WHY NO POLIICIANS AT ADDICTIONS CONFAB?

If you had a chance to look at the brochures of the candidates, or
listen to them at the forums, you would have read and heard much about
their wish to resolve social issues.

"Ending homelessness," stated the brochure of one candidate.

"To provide an environment for affordable housing, a safe and healthy
community," said another. "Mental health and addictions," stated a
third.

"Social conscience," was yet another.

Indeed, scarcely a candidate neglected to address issues such as
homelessness, poverty and addictions, and commit to doing something
about them.

Interesting then, that not a single one of them showed up to the
annual Let's Talk About Addictions conference at the Henry Grube
Centre last week. Pity - it would have provided them with a
fascinating portfolio of information not only about emerging
approaches to treatment but to the whole Kamloops street scene.

What does the issue of addictions have to do with homelessness and
other issues? Plenty. In fact, it's not a very useful exercise trying
to separate them, because they're so inter-related. Homelessness,
addictions, poverty, mental health, prostitution - all are linked to
an extent, sometimes intimately so.

The Let's Talk About Addictions conference - hosted by the ASK
Wellness Centre - would have been excellent use of any of those
candidates' time, especially the successful candidates. Yet, very few
have ever attended any of the sessions, in any year.

They should know, then, that the conference is regarded as one of the
most important in the province, and Canada for that matter, in
exchanging current information about social issues. This year's
conference was acknowledged by the various experts who attended and
made presentations to be ground-breaking.

It was noted at one point that, despite the coming together of people
who work to treat addictions, and those who suffer from them, we as
communities continue to move at a snail's pace in seeking and
implementing new strategies on the gamut of social issues.

We talk a good game, and do little. One attendee noted that
politicians are willing to pour millions into hospital emergency wards
but not into tackling health and social issues on the street.

It was left unsaid, but clearly understood, that the reason for that
is that politicians react to pressure points. Hospital wait times are
a squeaky wheel. Those suffering from addictions, lack of shelter,
mental illness, and the abuses of prostitution don't constitute much
of a voting constituency.

Of course, there's the fact that municipal governments aren't
technically obligated to take on social issues. The reality is,
though, that lines of jurisdiction are becoming increasingly blurred
on which level of government is responsible for what. Maybe that's why
civic candidates had no compunction about making promises on issues
that have little to do with what City councils do. Social issues have
moved very definitely into the realm of civic government.

Certainly, they were willing to promise action on the very challenges
that were examined at the one-evening, one-day conference held in
Kamloops last week.

It would be a move in the right direction if some of them would back
up the rhetoric by showing up to find out what actually goes on in the
street, and learn of some of the strategies for improving the human
condition.