London Imposes One-year Ban on Building Methadone Clinics, Good Or Bad?

A one-year ban on new methadone clinics was approved by council Monday night, despite the impassioned plea of one departing politician.
Amid ongoing concerns from Old East residents over the problems created by a Dundas St. clinic that serves 700, council won’t allow any new ones as city staff review ways to control where such facilities are opened.
In his final meeting on council, David Winninger was the lone vote against the plan — and urged his colleagues unsuccessfully to shoot it down.
“I feel very strongly that the planning committee and (planning) department has gone in the wrong direction,” Winninger said.
“It sounds non-productive. It sounds insensitive to the needs of people who need methadone.”

http://www.lfpress.com/news/london/2010/11/15/16159351.html


What wonderful news...

My opinion:

Now existing clinics will have to deal with any increases in the populations of those seeking help.  This will result in longer wait times and might not be of benefit to anyone but I do feel better for some reason.  

Sure, more clinics would reduce the amount of addicts seeking drugs on the street and might save some  lives - but I kinda get a warm feeling in my heart when I hear that things are being made difficult for those people.  Who wants addicts in their neighbourhood anyways?  Clearly that want is more important than the needs of people who are trying to get off drugs. Clearly.

Another thing is when I hear people complaining about the addicts around Clinic 528 and how they use that place to deal drugs, all the while totally ignoring the coffee house on the corner where the majority of the drugs appear to be dealt from (unless you count the methadone pharmacists as drug dealers - which is your right as a Canadian).  Anyhow, that always cracks me up, because 1) I know nothing will be done about that and 2)the blame will be tossed on those addicts at the clinic.  It reminds of those situations that you hear about where a combat pilot or cop becomes totally focused on their target to the exclusion of all else, including real threats.  I forget the name for that, but when I see people complaining about that particular methadone clinic whilst totally ignoring the 'coffee shop' I am reminded of it.


These places have so many drug dealers around them, but why am I not seeing a police presence? Where are the arrests?  London's police are great, but wouldn't nailing those addicts who are dealing drugs give a nice bump to their stats?  Maybe they would end up with a nicer budget if they went after the easy prey - if predatory drug dealers could be referred to as such. 

Having a few undercovers hanging around the clinics and 'coffee shops' might go a long way towards taking down or deterring the dealers - which is the reason most people give when they want to decry a methadone clinic and yet lack the balls to say it is because they just don't like the addicts.

"I don't have anything against addicts, it is the people the clinics attract I don't like"

And they'll say that with a straight face. . .


*I'm going to snag an interview with some methadone patients and find out they think about this decision. That is if they even know it happened.  You know what addicts are like.

Right?