25967 replies to this topic

[VicHockeyFan]

Ya the library is pretty full of sleepers. Might be less as the weather gets better.

[A Girl is No one]

Yates street by Yates market is really turning into an extension of Pandora.... Can't go shopping there without being yelled at by some drug addict...gahhh I used to love that store...

[mbjj]

Someone I know was visiting relatives in Duncan over the weekend. She reported there were ten or so tents set up by the cenotaph with a barbeque and Chrissy Brett in the middle. I hope Duncan doesn't let this get out of hand or that lovely cenotaph area will be ruined just like the courthouse grounds.

[HB]

its kind of old news it was on CHEK and CTV a week ago in regard to them being in the way of the Vimy 100 celebration. The ywere trying to get them to move further away form the cenotaph but I guess they stayed put because it is a public park

[57WestHills]

How does Brett make money?

[Sparky]

I am surprised that here hasn't been any chatter about the tent camp in Duncan coming down tomorrow. The judge has agreed with the reasoning behind the request for injunction. Look for Ms. Brett on the 6:00 news soon.

[VicHockeyFan]

They got their injunction in 9 days.  How long did we wait?

[shoeflack]

How does Brett make money?

 

Treaty Annuity Payments? Other sources of First Nations funding?

 

I can't imagine she's not taking a handout somewhere along the line. Generally the ones that complain the most about government are the first ones to take a cheque from them.

[Nparker]

They got their injunction in 9 days.  How long did we wait?

More than 9 months. 

[VicHockeyFan]

 

135A Street woes: 'It just costs so much money to do business around here'

Businessowners near the strip say they're struggling to stay open

 

 

http://www.cbc.ca/ne...4075134?cmp=rss

 

Now, I'm thinking...  the 800 and 900 blocks of Pandora and Johnson are not exactly booming.  The Market, in the 900-block Yates has uniformed security guards now, they never had them before last year.

[David Bratzer]

its kind of old news it was on CHEK and CTV a week ago in regard to them being in the way of the Vimy 100 celebration. The ywere trying to get them to move further away form the cenotaph but I guess they stayed put because it is a public park

 

CHEK News has amended their story to show that Rob Webber, at the Vimy Ridge memorial / homeless camp in Duncan, is not a Canadian Forces veteran.  The original version claiming he was a vet, written with files from CHEK, is still on the CBC web site.

 

I raised this with CHEK News about this back on April 13th.  And I first asked Webber about it on April 8th.

 

There is still some confusion about what was actually said to the reporter.  Have to say, I am curious as to what is actually on the reporter's audio recording. 

[VicHockeyFan]

March was the third-highest month for illicit drug overdose deaths in the province, the B.C. Coroners Service said today.

The latest batch of statistics from the office show the overdose public health crisis is not slowing down, despite major funding and policy efforts to curb the deaths.

In March, 120 people died from illicit drug use. This is a 51 per cent increase from the 79 deaths in March 2016, when the overdoses were declared a public health crisis.

Victoria has third-highest drug mortality rate, with 30 overdose deaths between January and March.

However, Island Health is the only health authority in the province that did not see an increase in deaths from February.

According to the coroners office, people between the ages of 30 and 49 account for most of the deaths. Men account for 82.7 per cent of the deaths.

As in previous months, more than half the overdose deaths take place in residences while none has occurred at prevention sites.

The coroners service drug investigation team reviewed deaths from 2015 and 2016 and determined the top four drugs relevant to the deaths were; cocaine (48.8 per cent), fentanyl (43.1 per cent), heroin (37.1 per cent) and methamphetamine/amphetamines (29.6 per cent).

 

 

- See more at: http://www.timescolo...h.17sLWEOT.dpuf

 

I'm quoting the entire article here just to highlight it seems funny the way the number are presented.

 

What's the deaths for the Island, and Victoria in March?

[VicHockeyFan]

As in previous months, the vast majority of deaths occurred inside, with 54.8% of all illicit drug overdoses occurring in private residences. The remainder occurred in other inside locations (34.3%) or outside, including vehicles (10.4%). There were no deaths at supervised consumption sites or drug overdose prevention sites.

 

 

https://news.gov.bc....PSSG0032-001175

 

That's an interesting stat to include, no?  Would we get a breakdown of people that were murdered inside, vs. outside?  Or died of cancer inside, or outside?

 

In fact maybe it says "housing first" is not working.  But it's worth noting that 34.3% occurred outside of private residences, so I'll guess that's your Subway bathroom etc.

[VicHockeyFan]

 

B.C. illicit drug overdoses surge in March

Coroners Service says 120 people died during the month, an increase from 108 deaths in February

 

 

http://www.cbc.ca/ne...march-1.4075962

 

Surge?

 

They went from 3.857 per day to 3.870 per day.

[Nparker]

I found this interesting

 

...As in previous months, more than half the overdose deaths take place in residences while none has occurred at prevention sites...

So unless we invest in staff to monitor all possible illicit drug users 24/7 there seems to be no practical way to prevent 50% of overdose deaths. Perhaps it's time to investigate a zero tolerance policy in publicly funded shelters and focus efforts more towards getting people to stop using, rather than using "safely".

[VicHockeyFan]

https://news.gov.bc....PSSG0032-001175

 

That's an interesting stat to include, no?  Would we get a breakdown of people that were murdered inside, vs. outside?  Or died of cancer inside, or outside?

 

In fact maybe it says "housing first" is not working.  But it's worth noting that 34.3% occurred outside of private residences, so I'll guess that's your Subway bathroom etc.

 

EDIT:   Oh, there is "other residences" besides private residences.  Not sure what that means.  My friend's house?  Or a shelter?

[Nparker]

EDIT:   Oh, there is "other residences" besides private residences.  Not sure what that means.  My friend's house?  Or a shelter?

My guess would be (low-barrier) shelters are the type of residence where overdose deaths are occurring the most.

[jonny]

 

 

 

http://www.cbc.ca/ne...march-1.4075962

 

Surge?

 

They went from 3.857 per day to 3.870 per day.

 

 

What is going on with the media these days? There is so much over-exaggeration on every issue. Everything is surging and out of control if you just read the headlines or listen to the soundbites without using your own brain.

 

Every day we hear about one bloody crisis or another. Housing crisis. Day care crisis. Affordability crisis. Student debt crisis. Overdoes crisis. Opioid crisis.

 

How will we deal when we face an actual crisis? I guess we'll just stand there in shock with blank, empty looks on our faces.

[Nparker]

What is going on with the media these days? There is so much over-exaggeration on every issue...

It's the "Kardashianization" of the media. Everything is a superlative, but not in a good way.

[jonny]

On the news a while back they had a girl who was in a student debt crisis because her degree in basket weaving actually didn't guarantee she could get a decent job...maybe fewer people should get degrees in basket weaving then? Nope, we should just increase government funding.

 

But, I digress...

 

Regarding the opioid issue, my guess is that nothing will change until dead overdosed children start showing up in the news. Until then, it will be business as usual.