Pubdate: Mon, 24 Nov 2008 Source: Kamloops Daily News (CN BC) Copyright: 2008 Kamloops Daily News Contact: http://www.kamloopsnews.ca/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/679 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. - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin