Canada Will Legalize Medically Assisted Dying For People Addicted to Drugs

[CdnFox]

https://www.vice.com/en/article/4a3bdm/canada-will-legalize-medically-assisted-dying-for-people-addicted-to-drugs

I was wondering how they were going to make themselves look good in the wake of all those OD deaths -  this is brilliant.  Just claim it was 'MAID', not bad drugs or bad decisions, and that it's all part of the plan!!! Genious -  2000 people didn't overdose this week,  no no 2000 people "chose to end their lives with dignity".   

I believe in MAID,  i believe people should have a choice but when you've got someone who's already clearly demonstrated they're not the best at making good life choices, AND they're currently polluting their minds with substances that specifically impair their ability to make clear informed decisions well,  i'm not sure those are the people who should have easy access to MAID.   I think "sound mind" should have some sort of role in it.

[ExFlyer]

Giving them all free drugs and places to take them is the way eh??

Edited October 21, 2023 by ExFlyer

[CdnFox]

1 hour ago, ExFlyer said:

Giving them all free drugs and places to take them is the way eh??

Apparently the 'free drugs' they want to give them now is a mix of propofol, rocuronium and midazolam.

The idea of MAID was that people who are rational and thinking clearly could reach the decision that their quality of life had dropped to the point where it was simply suffering to continue and there was no reasonable hope of changing that.

It wasn't meant to be the gov'ts solution to drug addiction, or PTSD, or the fact you can't find a home. And yet that's more and more what it sounds like it's becoming.

[ExFlyer]

9 minutes ago, CdnFox said:

Apparently the 'free drugs' they want to give them now is a mix of propofol, rocuronium and midazolam.

The idea of MAID was that people who are rational and thinking clearly could reach the decision that their quality of life had dropped to the point where it was simply suffering to continue and there was no reasonable hope of changing that.

It wasn't meant to be the gov'ts solution to drug addiction, or PTSD, or the fact you can't find a home. And yet that's more and more what it sounds like it's becoming.

Yup, sounds like a drug addict with no money to buy drugs to me.

[CdnFox]

10 minutes ago, ExFlyer said:

Yup, sounds like a drug addict with no money to buy drugs to me.

Sooo - you feel that there's no such thing as rehabilitation?  Once a person is a drug addict we're better off just killing them, there's no way back? No point in trying drug treatment programs, better to just give up on them and pull the plug?

Well - apparently the liberals agree with you so there you go  

[ExFlyer]

48 minutes ago, CdnFox said:

Sooo - you feel that there's no such thing as rehabilitation?  Once a person is a drug addict we're better off just killing them, there's no way back? No point in trying drug treatment programs, better to just give up on them and pull the plug?

Well - apparently the liberals agree with you so there you go  

On the contrary, I fully believe in rehabilitation, just don't think giving free drugs and a place to do it is rehabilitation. It is enabling.

[CdnFox]

1 hour ago, ExFlyer said:

On the contrary, I fully believe in rehabilitation, just don't think giving free drugs and a place to do it is rehabilitation. It is enabling.

Well we would agree there.

[ExFlyer]

9 minutes ago, CdnFox said:

Well we would agree there.

Thing is, I grew up in Vancouver. Easst Hastings has been a drug haven since I was a kid and even before that. There was crap going on there and today, many decades later, it is still going on except now, we have safe injection sites and are about to give free drugs,.

That in no way is rehabilitation.

Drug use will always be a problem but I think in the "old days" there may have been rehabilitation but, in lessening the enforcement and jail times, and the growth of new addicts, the problem has exponentially grown.

[CdnFox]

30 minutes ago, ExFlyer said:

Thing is, I grew up in Vancouver. Easst Hastings has been a drug haven since I was a kid and even before that. There was crap going on there and today, many decades later, it is still going on except now, we have safe injection sites and are about to give free drugs,.

That in no way is rehabilitation.

Drug use will always be a problem but I think in the "old days" there may have been rehabilitation but, in lessening the enforcement and jail times, and the growth of new addicts, the problem has exponentially grown.

Have to agree.  And as a younger man back in the first tech boom i worked at hastings and carrol in the starnet building.  It was always bad but in the last few years when i go downtown now it's definitely worse. Whatever we've been doing has been deteriorating the situation, not improving it.

[RedDog]

It’s a difficult challenge. We’re a country who evidently can’t keep drugs out of prisons.

[ExFlyer]

3 minutes ago, RedDog said:

It’s a difficult challenge. We’re a country who evidently can’t keep drugs out of prisons.

Or anywhere.

[CdnFox]

46 minutes ago, RedDog said:

It’s a difficult challenge. We’re a country who evidently can’t keep drugs out of prisons.

 

43 minutes ago, ExFlyer said:

Or anywhere.

I think everyone sane knows we're not going to end the problem trying to go after supply alone.  The bad guys will always find a way to get it in - and once they're hooked the users will keep buying it even if there are 'safe' alternatives.

