A few days after reading a Fraser Health Authority Request for a Proposal to implement Health Contact Services for people who use illicit drugs I read that Vancouver and the federal government were close to an agreement that would see the possession of a small quantity (personal use) of illicit drugs not result in prison time.

Central to both the Request for Proposal and the Federal/Vancouver agreement is the use of illicit drugs. The juxtaposition of the two had me shaking my head at how the Rocking Chair Principle has become so pervasive in politics, causing issues and problems to seem intractable.

In politics it has become of primary importance to be seen to be DOING SOMETHING about issues. It is also politically beneficial if the SOMETHING creates the appearance or seeming that a desirable outcome is being achieved. Whether the SOMETHING is actually effective in addressing an issue does not appear of any importance given the lack of quality control measures applied to outcomes to evaluate effectiveness.

Even the most cursory analysis of the use of Naloxone reveals the reduction in the number of drug overdose deaths per month is the result of spreading the overdose deaths over more months by pushing deaths into the future. The deaths per month are reduced BUT the total number of deaths remain unchanged. 

Given close to a century of experience that clearly demonstrates that simply locking people up accomplishes nothing in terms of addressing addiction the Vancouver/Federal agreement is a long overrdue change

However,  I do not see how making it legal to carry small quantities of poison, and the toxicity of the illicit drug supply makes it a poison, will reduce the number of drug overdose deaths.

In fact, if the dynamics of the illicit drug market place did not make no change – or effectively no change – the outcome, making the possession of a small quantity of illicit drugs legally neutral would see an increase in possession, use and overdose deaths. .

It is not that the use of Naloxone and not locking people up for possession of a small quantity of illicit drugs do not have merit, they do. But that merit must be weighed against the consequences of those actions.

In meeting the need to be DOING SOMETHING Naloxone and the Vancouver/Federal agreement enable avoidance of the difficult choices and actions required to effectively address drug overdose deaths, serving to keep the drug supply toxic and drug overdose deaths occurring unabated.

 Because politicians are driven by winning votes and elections the behaviour of politicians is a response to and driven by voter behaviour. Thus, no matter how forcefully or loudly voters deny responsibility for their government, voters get the government their behaviour creates and deserves.

The Rocking Chair Principle is a product of what voters demand from government AND the constraints voters place on government actions to meet those demands. 

When the constraints imposed by voters on the actions governments can take to address issues make effectively addressing issues impossible, effectiveness becomes moot, the focus is on acting in a manner that satisfies voters and DOING SOMETHING becomes the priority, creating the Rocking Chair Principle.

Voters, pundits and Media demand simple black and white answers to issues that are complex and composed of shifting shades of grey; ignore the reality that the cost of providing the services demanded limits the quantity of services that can be provided; require that government actions are in agreement with what voters know – ignoring that so much of what is ‘known’ is wrong; and punish any politician or government that dares to raise issues voters do not want to address such as setting priorities or paying for all the services voters denmand from governmet.

Given: the overdose crisis is driven by the toxicity of the illicit drug supply [Request for Proposal from the Fraser Health Authority] AND the only effective way to stop overdoes deaths from toxic illicit drugs is to ensure that the drugs used are not toxic [The Vancouver Mayor’s Task Force] the solution is straightforward. 

Unfortunately the only effective course of action is judged unacceptable by voters and so overdose deaths continue as nauseum. 

Which leads to Naloxone to reduce the monthly death toll by spreading the deaths over more months by pushing overdose deaths into the future and The Vancouver/federal government agreement that will protect users from jail but not from overdose death from a toxic driug supply.

The Rocking Chair principle, the behaviour of voters, pundits, Media and politicians, doesn’t just leave the overdose death toll climbing – it allows important root issues to remain ignored.

Basic mathematics should see the number of overdose death fall to zero as overdose deaths reduce the number of people using toxic drugs. For the number of overdose deaths not to fall to zero requires that those who die be replaced by new users.

The concequences of the toxic drug supply pale in comparison to the consequences of the toxicity of comforting illusions; illusions that compound the costs and consequences of homelessness, addiction and our failure to address issues effectively.

Acknowledging or thinking about the mathematics of overdose deaths, addiction and the roots of addiction is so mentally discomforting that it is an anathema, therefore unthinkable. The resulting refusal to even acknowledge or think about, much less address, the roots of addiction means the ongoing creation of new addicts and new generations of addicts.

Our comfortable self-delusions are supported and reinforced by confirmational bias, egocentrisim and denial which also feed our succeptability to the comforting illusions of self-delusion, 

Being able, more importantly willing, to recognize our self delusions is the beginning of healthy cognition and to being able to mitigate the effects of self-delusion on our decision making process.

DUBITO ERGO CONGITO – without doubt, without questioning there is no thinking.

Without true thinking complex issues cannot be effectively addressed, leaving us to be engulfed by the costs and consequences of avoiding the effort, discomfort and change inherent in truly thinking.

A few days after reading a Fraser Health Authority Request for a Proposal to implement Health Contact Services for people who use illicit drugs I read that Vancouver and the federal government were close to an agreement that would see the possession of a small quantity (personal use) of illicit drugs not result in prison time.

Central to both the Request for Proposal and the Federal/Vancouver agreement is the use of illicit drugs. The juxtaposition of the two had me shaking my head at how the Rocking Chair Principle has become so pervasive in politics, causing issues and problems to seem intractable.

In politics it has become of primary importance to be seen to be DOING SOMETHING about issues. It is also politically beneficial if the SOMETHING creates the appearance or seeming that a desirable outcome is being achieved. Whether the SOMETHING is actually effective in addressing an issue does not appear of any importance given the lack of quality control measures applied to outcomes to evaluate effectiveness.

Even the most cursory analysis of the use of Naloxone reveals the reduction in the number of drug overdose deaths per month is the result of spreading the overdose deaths over more months by pushing deaths into the future. The deaths per month are reduced BUT the total number of deaths remain unchanged. 

Given close to a century of experience that clearly demonstrates that simply locking people up accomplishes nothing in terms of addressing addiction the Vancouver/Federal agreement is a long overrdue change

However,  I do not see how making it legal to carry small quantities of poison, and the toxicity of the illicit drug supply makes it a poison, will reduce the number of drug overdose deaths.

In fact, if the dynamics of the illicit drug market place did not make no change – or effectively no change – the outcome, making the possession of a small quantity of illicit drugs legally neutral would see an increase in possession, use and overdose deaths. .

It is not that the use of Naloxone and not locking people up for possession of a small quantity of illicit drugs do not have merit, they do. But that merit must be weighed against the consequences of those actions.

In meeting the need to be DOING SOMETHING Naloxone and the Vancouver/Federal agreement enable avoidance of the difficult choices and actions required to effectively address drug overdose deaths, serving to keep the drug supply toxic and drug overdose deaths occurring unabated.

 Because politicians are driven by winning votes and elections the behaviour of politicians is a response to and driven by voter behaviour. Thus, no matter how forcefully or loudly voters deny responsibility for their government, voters get the government their behaviour creates and deserves.

The Rocking Chair Principle is a product of what voters demand from government AND the constraints voters place on government actions to meet those demands. 

When the constraints imposed by voters on the actions governments can take to address issues make effectively addressing issues impossible, effectiveness becomes moot, the focus is on acting in a manner that satisfies voters and DOING SOMETHING becomes the priority, creating the Rocking Chair Principle.

Voters, pundits and Media demand simple black and white answers to issues that are complex and composed of shifting shades of grey; ignore the reality that the cost of providing the services demanded limits the quantity of services that can be provided; require that government actions are in agreement with what voters know – ignoring that so much of what is ‘known’ is wrong; and punish any politician or government that dares to raise issues voters do not want to address such as setting priorities or paying for all the services voters denmand from governmet.

Given: the overdose crisis is driven by the toxicity of the illicit drug supply [Request for Proposal from the Fraser Health Authority] AND the only effective way to stop overdoes deaths from toxic illicit drugs is to ensure that the drugs used are not toxic [The Vancouver Mayor’s Task Force] the solution is straightforward. 

Unfortunately the only effective course of action is judged unacceptable by voters and so overdose deaths continue as nauseum. 

Which leads to Naloxone to reduce the monthly death toll by spreading the deaths over more months by pushing overdose deaths into the future and The Vancouver/federal government agreement that will protect users from jail but not from overdose death from a toxic driug supply.

The Rocking Chair principle, the behaviour of voters, pundits, Media and politicians, doesn’t just leave the overdose death toll climbing – it allows important root issues to remain ignored.

Basic mathematics should see the number of overdose death fall to zero as overdose deaths reduce the number of people using toxic drugs. For the number of overdose deaths not to fall to zero requires that those who die be replaced by new users.

The concequences of the toxic drug supply pale in comparison to the consequences of the toxicity of comforting illusions; illusions that compound the costs and consequences of homelessness, addiction and our failure to address issues effectively.

Acknowledging or thinking about the mathematics of overdose deaths, addiction and the roots of addiction is so mentally discomforting that it is an anathema, therefore unthinkable. The resulting refusal to even acknowledge or think about, much less address, the roots of addiction means the ongoing creation of new addicts and new generations of addicts.

Our comfortable self-delusions are supported and reinforced by confirmational bias, egocentrisim and denial which also feed our succeptability to the comforting illusions of self-delusion, 

Being able, more importantly willing, to recognize our self delusions is the beginning of healthy cognition and to being able to mitigate the effects of self-delusion on our decision making process.

DUBITO ERGO CONGITO – without doubt, without questioning there is no thinking.

Without true thinking complex issues cannot be effectively addressed, leaving us to be engulfed by the costs and consequences of avoiding the effort, discomfort and change inherent in truly thinking.

P.S. Postmedia; B.C. experienced deadliest February of opioid crisis