes.
Sorry not true. The very core of any type of any conservative movement are: Morals, Traditions, and conformity. Liberals are just the opposite, they believe in non-confomity and in individuality. You'll never see any true liberal preaching 'morals' unless their a politician like Hillary, which is why I find her attempts to pander to the right are so pathetic.

As I said above, the left wasnt criticizing Limbaugh because he was a drug addict, it was because he was an enormous hypocrite. Another example is Newt Gingrich, here was a guy who preached fire and brimstone as the speaker of House of Representatives about the immoralities of Bill Clinton during the Lewenski affair, and it turns out he had divorced his 1st wife while she was on a hospital bed (cancer patient) in order to marry his lover and then divorced wife #2 in order because he was cheating on her with one of his aides, half his age. (whom he didn't marry). Now married to somebody else. All of this as the GOP speaker on 'family values'. Or another example of the 'moral authority' Bill Bennett who talk a good game about 'family values' and then turns out to have a rather large gambling problem. Physician heal thyself. Of course I could mention all the holy-rollers, Jim Bakker (emblezzler, fornicater), Robertson (Conflict diamonds with Charles Taylor, various hate mongering), Swaggert (prostitution), Falwell (SEC violations) and all of them members of the 'Morals' crowd.

If the right wants to stop being called hypocrites, then it needs to lose its attitude of being holier than thou saints. They are as much as sinners as the liberals.

Ted

'Schtick' is American East Coast slang. Its prenounced 'Shh-TICK' It comes from various neighborhoods along the American East Coast, probably originating from a mix of English and Hebrew. It means something that belongs or is attributed to somebody else. For example, Comedy is Eddie Murphys Schtick.
 
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mmarsh said:
The difference with Rush was he was 'doctor-shopping', was is highly illegal. So far, there has been no allegation of this with Kennedy though I'm sure the Capitol PD will look into the source.

One of the points made in the article was that there either wasn't any such investigation going on or that it wasn't publicized. Another point made was that, to get the quantities of drugs he "needed," he would almost certainly have to have an illegal source.

mmarsh said:
Sorry not true. The very core of any type of any conservative movement are: Morals, Traditions, and conformity. Liberals are just the opposite, they believe in non-confomity and in individuality. You'll never see any true liberal preaching 'morals' unless their a politician like Hillary, which is why I find her attempts to pander to the right are so pathetic.

Perhaps the Left in the US is a bit different from the Left elsewhere. There may be a bit of non-conformity preached from the Left, but you have to be the exact same kind of non-conformist as the rest of the Left. Individuality is certainly not the goal of a party that cozies up to such ideals as removing any sort of grading or competition from school or anything else so no one feels left out. The Left here in the US certainly does preach "morals." They're simply the complete opposite of what the Right preaches. "Evil" is anyone who has a different opinion, states is, and dares to suggest that the opposite opinion is wrong.
 
moving0target said:
One of the points made in the article was that there either wasn't any such investigation going on or that it wasn't publicized. Another point made was that, to get the quantities of drugs he "needed," he would almost certainly have to have an illegal source.


I assume your refering to Kennedy and not Limbaugh? Then yes, I was merely explaining to those who drawing parrells between the two that limbaugh was busted for doctor shopping, while Kennedy is only a DWI (for the moment as the investigation continues).

Perhaps the Left in the US is a bit different from the Left elsewhere. There may be a bit of non-conformity preached from the Left, but you have to be the exact same kind of non-conformist as the rest of the Left. Individuality is certainly not the goal of a party that cozies up to such ideals as removing any sort of grading or competition from school or anything else so no one feels left out. The Left here in the US certainly does preach "morals." They're simply the complete opposite of what the Right preaches. "Evil" is anyone who has a different opinion, states is, and dares to suggest that the opposite opinion is wrong.

Here's the definition of liberalism from Dictionary.com
  1. A political theory founded on the natural goodness of humans and the autonomy of the individual and favoring civil and political liberties, government by law with the consent of the governed, and protection from arbitrary authority.
Automony of the individual mean individualism, its pretty clear. The removal of the grading system in schools is not a liberal party platform. My university in the mid-west experimented with this. Its merely a theory exposed by a few acedemics that question whether a grading system was an accurate measure of acedemic knowledge. Whether you agree with it or not I dont see how you can draw a parrellel between this and individualism. Besides, its not even an opinion shared by the majority of liberals.
 
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