Dear editor,

鈥�Forced recovery鈥� is Connor McDowell鈥檚 opinion: the BC government鈥檚 decriminalization of small amounts of illicit street drugs is 鈥渞idiculous.鈥�

Yet his premises are fraught with omission and apparent bias of vigorous partisanship.

Homelessness isn鈥檛 always the result of addiction (the reverse might be truer). 鈥淚t is illogical,鈥� he says: nobody will voluntarily get sober 鈥渁fter they were unable to do that to save their job, career, family, health [and] house [because of addiction].鈥�

But that鈥檚 not what decriminalization is actually about. Many homeless never had most of those things to lose anyway, particularly if suffering from mental illness. McDowell says addicts wake up to find they have lost everything so it鈥檚 鈥渘aive鈥� to expect them to opt for treatment at this point (I agree with this last point, at least: it doesn鈥檛 seem very logical).

I never heard that B.C.鈥檚 offer of treatment means that 鈥渋n exchange for turning sober, the person does not preserve custody of their child, or save their career,鈥� but it鈥檚 consistent with misunderstanding treatment.

Citing Oregon鈥檚 decision to rescind decriminalization, McDowell says: 鈥淚n charge of their recovery, people supported their addiction while ignoring鈥� the treatment offered. 鈥淚 think we can all relate to that in some way,鈥� he says without explanation. But decriminalization is not about putting users 鈥渋n charge of their recovery.鈥�

Calling B.C. leaders 鈥渘egligent鈥� for not returning to criminal treatment, McDowell tempers: 鈥淚t might make sense to keep an open-door, hands-off policy for some people鈥� (presumably those who have homes like the large majority of users). However, B.C.鈥檚 policy isn鈥檛 鈥渉ands-off.鈥� Instead, it introduces users to a variety of treatment options, although some, like safe supply, are still not fully implemented yet.

Decriminalization lets users avail options without fear of getting busted on their way to someplace where they aren鈥檛 using alone. Coercing users into detox, with its relapse rate over 75 per cent, is proven ineffective. Nevertheless, 鈥淚 think there鈥檚 evidence to intervene,鈥� says McDowell 鈥攚ithout giving any.

His diatribe isn鈥檛 only remarkable for coinciding with current rhetoric from the partisan right, but also because he is the Record鈥檚 own reporter who should know better than to appear both so opinionated and so misinformed.

Geoffrey Donaldson,

Denman Island