Its getting to the point where this is becoming so frequent that all the media has to do is cut and paste articles. Every time its the same old Sh!t!! "Youth known to police shot,"

People WANT tougher laws and penalties.
It seems it's the politicians who refuse to deal with it, other than to tell us that,yes,they are working on it!
Ya right.
The first politician who actually does something that makes a difference and people can see it happening,will find himself elected for life!
Crime and punishment is fast becoming the biggest issue in politics today,and rightly so.
Something is very wrong when it appears there is nothing that can be done to fight crime, and it IS increasing!
There is much that can be done,but for some unknown reason the deadbeats we elect just don't seem to want to go there!
Why??
What do they know that the rest of us don't?

your right andyfreeze our politcians are so worried about or bleedindhearts out there thay are too scared to take a piss as it might upset someone I;d vote for anyone who had gut to do something about our crimials

Well maybe they are afraid they could become a target? I don't know. They all need to agree as a whole on this topic and get things rolling. What a huge job to be done.
The mother of the last young man that was shot and killed touched me with her words. I'd love to meet her. She has it in her to try and make a difference with young kids. She wants to use her pain to try to make things better and not for revenge.

Crime is big business, it's tax free!! It seems our politicians and lawmakers believe criminals are big spenders, and that my friends is good for the economy. Now I have the privilege of spending my hard earned dollars to protect my family and property, which also stimulates the economy. So you see, full circle it's just better to keep criminals active. Perhaps we should inherit the US motto, step on my property without an invitation, and its off to the morgue with you.

Heidi555; you are so correct that Dianne does have what it takes to make a difference, someone with the past experience and knowledge of what it is like to be out there on the streets and how easy it is to get caught up in it, and how hard it is to get out of it.

Heidi I don't want to give out any personal information on here but if you really want to meet Dianne let me know how I can get in touch with you to pass on Dianne's contact information.

How about building a big fence around the "hood"? With only a few entry points strategically placed the RCMP can selectively search for drugs and guns, criminal records, etc. They can profile if it helps. They are building walls and fences in Texas,Arizona,Mexico between Israel and Palestine and Egypt, all sorts of places. Good fences make good neighbours.

You are right pisspulper!
Crime IS big business and getting bigger. Faster than ever it would seem!
It has infiltrated everything.
I guess we will never know for sure just how high it all reaches,but I do tend to believe the old sayings that crime DOES pay,and drug money flows UP hill!
I am starting to believe that's all part of the problem!
High high does it go?
Well,the Vasi/Virk/B.C.Rail etc. case for a prime example, has some very suspicious links to some very high profile places and people.
After following it since it began in the raid on the Premiers office a couple of years ago,I can only conclude that SOMEBODY is working very hard to see that the truth does not come out.
Why?
Is that telling us something about how high it all reaches?

you know it is truly amazing that people in Prince George believe that only drug induced crap happens in the VLA neighborhood. and that the mentality to continue calling it "the hood" isn't going to help in anyway shape or form. There are good families living in that part of the city, and guess what it wasn't always the way it is now!! The continued negativity from most city residents doesn't help!! calling that neighborhood "the hood" only helps to contribute to the down turn that has been happening in the VLA!! less negativity and more compassion for individuals that have remained living there with the belief that things will change!!

Sorry, but I don't have any belief that things will get better, let alone change. I just hope I can keep my distance from these losers and their problems. Maybe we need some of them South American city "death squads". Just for the incorrigible druggies. But then again, that ain't the answer. I know, just start walking around the VLA with a sign saying, "Just say no to drugs". And see where it gets you. Kinda like that anti-abortion sign we see sometimes. Ain't that effective? Lastly, that vacant Wood Wheaton building has a lot of brick walls. Just bang yer head on one of them until that feeling you have goes away.

Today on the noon news,George Abbott announced that the Campbell government will have a facility for mentally ill and addicted people in place by July 2008.
Of course,he or the Campbell government accepted no blame for any of the problems relating to street people,mentally ill repeat criminals, etc.
It was all the NDP's fault, of course.
When asked where it would be located,he didn't answer.
My guess would be a place like Baldy Hughs?
That is assuming you believe him, and I don't!
I think he just had to say something positive when cornered!

Hey Anastasia,
I tried facebook and sure enough there is a group for Mitch there. I searched the members and found someone I know. Small world and i'm really starting to believe in Six Degrees of Separation. I sent her a message. Hope you are doing ok.

I shudder to think that in beautiful British Columbia there could be corruption in high places, in fact I would prefer not to consider the notion. If it is ok with everyone else, can I just keep my head in the sand? (preferably ON a sandy beach in the tropics, please)
Seriously though, we have a serious epidemic here (the drug trade) and like most other places in the world, we are not really doing much to discourage the filth from doing their dirty business. The suggestion above that the economy profits from the scum spending their ill gotten gains is, I hope, made in jest. If we do indeed have layers of corruption, i.e. persons in authority who have been paid off, then all may be lost. As long as people in power (from the lowly constable all the way to the Premier's office) can be bought, we have no hope of ever curbing and eventually eliminating the drug problem. Unfortunatly for the law abiding majority, the purveyors of filth know only too well where to spend money, or who to put pressure on, to continue with their poisoning of our society. It is too bad that greed, and lust for money can not be eliminated.
metalman.