So while i think we should still be agressive about dealers, we need to push the focus to rehab and 'reducing demand' .  Get the people off the drugs, make like hell for the dealers.  It makes more sense than trying to some how make addiction ok by giving them drugs they sell to kids to afford their harder drugs.

[herbie]

In reality, they don't need assistance in dying.

Just prioritize ambulance calls to the guy with the heart attack over the overdose call.

[ExFlyer]

32 minutes ago, CdnFox said:

 

I think everyone sane knows we're not going to end the problem trying to go after supply alone.  The bad guys will always find a way to get it in - and once they're hooked the users will keep buying it even if there are 'safe' alternatives.

So while i think we should still be agressive about dealers, we need to push the focus to rehab and 'reducing demand' .  Get the people off the drugs, make like hell for the dealers.  It makes more sense than trying to some how make addiction ok by giving them drugs they sell to kids to afford their harder drugs.

OK, then we become dealers? LOL

[CITIZEN_2015]

Medically assisted suicide must become legal unconditionally. Government has no business to decide for mt life.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, CITIZEN_2015 said:

Medically assisted suicide must become legal unconditionally. Government has no business to decide for mt life.

Agreed.

 

 

 

[CdnFox]

1 hour ago, ExFlyer said:

OK, then we become dealers? LOL

No, somehow when we do it we're 'health care providers'   LOLOL

[CdnFox]

1 hour ago, CITIZEN_2015 said:

Medically assisted suicide must become legal unconditionally. Government has no business to decide for mt life.

You are absolutely free to shoot yourself anytime you like.  I promise none of us would try to stop you  

But there is a difference between allowing and enabling.  And it's silly to say it should be unconditional.  What about 14 year olds who are having a bad puberty - ok to let them make that call? How about people who are mentally ill who can be treated? Should it be encouraged as an cheaper option than treatment by the gov't? "sorry - we coudln't work out the details of that dental plan with the NDP, maybe you could kill yourself and save the money?" Or as we've already seen - "Sorry soldier, i know we asked you to go serve and now you're having nightmares but we don't have the budget to heal you.  Take this pill instead and we'll say something nice at the funeral".

I believe in  the concept of MAID, but as with all things there are devils in the details.

[CITIZEN_2015]

2 hours ago, CdnFox said:

You are absolutely free to shoot yourself anytime you like.  I promise none of us would try to stop you  

 

This is so childish and stupid that you take your vendetta from the other thread to here which is a completely different thread and debate topic. I don't even read the rest of your post. 

[CdnFox]

12 minutes ago, CITIZEN_2015 said:

This is so childish and stupid that you take your vendetta from the other thread to here which is a completely different thread and debate topic. I don't even read the rest of your post. 

Awww muffin - it LITERALLY is what you said, you demand the right to kill yourself at anytime unrestricted.

I'm just saying sure - i agree.  Nobody will stop you.

Yet - you've turned that into a hissy fit. And you're calling others childish and stupid? How long have you and kettle been dating?

[SpankyMcFarland]

22 hours ago, RedDog said:

It’s a difficult challenge. We’re a country who evidently can’t keep drugs out of prisons.

Many countries are in the same boat. 

[SpankyMcFarland]

We’ll have to see the fine details on this. Somebody who has been on Skid Row for decades probably has other illnesses and will have suffered a great deal already. However, I don’t think young addicts should be offered this drastic alternative. 

[Army Guy]

So what is the next step, offer this service to all who face a life in prison...drag one of those fancy carts from the pictures above into the prison and plug it in...maybe put one in the court room, the judge can give a choice 25 years or step into the time machine....

[Akalupenn]

 

I understand your concerns about the recent decision to legalize medically assisted dying (MAID) for people addicted to drugs in Canada. It's crucial that MAID is approached with caution, ensuring that individuals are making informed decisions of sound mind. Perhaps an intermediary step, such as mandatory counseling or rehabilitation efforts, could provide those struggling with addiction the support they need to potentially turn their lives around before considering MAID. Implementing more robust mental health evaluations could help ensure that only those who are truly of sound mind can access this option.

[eyeball]

On 10/21/2023 at 9:51 AM, ExFlyer said:

On the contrary, I fully believe in rehabilitation, just don't think giving free drugs and a place to do it is rehabilitation. It is enabling.

The moral squeamishness surrounding things like harm reduction enables the government to offer MAID as an option.

From the OP's article:

Opioid agonist therapy, which involves giving people medications like methadone or buprenorphine to help control their cravings, is considered the gold standard for treating opioid addiction. 

But Dodd said that those medications aren’t easily accessible to everyone who needs them in Canada.

The fact Canadians are so divided on the issue of harm reduction makes it easier for governments to just pay lip service to taking a medical and social approach to addiction and provide inadequate funding and support for it.

“No one can receive MAID solely on the basis of lack of social supports such as housing and mental health and addiction services.”

Why not, it seems like a really convenient way to avoid spending money on them. Meanwhile I can't help but recall arguments I've heard for taking a more Singaporean or Filipino approach to putting addicts out of their misery as an alternative to harm reduction.

Edited July 23 by eyeball