Free Alcohol Lounge

[toyobaru]

Read this off the province and made me

Originally Posted by The Province

Rob Morgan says when you wake up after getting blasted on hand sanitizer it feels like your kidney is bulging out of your body.

The longer you drink it, the more you see sparkling light at the edge of your eyes. That’s the first step in going blind from guzzling cheap illicit booze, the doctor tells him.

Morgan, a First Nations man from a reserve near Terrace, hopes to reduce the harmful impact of addicts ingesting cheap, illicit alcohol by landing funding for a peer-run drinker’s lounge.

The envisioned lounge would offer free legal alcohol in the Downtown Eastside.

Morgan and about 40 members of the Eastside Illicit Drinkers Group for Education see this as the next step in Vancouver’s harm reduction movement, like a supervised injection site, for illicit drinkers who typically ingest Listerine, hand sanitizer or rubbing alcohol.

Illicit drinkers can squeeze about 30 standard drinks from a 250 ml bottle of 95 per cent rubbing alcohol by diluting servings with water, experts say, for the cost of about $3.

Morgan says addicts will turn over their welfare cheques to illicit booze brokers, adding he sees “dealers” in the Downtown Eastside carrying large vats of hand sanitizer stolen from hospitals.

He says the damage done is easy to see in the Downtown Eastside and in cities in norther B.C. He knows a number of peers that have died from alcohol poisoning, freezing to death outside, or “getting shanked” in an argument stemming from the fast and powerful buzz that comes from illicit booze.

“I myself am one of the one’s that suffers,” Morgan said Tuesday in an interview. “Each one of us wakes up with those demons staring at us in our face, and that’s why we drink it.”

Started in July, Eastside Illicit Drinkers Group for Education has landed $52,000 in a research grant, with aims to gather clinical evidence across B.C. on the benefits of alcohol maintenance programs.

Within the next year they hope to produce research in order to help land a partner in the health care sector to fund a Downtown Eastside drinker’s lounge stocked with vodka, sherry and high-alcohol beer.

Advocates say at a cost of about $350 per month per drinker, alcohol maintenance programs can reduce policing costs and medical fees associated to frequent emergency room visits for illicit booze drinkers.

Morgan says there would be counselling, health and detox referral services provided at the drinker’s lounge, and the group would maintain a database to monitor outcomes.

“It would be members only because once word gets out it is free alcohol everyone that just wants a free drink would show up,” he said.



Read more: Illicit Drinkers seek free alcohol lounge in Vancouvers Downtown Eastside

[Supafly]

One word explains it all....."jesus" ....more of my tax money going waste; why do we care so much for these types of people, they have enough support from the gov't already....I think its time they start giving back to the community... and being exterminated would be a great start.

"alcohol maintenance programs can reduce policing costs and medical fees associated to frequent emergency room visits for illicit booze drinkers."

WHAT really??...last time I was involved in a fight was because it was alcohol related, this will just add to more stupid drunk idiots roaming our streets causing an issue to society; GOOD GOD. How the hell are we still one of the best places to live when we have this kinda shit going on?

[drunkrussian]

wow...only in vancouver
Posted via RS Mobile

[toyobaru]

Originally Posted by Supafly

One word explains it all....."jesus" ....more of my tax money going waste; why do we care so much for these types of people, they have enough support from the gov't already....I think its time they start giving back to the community... and being exterminated would be a great start.

"alcohol maintenance programs can reduce policing costs and medical fees associated to frequent emergency room visits for illicit booze drinkers."

WHAT really??...last time I was involved in a fight was because it was alcohol related, this will just add to more stupid drunk idiots roaming our streets causing an issue to society; GOOD GOD. How the hell are we still one of the best places to live when we have this kinda shit going on?

I have to say I agree with you too. WHY DO WE CARE ABOUT THESE PEOPLE?! If this guy had a degree or something I might say he could have some valid points about something. But this guy is probably some idiot who roams skid row. If you cant afford alcohol what are you doing drinking it.

[gdoh]

He says the damage done is easy to see in the Downtown Eastside and in cities in norther B.C. He knows a number of peers that have died from alcohol poisoning, freezing to death outside, or “getting shanked” in an argument stemming from the fast and powerful buzz that comes from illicit booze.

“I myself am one of the one’s that suffers,” Morgan said Tuesday in an interview. “Each one of us wakes up with those demons staring at us in our face, and that’s why we drink it.”

[Hondaracer]

Yay racism points!
Posted via RS Mobile

[melloman]

Holy fuck this is retarded.. If the government even CONSIDERS this, I vote that we ALL boycott any BCL or government owned liqour store to fuck them over for liqour sales. Give back to OUR communities by buying liqour from the private establishments.

[InvisibleSoul]

Sometimes the good ideas are right there in front of you.

This ain't one of them.

[murd0c]

Gotta love our tax dollar's at work...

[inkcognito]

another shithead taking advantage of the people's money.

[vafanculo]

Governments perspective:

Let's increase tax on gas, so that large group of society who goes to work daily is forced to take transit so they can afford to go to work.

Let's increase the price of transit so that said group above can chip in for some bike lanes for that group of 30 ppl who bike to work in the summer, and that odd ball person who will use it in the winter.

Then, let's increase property tax, so that said group from above needs to relocate farther from work so they can afford to live comfortably, but then have to resort to go back to driving. Oh yeah, let's also ding them to use a bridge or two, I mean, if they want to go to work on time that is.

Oh, and that group who is responsble for crime, drugs and diseases? Let's give them free drugs, booze, and health care.

Sometimes I feel mayor quimby is running things.
Posted via RS Mobile

[winson604]

Pre drink at said lounge before clubbing now?

[Nightwalker]

I'm interested in seeing how the research pans out.

These programs are a fantastic way to build bridges between addicts and recovery programs. It seems kind of like using bait to lure them into recovery.

[Gridlock]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

Why does the government double dip with all the natives on the east side? If your giving money to the reserve for rehabilitation etc why should they pay for shit like this for people that left the reserves
Posted via RS Mobile

Because reserves aren't supposed to be internment camps for people you don't like.

[Gridlock]

Originally Posted by Syndicated

I have to say I agree with you too. WHY DO WE CARE ABOUT THESE PEOPLE?! If this guy had a degree or something I might say he could have some valid points about something. But this guy is probably some idiot who roams skid row. If you cant afford alcohol what are you doing drinking it.

Another excellent post on the subject. So if he was a doctor that got his kicks off of drinking hand sanitizer, we'd stop and listen, but because he's a guy that has been there and done that and seen the people first hand doing it, he's an idiot that can't think of a way to solve a problem?

I am one of the people that are really starting to hate the way this province is run. Any little group that has its hands out for some desperate cause gets fed. The group that funds all this shit, you know the middle class gets the shaft. You make too much to take advantage of the free part of the system, but not enough to take advantage of the cake part of the system at the top.

Here is the only way to get my support for something like this. You claim its revenue neutral? Prove it. I want less hospital time, less crime and more stats on the above. How many of your people are entering recovery programs? Make it an investment, not a hand out.

But that's not going to happen. Let's actually make a running list:

free crack pipes for users
free booze for the worst of the alcoholics
free place to shoot up
free stop smoking aids for those that can afford to smoke

Plus all the other shit already piled into the system.

CHRISTY CLARK, AND THE REST OF OUR PROVINCIAL POWERHOUSE. PLEASE STOP!

[freakshow]

“It would be members only because once word gets out it is free alcohol everyone that just wants a free drink would show up,” he said.

HAHAHA... this is awesome. He's just gonna setup a program for him and his friends to get free booze.

Who do I contact about funding? I'm going to start a free money lounge for everyone who just spends their money recklessly. Anyone want in?

[JF.]

You guys are always complaining about ur tax dollars are going to waste.. But most of u aren't doing anything to stop this from happening.
Posted via RS Mobile

[BaBiE_Bee]

Add this to the list:

http://www.revscene.net/forums/66083...our-money.html

Edit: 100 Stupid Things the Government did with Our Money

[Drow]

The government is trying to sabotage darwin's theory of evolution
Posted via RS Mobile

[rsx]

Why can't they let these fuckers just rot in the street. Sometimes I wish we had more severe winter weathers to cull these people.

[mos_skeeto]

Safe injection site doesn't actually provide drugs. The alcohol lounge should only provide empty cups.

[gdoh]

^they shouldnt provide them with any thing that will further drain our taxes on useless bullshit

[fishCak3s]

reading this makes me upset

[GLOW]

so if guys have sexual addiction and are horny and want to screw hot girls does that mean they'll open a free brothel full of hot girls to screw?

[toyobaru]

unnecessary remark..