Hard drugs to be decriminalized in British Columbia

Ron in Regina

"Voice of the West" Party
Apr 9, 2008
23,125
7,989
113
Regina, Saskatchewan
So in BC cocaine is decriminalized but the plastic straw you snort it with is criminalized.
What could go wrong? Thousands of opiate pills obtained by prescription through a “safe supply” harm reduction program have been seized by police in Prince George, B.C., after they were found to have been diverted to organized crime groups reselling them across Canada, the RCMP said.

“Organized crime groups are actively involved in the redistribution of safe supply and prescription drugs,” said Corp. Jennifer Cooper of the RCMP’s Prince George detachment.

“Many of the pills that were seized had been prescribed to specific individuals but were found all collected together, no longer belonging to those individuals,” she added. “It might mean how we regulate our safe supply might need a “sober” second glance.”
An investigation seized more than 10,000 pills, including gabapentin, hydromorphone, codeine and dextroamphetamine, police said. In addition to prescription drugs, investigators also found large quantities of suspected fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine.
1709870020467.jpeg
Where could that have come from??? Hmm…A second investigation uncovered more than two kilograms of suspected cocaine and methamphetamine as well as cash and thousands of additional prescription pills, including oxycodone, morphine and hydromorphone.

The pills of morphine and hydromorphone, both pharmaceutical opioids, were originally safe supply prescription drugs, Cooper said.

Safe supply or safer supply programs are meant to reduce drug overdose deaths by providing government-funded alternatives to potentially tainted illicit drugs. It usually means distributing hydromorphone, a pharmaceutical opioid, to mitigate the use of fentanyl encountered on the street, etc…

The RCMP investigation confirms fears of some who are opposed to safe supply as a way to curb spiking opiate addiction and drug-related deaths.

A similar divergence from the safe supply system was also uncovered by an RCMP investigation in Campbell River, B.C., in February. In that case, police seized two kilograms of fentanyl, a kilogram each of cocaine and methamphetamine, and more than 3,500 hydromorphone pills.
 

petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
109,295
11,385
113
Low Earth Orbit
What could go wrong? Thousands of opiate pills obtained by prescription through a “safe supply” harm reduction program have been seized by police in Prince George, B.C., after they were found to have been diverted to organized crime groups reselling them across Canada, the RCMP said.

“Organized crime groups are actively involved in the redistribution of safe supply and prescription drugs,” said Corp. Jennifer Cooper of the RCMP’s Prince George detachment.

“Many of the pills that were seized had been prescribed to specific individuals but were found all collected together, no longer belonging to those individuals,” she added. “It might mean how we regulate our safe supply might need a “sober” second glance.”
An investigation seized more than 10,000 pills, including gabapentin, hydromorphone, codeine and dextroamphetamine, police said. In addition to prescription drugs, investigators also found large quantities of suspected fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine.
View attachment 21374
Where could that have come from??? Hmm…A second investigation uncovered more than two kilograms of suspected cocaine and methamphetamine as well as cash and thousands of additional prescription pills, including oxycodone, morphine and hydromorphone.

The pills of morphine and hydromorphone, both pharmaceutical opioids, were originally safe supply prescription drugs, Cooper said.

Safe supply or safer supply programs are meant to reduce drug overdose deaths by providing government-funded alternatives to potentially tainted illicit drugs. It usually means distributing hydromorphone, a pharmaceutical opioid, to mitigate the use of fentanyl encountered on the street, etc…

The RCMP investigation confirms fears of some who are opposed to safe supply as a way to curb spiking opiate addiction and drug-related deaths.

A similar divergence from the safe supply system was also uncovered by an RCMP investigation in Campbell River, B.C., in February. In that case, police seized two kilograms of fentanyl, a kilogram each of cocaine and methamphetamine, and more than 3,500 hydromorphone pills.
Never once has anyone ever claimed the Homeless Addiction Industrial Complex was on the up n up.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Taxslave2

Taxslave2

House Member
Aug 13, 2022
2,751
1,667
113
What could go wrong? Thousands of opiate pills obtained by prescription through a “safe supply” harm reduction program have been seized by police in Prince George, B.C., after they were found to have been diverted to organized crime groups reselling them across Canada, the RCMP said.

“Organized crime groups are actively involved in the redistribution of safe supply and prescription drugs,” said Corp. Jennifer Cooper of the RCMP’s Prince George detachment.

“Many of the pills that were seized had been prescribed to specific individuals but were found all collected together, no longer belonging to those individuals,” she added. “It might mean how we regulate our safe supply might need a “sober” second glance.”
An investigation seized more than 10,000 pills, including gabapentin, hydromorphone, codeine and dextroamphetamine, police said. In addition to prescription drugs, investigators also found large quantities of suspected fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine.
View attachment 21374
Where could that have come from??? Hmm…A second investigation uncovered more than two kilograms of suspected cocaine and methamphetamine as well as cash and thousands of additional prescription pills, including oxycodone, morphine and hydromorphone.

The pills of morphine and hydromorphone, both pharmaceutical opioids, were originally safe supply prescription drugs, Cooper said.

Safe supply or safer supply programs are meant to reduce drug overdose deaths by providing government-funded alternatives to potentially tainted illicit drugs. It usually means distributing hydromorphone, a pharmaceutical opioid, to mitigate the use of fentanyl encountered on the street, etc…

The RCMP investigation confirms fears of some who are opposed to safe supply as a way to curb spiking opiate addiction and drug-related deaths.

A similar divergence from the safe supply system was also uncovered by an RCMP investigation in Campbell River, B.C., in February. In that case, police seized two kilograms of fentanyl, a kilogram each of cocaine and methamphetamine, and more than 3,500 hydromorphone pills.
Nobody in BC uses plastic straws to snort coke. $100 bills are the preferred method.
 

Tecumsehsbones

Hall of Fame Member
Mar 18, 2013
55,565
7,076
113
Washington DC
What could go wrong? Thousands of opiate pills obtained by prescription through a “safe supply” harm reduction program have been seized by police in Prince George, B.C., after they were found to have been diverted to organized crime groups reselling them across Canada, the RCMP said.

“Organized crime groups are actively involved in the redistribution of safe supply and prescription drugs,” said Corp. Jennifer Cooper of the RCMP’s Prince George detachment.

“Many of the pills that were seized had been prescribed to specific individuals but were found all collected together, no longer belonging to those individuals,” she added. “It might mean how we regulate our safe supply might need a “sober” second glance.”
What solution would you propose to the drug problem?
 

Ron in Regina

"Voice of the West" Party
Apr 9, 2008
23,125
7,989
113
Regina, Saskatchewan
What solution would you propose to the drug problem?
I don’t know the right answer, but what I’m (& I’m assuming you’re also) seeing isn’t working.

How about zero public funding without being enrolled in a treatment program?

How about very harsh penalties for distribution of Meth/fentanyl/Cocaine/heroin over 1KG in quantity…?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Taxslave2

Tecumsehsbones

Hall of Fame Member
Mar 18, 2013
55,565
7,076
113
Washington DC
I don’t know the right answer, but what I’m (& I’m assuming you’re also) seeing isn’t working.

How about zero public funding without being enrolled in a treatment program?

How about very harsh penalties for distribution of Meth/fentanyl/Cocaine/heroin over 1KG in quantity…?
I like 'em both.

Here's where I get revolutionary (and agree with BC). . . it should not be illegal to possess or use any drug. Make 'em? Yep. Sell 'em? Yep. But not to buy, possess, or use them.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Taxslave2

Ron in Regina

"Voice of the West" Party
Apr 9, 2008
23,125
7,989
113
Regina, Saskatchewan
I like 'em both.

Here's where I get revolutionary (and agree with BC). . . it should not be illegal to possess or use any drug. Make 'em? Yep. Sell 'em? Yep. But not to buy, possess, or use them.
I’m….conflicted. I know so many that have lost a family member to Fentanyl, or things laced with Fentanyl.

My ex & I lost a boy (in his late 20’s) to Fentanyl laced drugs about 10yrs ago. My neighbour lost his adult daughter to weed laced with fentanyl about 8yrs ago…where her boyfriend woke up in the morning but she didn’t. We lost a former tenant to Fentanyl a few weeks ago, and I could list off a small handful of other examples.

I see the waste of potential pretty much daily to hard street drugs, making the junkies completely unemployable while they’re using…& for some potentially forever.
1709952118530.jpeg
(Yeah, that’s the Milky Way in the background)

The shit ain’t free either even in the Gov’t stores, so where there’s hard drugs & unemployable junkies, there’s a spike in petty crime, like smashing out your car windows for a few bucks in change, or break-ins to steal the copper plumbing for recycling, to theft of one aluminum rim off your vehicle for recycling, etc…insidious petty crime that those that have to sleep at night and go to work during the day fall prey to.

Junkies looking for beer cans & bottles in recycling bins but emptying 25 bins in a single alley to come up with a couple bucks from recycling…leaving a disaster pretty much everywhere they go. Breaking into empty houses or garages to find somewhere to crash until they inevitably burn them down by accident, etc…
1709952021146.jpeg
It’s exhausting for the non-junkie working class. What’s wrong with just having a beer or two, smoke a clean joint you’ve grown yourself, and getting up for work in the morning?
1709952513317.jpeg
Worse thing that happens is you crave a Whopper and maybe some Netflix, and some sleep before work again the next morning? Wanting to mow your lawn on the weekend, to cook a meal for your family, etc..
1709953912398.jpeg
1709954243024.jpeg
After a short amount of time, these are all things that are beyond the capability and capacity of a junkie doing hard drugs. They can no longer give and only take, even from themselves.
 

petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
109,295
11,385
113
Low Earth Orbit
I’m….conflicted. I know so many that have lost a family member to Fentanyl, or things laced with Fentanyl.

My ex & I lost a boy (in his late 20’s) to Fentanyl laced drugs about 10yrs ago. My neighbour lost his adult daughter to weed laced with fentanyl about 8yrs ago…where her boyfriend woke up in the morning but she didn’t. We lost a former tenant to Fentanyl a few weeks ago, and I could list off a small handful of other examples.

I see the waste of potential pretty much daily to hard street drugs, making the junkies completely unemployable while they’re using…& for some potentially forever.
View attachment 21385
(Yeah, that’s the Milky Way in the background)

The shit ain’t free either even in the Gov’t stores, so where there’s hard drugs & unemployable junkies, there’s a spike in petty crime, like smashing out your car windows for a few bucks in change, or break-ins to steal the copper plumbing for recycling, to theft of one aluminum rim off your vehicle for recycling, etc…insidious petty crime that those that have to sleep at night and go to work during the day fall prey to.

Junkies looking for beer cans & bottles in recycling bins but emptying 25 bins in a single alley to come up with a couple bucks from recycling…leaving a disaster pretty much everywhere they go. Breaking into empty houses or garages to find somewhere to crash until they inevitably burn them down by accident, etc…
View attachment 21384
It’s exhausting for the non-junkie working class. What’s wrong with just having a beer or two, smoke a clean joint you’ve grown yourself, and getting up for work in the morning?
View attachment 21386
Worse thing that happens is you crave a Whopper and maybe some Netflix, and some sleep before work again the next morning? Wanting to mow your lawn on the weekend, to cook a meal for your family, etc..
View attachment 21387
View attachment 21388
After a short amount of time, these are all things that are beyond the capability and capacity of a junkie doing hard drugs. They can no longer give and only take, even from themselves.
Ive got another funeral today. A cousins daughter. Fenty got her.

So many....
 

Dixie Cup

Senate Member
Sep 16, 2006
5,723
3,597
113
Edmonton
What can one say? I'm sure everything will work out well!! ;) After all, look at Oregon & Washington State. See how well it worked out there!
 
  • Like
Reactions: petros

Tecumsehsbones

Hall of Fame Member
Mar 18, 2013
55,565
7,076
113
Washington DC
I’m….conflicted. I know so many that have lost a family member to Fentanyl, or things laced with Fentanyl.

My ex & I lost a boy (in his late 20’s) to Fentanyl laced drugs about 10yrs ago. My neighbour lost his adult daughter to weed laced with fentanyl about 8yrs ago…where her boyfriend woke up in the morning but she didn’t. We lost a former tenant to Fentanyl a few weeks ago, and I could list off a small handful of other examples.

I see the waste of potential pretty much daily to hard street drugs, making the junkies completely unemployable while they’re using…& for some potentially forever.
Great sorrow in my heart for you.

But you can't stop people from killing themselves. And that's what this is, be it heroin, whiskey, risk-taking behavior, whatever.

All criminal-law attempts have been utter failures. So stop. Make sure the drugs are pure and not laced with poison, as we make sure whiskey isn't laced with methanol, and after that, people will do what they will do.
 

Ron in Regina

"Voice of the West" Party
Apr 9, 2008
23,125
7,989
113
Regina, Saskatchewan
Great sorrow in my heart for you.

But you can't stop people from killing themselves. And that's what this is, be it heroin, whiskey, risk-taking behavior, whatever.

All criminal-law attempts have been utter failures. So stop. Make sure the drugs are pure and not laced with poison, as we make sure whiskey isn't laced with methanol, and after that, people will do what they will do.
That’s somewhat Darwinian. If only people doing what they’re gonna do, could not be robbing possessions and sleep (of their families, friends, strangers, etc…) from those that aren’t doing that shit…& are just working their way through live.

The Junkies turn into nasty, potentially violent versions of urban raccoons on their downward spirals with their constant chronic crime sprees and lack of respect (for themselves and others) leaving trails of broken windows and emptied garbage and recycling bins with no concern that everyone else not hooked on this bullshit has to follow around and clean up after them on top of just try’n to live their own lives.

If the (for lack of a better term) straight non-junky people are not cleaning up the trails behind the junkies and junky squatters, and cleaning up after the gang members that move into feed poison to the junkies while “marking ‘their’ territories,” neighbourhoods quickly turn to shit.

Nothing even vaguely portable, that could potentially have a price tag attached to it, regardless of who owns it, is safe from a junkie needing a fix. If they have to cost some stranger hundreds or thousands of dollars in order to scrounge together a couple of dollars, that makes sense to a junkie.
 

Tecumsehsbones

Hall of Fame Member
Mar 18, 2013
55,565
7,076
113
Washington DC
That’s somewhat Darwinian. If only people doing what they’re gonna do, could not be robbing possessions and sleep (of their families, friends, strangers, etc…) from those that aren’t doing that shit…& are just working their way through live.

The Junkies turn into nasty, potentially violent versions of urban raccoons on their downward spirals with their constant chronic crime sprees and lack of respect (for themselves and others) leaving trails of broken windows and emptied garbage and recycling bins with no concern that everyone else not hooked on this bullshit has to follow around and clean up after them on top of just try’n to live their own lives.

If the (for lack of a better term) straight non-junky people are not cleaning up the trails behind the junkies and junky squatters, and cleaning up after the gang members that move into feed poison to the junkies while “marking ‘their’ territories,” neighbourhoods quickly turn to shit.

Nothing even vaguely portable, that could potentially have a price tag attached to it, regardless of who owns it, is safe from a junkie needing a fix. If they have to cost some stranger hundreds or thousands of dollars in order to scrounge together a couple of dollars, that makes sense to a junkie.
I agree 100%. You have clearly laid out the problems.

So what are the solutions? This is the best I've been able to come up with. . .

Criminalize conduct that hurts others. And separate, isolate, and deal with those people. As the judge said to Will in Good Will Hunting, when Will was putting up his brilliant, deeply-informed defense based on centuries of classic thought. . . "You hit a cop. You're going to jail."

When you harm others, you lose your rights. Period. We've gotten too far away from that. I don't know which particular technique, or techniques, of rehabilitation will work for Defendant X or Junkie Y. But we need to start with an understanding that seems to have escaped us. . . you hurt people, we will limit your freedom to the extent necessary to keep people safe from you.
 

Ron in Regina

"Voice of the West" Party
Apr 9, 2008
23,125
7,989
113
Regina, Saskatchewan
I agree 100%. You have clearly laid out the problems.

So what are the solutions? This is the best I've been able to come up with. . .

Criminalize conduct that hurts others. And separate, isolate, and deal with those people. As the judge said to Will in Good Will Hunting, when Will was putting up his brilliant, deeply-informed defense based on centuries of classic thought. . . "You hit a cop. You're going to jail."
With the Government supplying in B.C. hard street drugs in affordable quantities that the Junkies can sell the excess to organized crime to partially fund their habits, who in turn can export that to Alberta & Saskatchewan & Manitoba (and assumably Washington and Oregon and Idaho, etc…), and the tepid response of Government (overwhelmed police forces) to “petty” (just property) crimes, maybe part of the answer is to make REAL consequences to Junkies before/if police decide to respond a real and acceptable thing?
When you harm others, you lose your rights. Period. We've gotten too far away from that.
If we (OK, I) could legally just pound the piss out of the Junkie that’s just emptied 10 garbage & recycling bins in half a block in a single alley, or is in my yard 1/2 way to my gate with my BBQ at 3am, etc… without fear of me being the one that’ll be legally punished…
I don't know which particular technique, or techniques, of rehabilitation will work for Defendant X or Junkie Y.
If police decide to respond, eventually, and usually hours or days or not at all later, to Junkie crime situations, average non-hard street drug junkies should be able to defend their possessions in ways that prohibit their being targeted or retargeted for further petty crimes for the next fix.
But we need to start with an understanding that seems to have escaped us. . . you hurt people, we will limit your freedom to the extent necessary to keep people safe from you.
I agree, but what we have, at least up here, isn’t working. The general public needs to be able to respond to the petty crime in ways that actively deter it from junkies if the police are uninterested or unavailable or in-whatever…

Even self-defence laws north of the 49th are extremely restrictive, but defence of property or possessions seems to be discouraged at best. That needs to change to empower the average Joe to discourage “petty” “property” crimes that law enforcement is not concerned with.
 

petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
109,295
11,385
113
Low Earth Orbit
With the Government supplying in B.C. hard street drugs in affordable quantities that the Junkies can sell the excess to organized crime to partially fund their habits, who in turn can export that to Alberta & Saskatchewan & Manitoba (and assumably Washington and Oregon and Idaho, etc…), and the tepid response of Government (overwhelmed police forces) to “petty” (just property) crimes, maybe part of the answer is to make REAL consequences to Junkies before/if police decide to respond a real and acceptable thing?

If we (OK, I) could legally just pound the piss out of the Junkie that’s just emptied 10 garbage & recycling bins in half a block in a single alley, or is in my yard 1/2 way to my gate with my BBQ at 3am, etc… without fear of me being the one that’ll be legally punished…

If police decide to respond, eventually, and usually hours or days or not at all later, to Junkie crime situations, average non-hard street drug junkies should be able to defend their possessions in ways that prohibit their being targeted or retargeted for further petty crimes for the next fix.

I agree, but what we have, at least up here, isn’t working. The general public needs to be able to respond to the petty crime in ways that actively deter it from junkies if the police are uninterested or unavailable or in-whatever…

Even self-defence laws north of the 49th are extremely restrictive, but defence of property or possessions seems to be discouraged at best. That needs to change to empower the average Joe to discourage “petty” “property” crimes that law enforcement is not concerned with.
Cut off the naloxone.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Taxslave2