Discussions

addicted to alcohol, never admitting that they did. Drank like a fish for the majority of their life. Finally made the choice to quit a few years back. No one could say anything to make this person stop drinking. They only changed their mind and quit and the reason they gave? "I want to live longer'. So people can quit but it has to be their choice and they have to be strong enough to do so.  
 
I know when you live with an addict it's hard and you think you will never make it but lots of times things work out just fine.

Fishin Guy said "What about the rest of the busts they do? Seems you want to focus on just that one case. CAn you find for us what the evidence was to have the charges stayed?     As for money used efficiently:   https://www.brandonsun.com/local/Two-arrested-in-downtown-drug-bust-476397733.html   http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/brandon-cocaine-charges-1.4403820   http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/police-raid-brandon-home-wednesday-1.4384257     Every day I read about a bust in the paper, usually small scales of users but occasionally you get your larger dealer. "

Gather the information and present it to the crown who then decides if they have a case. Simple as that.judges then rule on various items of law.....sometimes for the bad guys.

Viv said "I didn’t want to take over the needle thread so thought I’d start another.     I guess I’m over here shaking my head based on some responses, but I want to be open minded and allow for other opinions to change my mind. So my questions are: why is it up to our government officials to solve the drug problems in our communities? Why do we have to spend tax dollars on people who choose to do drugs? At some point is the onus not on the drug users to make the choice to get clean? We can’t force people to stop using drugs.     Now I’m aware there is a local group trying to bring awareness to this subject and I commend them for that. They want to get a treatment facility and are rallying together as citizens to get that done and I think that’s awesome. But why are we blaming police or politicians? Isn’t it up to community groups to be the change they want to see? Am I just reading misplaced anger on this subject?   I don’t really agree with clean needle centers either... why willingly give out needles to users? Isn’t an inherent risk of drug use the diseases that could be spread? Why would we spend tax money to help drug users? I feel like we should do our part to make it harder on drug users, not easier. Am I being too mean?   I’m not trying to be negative, just learn more on the subject and want to hear from other viewpoints respectfully. "

seem to have hit a tipping point. It ain't easy finding out your high school classmate is on Methadone, or explaining to your nephew why there are needles strewn across every park.  
 
But, behind every drug is a person who is dealing with more pain than they can handle.  
 
I know it seems like facilitating drug use, but I like to think of it more as protecting people of the future from their present selves who aren't able to make the best decisions at the moment.

And I'm just not convinced that more treatment centres are the answer.  
 
I know people who have addictions and mental health issues. I'm not saying I understand everything about addictions & mental health (and I do have empathy) but what came first, the addiction or the mental health issues?  
 
The people I know enjoy doing what they are doing and how they are living. They enjoy the drinking, the pharmaceuticals and the street drugs. The only thing I ever hear is that they are short on money. The fact is they spend their government cheques on booze and drugs, then have no money for food. They get their medications free because they need them and from what I've seen, they enjoy mixing the meds with alcohol or drugs.  
 
I can say with absolute certainty if I threw 100 treatment centres in front of them, they would still choose to walk away to find their next “party”. What is going to change this behaviour? A 60-day detox? A 6-month rehab stay? 4 years? And is there a limit of how many relapse intakes one person is allowed. All I see envision is a revolving door. What are the success rates? Even the addicts that WANT to get clean relapse. Repeatedly.  
 
We are already paying for the alcohol and the drugs every month. We pay for the food banks and meds. Now we're asked to pay for treatment centres. As a tax payer I don't want to pay for anything else. I'm frustrated that someone always has a hand out asking me for something more. I was taught to give more than I receive but I'm tired of the giving.  
 
I don't want my tax money spent on more treatment centres until someone convinces me this is the answer or even a good part of the solution.  
 
You can't get addicted to drugs if you don't start taking them. When does the choice become a mistake and when does that mistake then become the responsibility of the government? And where are we paying for duplication of services?  
 
I could be an addict by the time the weekend rolls around because I do know what a good party looks like, but I choose not to be an addict and it has nothing to do with my mental state. It's my choice.  
 
Throwing good money after bad, after bad, after bad never makes any sense. Where does it end?  
 
I hope the Go Fund Me is a success and that the funds are allocated appropriately.

Hackeda said: "You can't get addicted to drugs if you don't start taking them. When does the choice become a mistake and when does that mistake then become the responsibility of the government? And where are we paying for duplication of services?"  
 
Well Right now we don't even have single time of services. You're labouring under a real misconception if you think most people who need mental health inpatient services are getting it. You're getting bad information if you think that most addicts are able to access appropriate treatment at the time that they recognize they need it and are motivated to get it.  
 
As for the idea that you can't become an addict if you don't start taking them.... This is a fallacy. Have you ever heard of a "dry drunk"? This is a person who is an alcoholic but who doesn't drink alcohol any more. They haven't addressed the issues that cause them to be an alcoholic, but they have stopped drinking. They still have the emotional issues that have caused the use of alcohol as a coping mechanism. They will find other dysfunctional ways to cope until they actually deal with their issues. It could be that they are the rage-filled person who over reacts in road rage incidents, the person who abuses other people in their lives or is constantly quitting jobs etc. It's not knowing "what a good party looks like".

I also have to say you THINK these people are happy with the life style. The truth is they’ll tell you they love it, while really it’s killing most of them inside. They’re trying to convince themselves it’s the life they want to live, so they have to play the role and tell you that too. No one wants to admit their life is hell and that they never wanted to become this way?  
Also, I know many addicts who have wanted treatment. And if the treatment was available then and there (more centres open) they would have got in when they were determined to get help. Instead it’s a 6-12 month wait and by the time the first month sober rolls around they can’t cope with themselves any more. So they go back to drugs because they know nothing else.

I have known too many who got into drinking (and some into drugs) just because they were young and stupid and it was their idea of a good time. Party hard enough long enough and you learn you're addicted. Do they then wish they never started down that particular path? Of course, or at least some do. Some never really learn they took the wrong path, or they pretend they have not learned and are still having fun.  
 
Hackeda's "dry drunk" would never have been addicted if he hadn't started drinking. That isnt a fallacy. Someone who never drinks will never become an alcoholic. The problem is stopping once the addiction has a hold on you. Then a drink is one too many and a thousand aren't enough- there is a song to that effect.

What a productive way to engage the public and garner community support. Nowhere near convincing me to fall off the fence in the foundation's direction.  
 
I've taken a full step back from any support I wanted to have for the cause. I don't just think I have, I know I have.  
 
It seems to be all figured out without any explanation, as it's been for three pages.  
 
Now I can contact my MLA and Premier with my thoughts.

...come a dime a dozen.

There has been a few family members who went to their grave still as miserable as they were all their life. No they weren't addicted to alcohol (no dry drunks) or drugs but they were not nice or kind at all. Did they have issues from their childhood? Probably. But all the same they didn't want to change their crappy attitude either.  
 
I didn't have an ideal childhood either but I NEED to treat people good because it makes ME feel good.