How widespread are the homeless/mental health/addiction issues in your city/province?

[le calmar]

I hear the homeless problem in the far east end of Downtown Montreal is getting out of hand. I haven’t been there in quite some time do I can’t judge how bad it is compared to what it used to be, but this is concerning. Something will need to be done sooner or later.

[Coldrsx]

What to do with Downtown Edmonton...

https://edmontonjournal.com/opinion/...h-for-edmonton

[Acajack]

Hearing that Health Canada is greenlighting cocaine production and sales in BC at the province's request.

Any thoughts or details?

Apparently it will be sold in government pot shops, similar to SQDC in my province.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Hearing that Health Canada is greenlighting cocaine production and sales in BC at the province's request.

Any thoughts or details?

Apparently it will be sold in government pot shops, similar to SQDC in my province.

The inmates have taken over the asylum.

[niwell]

Cocaine is a weird one. I suppose it's to avoid people switching to crack? Or is it to avoid fentanyl contamination? Still not convinced the latter is as much of an issue as it's made out to be (in that most people ODing aren't doing tainted cocaine).

Regardless doesn't seem like the drug of choice right now for demographics actually at risk. Don't see many Bay st types dropping dead and I can assure you the usage hasn't gone down much (if at all) in recent years.

[Acajack]

Speaking recently with a family member I hadn't seen in a while.

He lives in the suburbs of Ottawa and has resumed going back to his downtown office more often than not.

His commute is partly on the O-Train though he's a long time OC Transpo rider and used the Transitway BRT for maybe 20 years before the Confederation Line when into service.

Without my prompting, he mentioned an explosion of incidents with "wackos" (his term) on the O-Train and in and around stations in the past while.

He acknowledged that there were incidents before but they happened maybe once or twice a year. Now he says it's getting close to once a week.

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Hearing that Health Canada is greenlighting cocaine production and sales in BC at the province's request.

Any thoughts or details?

Apparently it will be sold in government pot shops, similar to SQDC in my province.

LOL no. Who are you getting this information from?

Cocaine is used as a topical anesthetic in some medical procedures. Don't tell anyone.

[savevp]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Hearing that Health Canada is greenlighting cocaine production and sales in BC at the province's request.

Any thoughts or details?

I recently read an Economist article (paywalled online) arguing for legalisation, and it did quite convincingly make the point that the current approach isn't working. Cocaine flows as freely as ever. If the gov't also sold crack legally, not just the high-end stuff, it might make a dent in the actual problems.

Government opiod shops are probably one answer to reduce deaths at least. Methheads screaming at you on the bus, maybe not so much.

Personally I've reached the apex of my frustration at encountering so many more of these people on transit nowadays, far more than you used to see. I don't know if a forced rehab scheme would work, but I've come round to the idea. Obviously not such a simple thing to introduce, but the current 'ignore them' approach isn't sustainable. At this point, I think a benevolent incarceration in rehab is preferable to waiting for the one overdose someone doesn't come back from.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

LOL no. Who are you getting this information from?

Cocaine is used as a topical anesthetic in some medical procedures. Don't tell anyone.

We're not talking about use in a controlled professional medical setting.

Even your province's Opposition Leader is not pleased about this.

You live in BC and obviously follow the news and know what the situation is.

So you're just engaging in an annoying form of discussion - the runaround.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by savevp

I recently read an Economist article (paywalled online) arguing for legalisation, and it did quite convincingly make the point that the current approach isn't working. Cocaine flows as freely as ever. If the gov't also sold crack legally, not just the high-end stuff, it might make a dent in the actual problems.

Government opiod shops are probably one answer to reduce deaths at least. Methheads screaming at you on the bus, maybe not so much.

Personally I've reached the apex of my frustration at encountering so many more of these people on transit nowadays, far more than you used to see. I don't know if a forced rehab scheme would work, but I've come round to the idea. Obviously not such a simple thing to introduce, but the current 'ignore them' approach isn't sustainable. At this point, I think a benevolent incarceration in rehab is preferable to waiting for the one overdose someone doesn't come back from.

These days we have enough trouble incarcerating people who are a potential danger others, so we're not even close to incarcerating people who are danger to their own selves.

And I am not being facetious here.

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by Acajack

We're not talking about use in a controlled professional medical setting.

Even your province's Opposition Leader is not pleased about this.

You live in BC and obviously follow the news and know what the situation is.

So you're just engaging in an annoying form of discussion - the runaround.

You're spouting bullshit rumours. The bottom line is all kinds of controlled substances are produced and sold in Canada, legally, for reasons other than people getting high.

