DON'T CODDLE ADDICTS

Re: Free heroin (NEWS Views, Feb. 9).

Free heroin - why not? If one makes any derogatory comment against the
"homeless" or "drug addicts" or certain ethnic groups who seem to make
up most of the known gangs, one is branded as being uncaring,
non-empathetic, racist, elitist and the beat goes on.

Suppose we give free alcohol to alcoholics such as I? Is this supposed
to wean them off their self-imposed hell? No way in hell will free
drugs and free booze plus the multitude of declared "experts" in the
field who are paid at our expense, save even one poor soul.

There seems to be an aversion, in the judicial ranks, to hand out
sentences that include mandatory and supervised drug and alcohol
treatment. This of course means random urine tests and failure means
re-incarceration with more treatment.

As a society, we are deluding ourselves if we think that anything
short of hard treatment will solve or help to solve the curse of
addiction. As an adjunct, we are not helping those who need it most.

Harry B. Battle

Maple Ridge