How do you get to test this? Do they give people drugs and make them spit? Sign me up.

Privacy invading? Police still need probable cause to test you, or any lawyer worth his/her mettle will get the results thrown out in court. And if you gave police probable cause, that means you probably stopped being private.

roshinobi, worded beautifully. Comment FTW!

I believe in the authouritarian, macocious, Big Brother...as long as I'm the Big Brother. On second thought......there could be some issues here, hmmm!!!

roshinobi, how is that in anyway shape or form, privacy invasion?

I fail to see where in the article it mentions privacy invasion.

Explain to me. A cop uses a device to detect if you are breaking the law, or not breaking the law.
It's pretty obvious is someone is high or not.

They are not going to use it unless you are
obviously messed up. And instead of no proof, they now have proof.

It's not like they are going to be knocking on everyone's doors asking them to spit.

don't run out at home

It's not an invasion of privacy if done in public. It is an invasion if the cop enters your home (or yard) and tries to make you take the test. In any event, you have the right to ask for a lawyer and to tell the cop where to stick his new plaything.

I don't see how this could work with marijuana. I highly doubt if it would detect if you were high at the time of the test. More likely it would detect residue in your body which could be present for months after you had used it. Which would be useless in a case to convict you for driving under the influence.

Seriously.. we're trying to test for pot? Why can't we make a portable device that tests for STDs? Oh, that's right - it's because we'd rather feed the f**cking propaganda machine than actually try and better the world in any way. Way to go Philips.

My question is, is it necessary? What's the taxpayer cost to benefit ratio? After all, if implemented in America, it'll be state and municipal budgets paying for these. Currently, you can arrest someone on suspicion of DUI without verifiable evidence. This tester will provide that evidence, but only if the suspect agrees to the test. Cops can't compel a saliva sample any more then they can compel a breath analyzer test.

This is where the whole "War on Drugs" validity issue arises. Philips stands to make a lot of money on this product; will the general public enjoy a comparable benefit?

One more step to legalizing and taxing drugs, Although a good approach to determine drug use, drugs effect people differently, as alcohol can be measured to a level of control in the human body. This device determines the presence of drugs recently consumed, If someone simply smoked up and then brushed their teeth, the traces would be difficult to be there since the saliva is the source for detection. The test is not measuring impairment, its just testing the presences of drugs.

wouldnt police to obtain a court order to test your spit? its got dna and i know that they need court order to test you in that fasion. i wouldnt spit into a cops device or whatever even i hadnt done anything wrong.

Lame post.

We've had these in Australia for years.

Guess what America, we also have a system of measurement that's really easy to use called the METRIC SYSTEM. We use it for weight, distance, volume etc. It's awesome.

@Will
Third paragraph, 7 words in. That's where it mentions privacy-invasion. Anyway, I agree: this does not invade privacy. That was the point of my comment.

Hey L...
Where did the comment about the Metric System come from??
I must have missed the part where someone mentions a system of measurement.

I do not know so much about this. Kinda sketchy, but at the same time very clever.

Great!! Maybe if they can verify they will legalize.

WILL: Maybe you are high, you cant even get your sentence right. "It's pretty obvious is someone is high or not."

---IT IS AN INVASION OF PRIVACY

for those of you suggesting that it's an invasion of privacy, I would suggest you whip out your drivers license and see what you agreed to when you signed up for it. On my back of mine (in florida) it says that by having the license I agree to submit to all tests required to determine my ability to drive. I had to take a written test and then an on the road test. currently, DUI tests fall under this banner too, so this is just an extension of the DUI testing that's already happening

90second wait? AAAAWWwww, hope they at least provide some munchies.

@will

if any of u knew anything about drug use at all, you'd realize that after a while, being on the drug that you chose is alot like being sober to someone who isnt. sure the first couple times i smoked pot i was in a different world but my resistance has built up. ive been totally baked for two years and im a perfectly functioning person in this society, in fact id be acting wierd if i was sober. Everyone has a fucking vice, fuck the po-lice

Well Done Philips, as smoking marihuana in The Netherlands is legal, this device could come in handy! Because drivin' bombed out of your skull is becoming a nuiscance.

OMG, all this talk of big brother and invasion of privacy, oh please.
How is this any different than a breathalyzer test for DUI?
BTW, police can come into your home and test if there is probable cause.
It's amazing how you can tell who the users are in the comments and just how ignorant they are cause they are obviously not thinking clearly.

My wife is a routine pot smoker, and sometimes meth, I hate it. I can totally see the personality changes. Those that say otherwise are clouded in their own THC cloud of denile.
I used to be pro legalization... not anymore since i see first had what it is doing to her and our marriage. Wish I could have this myself to test he

Mageguru, illegalization obviously doesn't stop your wife from smoking pot or doing meth, does it? Then what difference does it make? If somebody knows what meth does to their body through education, they won't touch it whether its legal or not (or they might not care and do it anyway). You have no right to force people what they can or can not put in their bodies. People do whatever they want regardless of what the law says. Drugs are always available to people whether legal or illegal. The question you want to ask yourself is, how many people do I want to put in jail? How much tax payer money are we willing to give up just to keep non-violent offenders in our jails & prisons? The United States has the highest documented incarceration rate IN THE WORLD. About 25% are sentenced for drug law violations. The U.S. federal government spent over $19 billion dollars in 2003 on the War on Drugs. The budget has since been increased by over a billion dollars!

wow, Mageguru, at least stoners such as myself can manage proper spelling and grammar when typing responses to articles/other online readers in forums such as this, two tasks which i see you have failed dismally at. i'll go ahead and keep myself "clouded in my own THC cloud of denile," thank you very much. also, i think you ought to have a chat with your wife about the meth she 'occasionally' smokes, as for some reason i want to point my finger at that for any kind of marital dysfunction you may be experiencing long before i'll take my complaint to the dope smoking department.

is this an invasion of privacy: no. is this a waste of valuable resources and brain power in a time where smoking pot ought to be closer to the least of our collective worries: yes.

I like smoking while I'm driving!

Nice Invention!!! Technology is simply just taking over :) Thanks for Sharing !!!

lol@mageguru. sorry you decided to marry the wrong person. the ball is in your court on that one. next time try thinking. also, cops cannot test you on probable cause you moron. you have to either consent or they must consult a higher authority. You can't tell who is a user based on the comments, but you certainly can tell who the stupid ones are!

Ok, so there hasn't yet been a determination if this device tests to see if YOU ARE HIGH OR NOT. I mean, I'd fail a weed test right now, but thats because I smoked a few days ago. Anyone??