You insinuated they'd be sold in corner stores.

Coming from a master of garbage posts, I'll take that as a compliment.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by savevp

I recently read an Economist article (paywalled online) arguing for legalisation, and it did quite convincingly make the point that the current approach isn't working. Cocaine flows as freely as ever. If the gov't also sold crack legally, not just the high-end stuff, it might make a dent in the actual problems.

Government opiod shops are probably one answer to reduce deaths at least. Methheads screaming at you on the bus, maybe not so much.

Personally I've reached the apex of my frustration at encountering so many more of these people on transit nowadays, far more than you used to see. I don't know if a forced rehab scheme would work, but I've come round to the idea. Obviously not such a simple thing to introduce, but the current 'ignore them' approach isn't sustainable. At this point, I think a benevolent incarceration in rehab is preferable to waiting for the one overdose someone doesn't come back from.

Even the CBC(!) has been running stories questioning whether decriminalization is the answer:

Oregon decriminalized drugs 2 years ago. What can B.C. learn from its rocky start?
B.C. has begun a 3-year pilot to decriminalize possession of small amounts of certain drugs
Georgie Smyth · CBC News · Posted: Feb 26, 2023

....He was surprised to find out British Columbia also recently moved to eliminate criminal penalties for personal possession, and says there could be unforeseen challenges.

"You're going to see an increase in public drug use," Baer said.

Oregon, for instance, saw a 52 percent rise in opioid deaths in the first year of its new measure, and has struggled to get enough access to treatment in place — a challenge B.C. already faces. ...

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/briti...sons-1.6739257

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

You're spouting bullshit rumours. The bottom line is all kinds of controlled substances are produced and sold in Canada, legally, for reasons other than people getting high.

You insinuated they'd be sold in corner stores.

Coming from a master of garbage posts, I'll take that as a compliment.

Have fun driving your kids everywhere in your city when they're older because it's unsafe for them to walk or take transit by themselves.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Have fun driving your kids everywhere in your city when they're older because it's unsafe for them to walk or take transit by themselves.

We could always create and provide services for the needy rather than demonizing and fearmongering over them.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by JHikka

We could always create and provide services for the needy rather than demonizing and fearmongering over them.

Good thing I always vote for parties that support that stuff.

But "services" is not synonymous with "free (harder and harder) drugs".

[Acajack]

There's always a first...

Shots fired at a city bus here in Gatineau. First time in the 50+ year history of the transit agency that this has happened.

https://www.ledroit.com/2023/03/03/d...box=1677861570

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by Acajack

But "services" is not synonymous with "free (harder and harder) drugs".

Is anyone proposing this? Opiate services and centres are not "free drugs".

[niwell]

The people causing issues on transit / public spaces aren't particularly likely to be on cocaine. Or opiates/fentanyl for that matter (unless they're passed out). I'm fully on-board with decriminalization of smaller amounts of cocaine given how ubiquitous the drug is in many circles - particularly those that would never face issues even if caught.

Also from what I can tell it seems like the license Health Canada issued allows for production but only sales for licensed scientific / medical purposes. So not exactly sure what the issue is?

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by niwell

The people causing issues on transit / public spaces aren't particularly likely to be on cocaine. Or opiates/fentanyl for that matter (unless they're passed out). I'm fully on-board with decriminalization of smaller amounts of cocaine given how ubiquitous the drug is in many circles - particularly those that would never face issues even if caught.

Also from what I can tell it seems like the license Health Canada issued allows for production but only sales for licensed scientific / medical purposes. So not exactly sure what the issue is?

That's not what I have read or heard but will happily stand corrected if that's the case.

Read what the company is saying here. Doesn't sound like controlled used in medical environments only.

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/b-c-firm-g...211541779.html

[niwell]

Originally Posted by Acajack

That's not what I have read or heard but will happily stand corrected if that's the case.

Read what the company is saying here. Doesn't sound like controlled used in medical environments only.

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/b-c-firm-g...211541779.html

I was going off this article which seems to be an updated version of the above: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/briti...oval-1.6766106

In a statement to CBC News Thursday night, Health Canada clarified the parameters for granting the licence, saying the company is licensed to sell for scientific and medical purposes only.

"They cannot sell products to the general public," the federal department said.

Adastra Labs can only sell to other licence holders who have cocaine listed on their licence, namely pharmacists, practitioners, hospitals, or the holder of an exemption for research purposes, Health Canada said.

Now it's fully possible the company sought out the license to take advantage of any future law-changes, but until then they are pretty limited.