Wait, how, exactly, does a local police department have someone's Facebook page taken down? Is there any source anyone can find that verifies that's what happened?
Radley Balko did some reporting on this story, after Ben Swann broke it, and neither of those two reporters said anything about Facebook.
Other reporting I've found actually points to Facebook advocacy pages for for Banda, who currently does have Facebook pages.
I don't like Facebook but I am finding it hard to believe that they would take down someone's page based on a police request. You would think that a Judge's order would at least be required.
I have a little problem believing that Garden City PD was actually able to make contact with someone at fb who could do that, but I'd at least hope that fb has a system in place for law enforcement to make contact with a fb staffer who could expedite proper law enforcement requests. I don't have any problem believing that fb would take a page offline after some sort of "administrative subpoena" or other similar sketchiness. I also don't have a problem believing that a judge could be found in a small Midwestern town who would sign off on something like that. But I don't see anything to indicate that's what has happened. If I had to guess, I'd guess that Banda consulted an atty who promptly told her to 'shut down all the things' lest she make her legal defense much more difficult and expensive.
At least in Germany, Facebook doesn't even comply with court orders.
The Facebook Germany office just tells courts to talk to the Irish office, in the knowledge that international judicial assistance is a big obstacle for smaller cases and likely won't happen.
Her Facebook page is working now. Earlier when I clicked on it, it would just go back to my newsfeed. (She was on my friends list prior to this story. She already had 5,000 friends.) Perhaps some bug or automated restriction, maybe from a bunch of people reporting her profile.
I suspect the person who wrote the article does not know the difference between Facebook and the Internet. Or is one of those that simply calls the Internet "Facebook". Yes, they exist, all over in fact...
> The Garden City Police Department had cannabis oil activist Shona Banda’s Facebook account shutdown because she was using her social media network to raise money for her legal defense
Probably the same grounds that prosecutors and police use to seize all liquid assets of a defendant before they are even tried, so they can't afford to pay for a defense lawyer.
Nevermind the Facebook page, they took her son into custody and questioned him without parental consent or legal representation? I truly hope this ends badly for the 'authorities' responsible, as it sounds to me like kidnapping.
Kansas is what happens economically and socially when Republicans are completely in charge. No balance. They are throwing the book at this woman, and punishing her via her kid. That was their first and second course of action. And this particular batch of social conservatives get vindictive when they're made to look bad, so I'd expect her mistreatment to get worse before it gets better.
I wish it were 100% legal like beer already. So many people use it, and it harms just as much as alcohol. Stop putting normal people in prison with murderers and rapists.
I've never done drugs before in my life but I know a ton of professional that do. These are lawyers, doctors, accountants and the occasional taxidermist. Do these people belong in jail? Fuck that.
While I agree that marijuana should be legalized, note that there is some consensus that alcohol causes more harm (societally and to the user) than marijuana [1]. While the societal damage would change if it were legalized, marijuana is still less harmful to users than alcohol.
I can only assume you mean cannabis is a drug, when, in fact, it is a plant. Keeping with the idea that cannabis is a drug, am I correct to assume you have never had a Pepsi or a cup of coffee?
If you're going to be pedantic at least do it well. Going by the dictionary definition of drug: "a medicine or other substance which has a physiological effect when ingested or otherwise introduced into the body" both caffeine and cannabis fit the bill.
Cannabis is a plant that contains cannabinoids that are drugs. As a chemist, I typically don't refer to unrefined plant material as a drug. Because people don't typically consume caffeine raw, most people don't consider coffee consumption "doing drugs"; so, I believe cannabis deserves the same consideration.
Language matters, and I don't consider it to be pedantic to make this point (however subtle the distinction is).
Edit: And, for reference (since you missed the definition of cannabis):
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three different species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica and Cannabis ruderalis.
Great, but where does that prove the police were involved? The source article mentioned no evidence for that, and it doesn't strike me as the most reputable source in any event.
How do you know which profile is hers? I noticed a bunch of Shona Banda related fb pages, but none that I can confirm are affiliated. I am wary of opportunist scammers who would pose as her and try to shunt donations to accounts they control.
Radley Balko did some reporting on this story, after Ben Swann broke it, and neither of those two reporters said anything about Facebook.
Other reporting I've found actually points to Facebook advocacy pages for for Banda, who currently does have Facebook pages.