I don't agree with the "follow the money" trail. If the drug laws were put to public referendum, we'd get the real answer on that question. Right now, our representatives have decided that certain drugs are illegal and Law Enforcement is paid to enforce ALL laws.
These CGs aren't trained to wave guns in citizens' faces. What would lead you to believe that? What would make you think that people, who sign their lives away for eight years to serve the country, are inclined to intimidate people? Please, don't be so quick to presume that people in uniform are radicals with guns with nothing better to do.
You are right that individuals are responsible for their actions. They also should be held accountable for criminal actions- check out the UCMJ, where you can see how we are governed. There is very little room for delinquents. How would you feel if a criminal were to wave a gun at your family? Would you want a policeman to come to their rescue? Or, would you want them to know that everyone is second-guessing their motives? Police will eventually hesitate to save someone's life because of this negative mentality.
You also seemed to have turned this into a "war on drugs" issue. It isn't. It is about the right of CG to search boats. They find all sorts of things during these searches- not just drugs. Are you against them finding smuggled children for the sex trade? Or, is your argument limited to searching for drugs?
You don't have to agree with the "follow the money" trail for it to be there. You can refuse to admit to what is there to see.
A quick example is the "DARE" program that is real popular with the LEO types. Any attempt to cut the program is met with fierce resistance, not because it works, but because they don't want to loose the funding. There has not been a study to date to prove the program works. Yet no one dares cross the police union.
The war on drugs started after the prohibition era ended, there were lots of folks on the government payroll and they need to justify their employment. Up comes the WOD bingo. Problem solved.
Not agreeing with the money trail can only mean you believe everyone employed perusing the WOD is working for free. If you think they are not working for free try to tally up the money spent on paying them. Once you come up with an amount, you have the start of the money trail.
The article that started this thread tells us the CG came out with their guns out. They were simply conducting the WOD, however they paint it for public consumption. They don't need to roust citizens at night to check for life jackets and fire extinguishers.
Because I value freedom and liberty and do not want a police state does not mean I want children smuggled into this country as sex slaves. That is not the issue here. That kind of argument is typical for justifying the payroll of those working for the government. The WOD is about money.
A policeman come to the rescue? Please people are going to be hesitant to call the police because the cop may sue the homeowner if the cop is injured in the rescue attempt. This is the result of police and their unions showing their true colors by suing someone in Michigan right now. For the most part police may take a report, and do nothing with it, because there is no money in it for them. Pull out "Click-it-or-Ticket" or the WOD and then you'll see some action. Why? Because there is money in it for them. Being helpful costs money.
Part of the money trail is the millions of taxpayer dollars spent on lying to the public about drugs, thus tainting the significance of any referendum. A referendum on global warming would probably show that most people think it exists and is man-made, but that doesn't make it true nor a sound basis for public policy.