Pubdate: Sat, 06 Dec 2008 Source: Nanaimo Daily News (CN BC) Copyright: 2008 Nanaimo Daily News Contact: http://www.canada.com/nanaimodailynews/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1608 Author: Gordon Youngman Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08/n1089/a09.html LEGAL SYSTEM CAN'T CURE DRUG ADDICTION WOES Re: 'Businesses wary of clinic for addicts' (Daily News, Dec. 4) We need to remember that laws are made by humans for various reasons. Some are (and I'm not making a religious point here, just trying to establish scale) 'Biblical laws' like murder, assault and theft. Others are to protect people from harm, like 'you shall not smoke near gas pumps because you might get burned' or 'x drug is illegal because it will do you harm.' There is no 'biblical wrong' in doing drugs -- it is a really stupid/bad/lethal idea, and society is using the legal system to help protect people from themselves. The legal system is the major way the government is set up, they have an entire system of police, magistrates, judges, corrections and probation people who manage it. The issue is: Are we helping? In some cases the legal system is the right choice, in others it isn't. This might be an alternative, health-based-system versus a legal-system way of preventing people from hurting themselves and others. In the end, less pain and more productive lives for everyone is what the goal is. I'm not particularly stuck on how we get there. It has been my experience working on another Good Neighbour Agreement that Gordon Cote of NARSF is an extremely competent and willing individual who dialogues with people in order to reach consensus. He is also an extremely forthright individual with a great deal of integrity. I think he should be able to do the same with regards to the Old City Quarter and residents/businesses, and we all are the better for having done this. Gordon Youngman Nanaimo - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin