Dear Editor,

An answer to 鈥渞educing stigma, and shame and trading judgment for compassion鈥� in regards to drug addiction.

I am a old man, and I have almost seen it all when it comes to drug addicts. In the 鈥�50s being a drug addict was almost the lowest rung on the totem pole of social behaviour. Not even the mafia wanted to get involved with it. The stigma of being controlled by a tiny bit of a drug was to much for almost anyone to bear. So almost no one started taking drugs.

The shame of being an addict was almost unbearable. People judged you harshly for using illegal street drugs.

Kids and other people knew that, so using street drugs was repulsive to them and us kids. If you did street drugs, your friends left you. So not many people and kids tried drugs.

Then the 鈥渆xperts鈥� conned the younger people as they were growing up that it was wrong to judge drug addicts for they鈥檙e actions. They said that stigma and shame and judgement were wrong. They said that breaking the law of the land was okay for drug addicts to do, the law should have compassion on them and just give them a slap on the wrist.

So more young people started using street drugs. So more money was made by selling drugs. Because of this criminal gangs got into selling drugs. Now we have countries being controlled by criminal gangs.

Now we have drug addicts homeless on our streets, and our government who were those young people whom the so called 鈥渆xperts鈥� conned into not judging and stigmatizing and shaming drug addicts do not know what to do with these drug addicts who are homeless on our streets. We are now giving them free drugs and places to shoot up. And we wonder why the drug problem is getting worse.

We and our government do not care about the lives of innocent babies so why would they and us care about the lives of drug addicts?

This same train of thinking is going on in our government about people who are not drug addicts and are breaking the laws of our land. We now have a revolving door when it comes to our justice system. Just watch what is happening to our southern neighbour, the USA, because of this type of thinking.

It is costing Canada almost $80 billion a year to look after our drug addicts. Think of where that money could be spent elsewhere to make our country better.

Putting drug addicts into jail is good. They cannot entice young people and other people to use drugs. It is a object lesson for none drug users. We have to concentrate on saving non-drug users from getting into that lifestyle. We have to look after our children.

Dean Johnson, 91原创 City

.

鈥� READ MORE: LETTER: People don鈥檛 allow themselves become addicted to drugs

鈥� READ MORE: B.C. scientist studying magnetic brain stimulation to treat substance abuse

.