NO DRINKING, BUT DRUG USE RAMPANT

The CBC ran a story March 12 entitled “Legal drinking in P.E.I. parks an idea that’s unlikely to be uncorked anytime soon.” What?? I actually thought it was a joke, then I realized it wasn’t published April 1.

So, we’ve decriminalized harmful illegal drug usage in our city and province, we’re allowing addicts to shoot up, snort and smoke crack in the open on our streets, in our parks, near our schools and daycares, exposing our community and our children to the ravages of drug use in the open, anywhere, anytime.

Added to this craziness is all the criminality that goes along with this hands-off approach by the justice system: the discarded needles, violent assaults, intimidation, break and enters, loitering on private property, I can go on and on.

There are absolutely no consequences for all this illegality; the police’s hands are tied. When they do arrest someone, they are back on the street in no time.

This insanity has got to stop. Imagine how you feel as a parent knowing your kids are exposed to this behaviour a block away from their schools, parks and homes. You can’t make sense of it, and you shouldn’t have to. Whoever allowed this to happen in the first place obviously don’t live anywhere near this area.

That brings me back to the story on drinking in our parks. It seems a tad ironic that our city officials don’t think allowing drinking in our public parks is appropriate, or a priority at this time.

Another reason put forward was that the citizens might be upset with any public drunkenness which might result. It was suggested that it would take some time for municipal and provincial governments to get on board with this and that there would have to be public consultations.

I don’t recall any public consultations with the residents when it came time to open the Community Outreach Centre, or when they decided they were going to place the so-called “safe injection site” on Belmont Street.

Across North America, jurisdictions are reconsidering their whole approach to the drug epidemic. What hasn’t worked in the last 10 years is being reconsidered in Oregon, Alberta and many other locations. Our resources should be focussed primarily on rehabilitation.

Eugene Sauve,

Charlottetown, P.E.I.