1h 28 min
Sheriff Bill Masters on Peace Keeping and the Drug War Self in Society Podcast
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- Filosofia
Sheriff Bill Masters discusses peace keeping and how that relates to the war on drugs. Masters, of Telluride, San Miguel County, is the longest serving sheriff in Colorado history, having taken over the position in 1980. Masters also is the author of the 2001 book, Drug War Addiction: Notes from the Front Lines of America's #1 Policy Disaster (which I helped to edit). This interview was recorded on May 23, 2022, as the Self in Society Podcast #27.
Time Markers00 Intro1:40 On being sheriff for 42 years2:50 Peace keeping vs. law enforcement4:11 What troubles Telluride: crime, rescues, wildfires8:27 Peace keeping through the pandemic10:07 Helping people with mental illness and addictions12:34 Today’s political parties17:48 Being pro-immigrant20:13 The war on drugs27:33 The problem of addiction31:09 When drug distribution is rights-violating33:13 Civil liberties and the drug war40:00 On speaking out40:56 Legal marijuana in Colorado44:06 The promise and problems of body cameras50:54 Peace officers are held liable, judges and legislators aren’t; cigarette example55:11 Laws imply a potential deadly use of force57:20 Telluride’s Covid tourism ban58:34 A sheriff's discretion59:00 An honorable profession; “We need to have fewer laws, not more laws.”1:00:13 The downside of mandated auto insurance1:02:14 The problem of hiring good peace officers1:07:06 What gets rewarded?1:10:14 Oriented to resolving conflicts1:12:36 A need for thorough training1:15:09 Don Coram and the Vietnam veteran1:17:59 Bill's trip on the Nile1:22:03 The charm of Telluride1:23:58 What’s new at the sheriff's office1:27:55 Wrap-up
I mentioned Dwight Radcliff, who holds the record as longest-serving sheriff in U.S. history. (I think Masters is the longest-serving sheriff currently serving in the U.S.)
Masters’s office posts its shared principles.
As I mentioned, a Telluride man was charged with the January 6 Capitol invasion.
CPR ran an article about Masters (which I cite) some years ago.
Eric Garner is the name of the person killed in New York over selling cigarettes.
Colorado passed relatively good asset forfeiture reforms some years ago, but I think they need revisiting, and other states have worse rules about that.
Update: Complete Colorado ran my article summarizing aspects of my discussion with Masters.
Following are a few photos of Masters from around the time of his book publication.
Speaking at the University of Colorado, Boulder:
Speaking at the Cato Institute:
Meeting Cato’s David Boaz:
Touring Washington D. C.:
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit selfinsociety.substack.com
Sheriff Bill Masters discusses peace keeping and how that relates to the war on drugs. Masters, of Telluride, San Miguel County, is the longest serving sheriff in Colorado history, having taken over the position in 1980. Masters also is the author of the 2001 book, Drug War Addiction: Notes from the Front Lines of America's #1 Policy Disaster (which I helped to edit). This interview was recorded on May 23, 2022, as the Self in Society Podcast #27.
Time Markers00 Intro1:40 On being sheriff for 42 years2:50 Peace keeping vs. law enforcement4:11 What troubles Telluride: crime, rescues, wildfires8:27 Peace keeping through the pandemic10:07 Helping people with mental illness and addictions12:34 Today’s political parties17:48 Being pro-immigrant20:13 The war on drugs27:33 The problem of addiction31:09 When drug distribution is rights-violating33:13 Civil liberties and the drug war40:00 On speaking out40:56 Legal marijuana in Colorado44:06 The promise and problems of body cameras50:54 Peace officers are held liable, judges and legislators aren’t; cigarette example55:11 Laws imply a potential deadly use of force57:20 Telluride’s Covid tourism ban58:34 A sheriff's discretion59:00 An honorable profession; “We need to have fewer laws, not more laws.”1:00:13 The downside of mandated auto insurance1:02:14 The problem of hiring good peace officers1:07:06 What gets rewarded?1:10:14 Oriented to resolving conflicts1:12:36 A need for thorough training1:15:09 Don Coram and the Vietnam veteran1:17:59 Bill's trip on the Nile1:22:03 The charm of Telluride1:23:58 What’s new at the sheriff's office1:27:55 Wrap-up
I mentioned Dwight Radcliff, who holds the record as longest-serving sheriff in U.S. history. (I think Masters is the longest-serving sheriff currently serving in the U.S.)
Masters’s office posts its shared principles.
As I mentioned, a Telluride man was charged with the January 6 Capitol invasion.
CPR ran an article about Masters (which I cite) some years ago.
Eric Garner is the name of the person killed in New York over selling cigarettes.
Colorado passed relatively good asset forfeiture reforms some years ago, but I think they need revisiting, and other states have worse rules about that.
Update: Complete Colorado ran my article summarizing aspects of my discussion with Masters.
Following are a few photos of Masters from around the time of his book publication.
Speaking at the University of Colorado, Boulder:
Speaking at the Cato Institute:
Meeting Cato’s David Boaz:
Touring Washington D. C.:
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit selfinsociety.substack.com
1h 28 min