Pubdate: Mon, 10 Feb 2003 Source: Surrey Now (CN BC) Copyright: 2003 Lower Mainland Publishing Group Inc., A Canwest Company Contact: http://www.thenownewspaper.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1462 Author: John Oman ALCOHOL IS THE WORST DRUG ON THE STREET The Editor, Alcohol and cigarettes are a far more costly problem for taxpayers than heroin will ever be. But that seems to be acceptable because the government is making a lot of money off the backs of these sick people. Gordon Campbell is a prime example and but for the grace of God no one was killed or maimed by him the night he was out drinking and endangering the lives of himself and others! He should be ashamed of himself and step down, receive a fine, have his licence suspended, have a criminal record and do community hours like the rest of us who commit a criminal offence. The syringe exchange in Whalley works hand in hand with the medical clinic, HIV/AIDS program and the Front Room of South Fraser Community Services Society to help people because they are ill with a disease that they cannot fix by themselves. They also make referrals to many other drug and alcohol programs. Please don't re-locate it as it is needed exactly where it is now. The Flamingo and Dell hotels as well as beer stores and liquor stores in Surrey are within a block of the exchange. Alcohol is also a drug and certainly causes more grief and makes more mess than any other drug out there. More crime is committed, more people are maimed and killed and more families are ruined because of alcohol than any other drug. I think a supervised cleanup crew should be dispatched in the Whalley area every day to pick up the litter, liquor bottles and food wrappers, as well as the odd syringe, perhaps using a labour force consisting of convicted impaired drivers, drug dealers, etc., as a mandatory part of their sentencing. It would be a lot cheaper and would serve the area a lot better than what Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum proposes. Has he no imagination? Using all the money saved by stopping all McCallum's other useless projects and free labour for neighbourhood clean-up, McCallum could put all his effort into opening up a much needed detox, rehabilitation facility, and more drug and alcohol programs so people don't have to go on a long waiting list in Surrey. This would generate good press and would actually help the problem that was in Whalley long before the syringe exchange opened. Hopefully McCallum would include his councillors in his plans so they could help to guide him and keep him from going off half-cocked again. I also think McCallum should take a drug and alcohol course to help educate him as to the plight of the sometimes "homeless, addicted and mentally challenged" people on the streets who he has referred to as "undesirable" so he could learn to be more compassionate toward others and be less judgmental to those less fortunate than himself. I write this letter based on my own experiences with all of the above-mentioned addictions. I am clean and sober today because of all the help that places like South Fraser Community Services Society so freely gives to those in need. I applaud the staff of all shelters, drop-in centers, street health outreach programs, needle exchange programs, detoxes, rehab centers, counsellors and doctors who help us overcome or manage our disease of addiction without judgment. C'mon Surrey ... Get with the program! John Oman Delta - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens