Letter to the Editor: Response to previous letter
Tuesday, October 17, 2017
Editor's note: Any public figure specifically called out in a letter is allowed a letter in response. This is in response to a previously published letter.
To the Editor:
The moderators at the candidate forums filtered out “gotcha” questions. And I think [the letter writer] has made up your mind about me, otherwise call my cell - it’s on all of my literature: (206) 707-9220
Diane gave me 300 words to solve crime and addiction so I’ll try:
I am not talking about active Heroin addicts – I mean people in long-term recovery.
I support Safe Sites – But not in Shoreline. Locations are chosen based on crime anyways, Shoreline is not a top choice.
We can’t help everyone using drugs. We can help those willing. The unhappy truth is that there will never be enough resources to help everyone. That means getting rid of the stigma and bullying them further into the shadows. These are people who need rehabilitation not further penalization, they are already incarcerated enough in their addiction.
Addicts are sick people and need treatment for a disease.
My opponent, Keith McGlashan believes that the Methadone Clinic on Aurora is enough to address the problem. We don’t offer detox at that clinic. Everyone is put on that program for life (unless they detox elsewhere). Also, you can get high on top of Methadone.
Suboxone is an Opioid blocker - meaning that you can’t get high on top of it. Doctors are limited to the number of patients they can have. Governments can lift this cap.
There is only one not for-profit detox center in all of King County, it has 16 beds.
You can’t die from a Heroin withdrawal. Only from alcohol and Benzodiazepines. They told me to drink a six-pack to up my chances and I still didn’t get in. Expanding existing treatment is not enough.
We are going to deal with addicts regardless. It is our duty to educate ourselves, prepare to help those who want it – and help the rest get there.
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1 comments:
Gee Jin-Ah, you don't seem to know very much about the one thing you have based your whole campaign on.
You point out the issues that we all know, but don't have any solutions.
You state that THS in Shoreline doesn't offer detox, but they offer mental health services, chemical dependency outpatient & intensive outpatient treatment, ethnic mental health, chemical dependency assessments, childcare, counseling for individual and family, crisis intervention, co-occurring disorder treatment, drug court assistance, dui deferred prosecution, medical exams, mental health assessment and management, opiate substitution treatment, family support, prevention education, suboxone treatment, veterans outreach, etc. etc. It's not like they hand them a cup with methadone and shove them out the door.
I also see that you continue to push for safe injection sites, just not in your town. That isn't really helpful but it is really political. You can happily stick to your campaign but make everyone happy by suggesting a completely different city and county - like Everett (saw your post on Nextdoor).
It's easy to rail against a thing or insist on making something better but a lot harder to come up with actual viable solutions. Come back when you have some.
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