Well said metalman!

Dont you just love the liberals new coin phrase? "The Best Place On Earth" -Yeah if your in the drug business!

It is too easy to focus on our own politicos and their obvious shortcomings. Let us remember that many areas in the western world have the same problem, to varying degrees. The yanks 'three strikes & yer out' rule looks pretty good from here, but I wonder how many of the 'kingpins' actually get to that point? Isn't it their lackeys that take the fall?
My point is that this problem exists elsewhere too, and from what I can see, other juridictions are not having a lot of success in cramping the style of the filth merchants. Live by the sword-die by the sword, an eye for an eye, lets' bring back justice. I like what the I.R.A. in Northern Ireland used to do if someone was caught selling drugs in one of their neighbourhoods, justice was short and swift, and did not rely upon the Queen to arbitrate the matter. Sure and maybe they got the wrong person from time to time but it set an example didn't it?
Hey, we have to start somewhere, why not with laws that the honest police (majority) can enforce, with some degree of assurance that the crown attorney oh yeah and the bleeding heart judges, will back them up for their efforts.
WITHOUT HARSH JUSTICE, THIS PROBLEM WILL NEVER GO AWAY.
metalman.

HARSH JUSTICE?

I'm just getting used to the new Dash and Gas law. I'm wondering if the guy that killed that gas station attendent is out of jail already? It's been a couple years so he probably is.

The rest of society and small business is sure paying for that crime. Now that's harsh.

All the tough talk about harsher penalties and the like...... THE USA incarcerates at a level beyond any other nation. Does it make it safer, less violent?

NOPE.

"I'd vote for anyone who had gut to do something about our crimials"

This whole thing reminds me of prohibition right down to the gangsters of the day shooting each other where they gather. Does no one see the analogy?

If there were no market for the illicit product, there wouldnot be such a lucrative, albeit risky, business out there for those at the top.

If most people would stop using, then the dealers would be out of business.

Stick em all in jail. Kill them all. Do whatever you want. Nothing will change other than continued wasted lives.

Until we really start to deal with the roots of the problem, we can build jails, we can increase policing .... there are lots more waiting in the wings to fill those shoes of those taken out of the system whether by gangland turf wars or the government justice system.

Like the war on terrorism, the war on drugs (remember that war waged by the USA?)has so far been unsuccessful.

Just to note about corruption and drugs in high places, not just the VLA (where I lived for a few months when I fist went to PG in 1976).

The raid on the legislature that has led to the accusations against Basi, Basi and Virk regarding the sale of BC Rail to CN originally started as a drug investigation. Perhaps one day we will find out who and what was involved in that.

mabey weshould remember that our politicians and law makers were of the pot smoking 60ies mabey thay went on one too many LSD trips and never cameback

Legalize pot, tax it, then a lot of this bullsh$$t will go away.

Sad to say but acidrider and owl are right. Legalize all of it, including cyanide.

OH anastasia doesn't realize that the hood has been a bad place to live probably before she was born. Having been there during the late 80's it was still a place to be guarded about day and night.

Its so nice that Heidi is so sympathetic towards the young druggies mom....does she realise that it may have been lousy parenting that got the lad into the gang and drug buisness in the first place??

Tossing it out there....

"All the tough talk about harsher penalties and the like...... THE USA incarcerates at a level beyond any other nation. Does it make it safer, less violent?"

Nope! but is one less scumbag on the street so who really gives a dam whether they get rehabilitated.

Ah S__T sorry for sounding like a right wing redneck. We will just take these dopers and gang members and make them take a " Time Out"
Well if they want to of course. They have rights to and if they don't want to take a "Time Out" then we shouldn't be forcing our morals on them. But we could ask them and maybe we could ask them about their feelings while they are taking the "Time Out"
We don't want to seem insensitive to other alternative lifestyles.

I like what they are doing right now. Let's gather them up, take them somewhere away from us and give them all guns and lots of ammo. They are ridding us of the problem faster than the system can.

Just think, these guys would still be out on bail waiting for a court date right now. Instead, they are now growing flowers.

"Sure and maybe they got the wrong person from time to time but it set an example didn't it?" "WITHOUT HARSH JUSTICE, THIS PROBLEM WILL NEVER GO AWAY."

Great idea, and I volunteer you to be the next wrong person, please step up, don't be shy. Remember, you're dying for a greater good. To set an example to everyone else, that even if you don't screw up, we might come for you anyway. Live in a society of fear, that's safer.

Oh, wait a minute, don't we call that terrorism ? I hope your ideas sound just as dumb to you as they do to me.

After we get rid of the drug problem, we'll deal with prostitution. The politicians have been sitting on this issue for far too long (over 2000 years). It's about time we took action !

Gee, reasonable(?)man, I guess you have an opinion too. I'll tell you what; I assume that you are indeed reasonable, and law abiding. I do not wish any violence upon you, kindly refrain from inviting the same upon me. You are forgiven. This is a forum for us to speak about issues that affect all of us. I may well have difficulty in expressing my thoughts in this (new to me) format, at times my musings may be off base, off beat, hell, even off colour! But see here!If there is one topic I have a crystal clear opinion on, it is this issue of society destroying drugs. The point I have been attempting to illustrate is that despite the best (?) efforts of society and governments around the world, the drug problem has yet to be licked. Owl suggests we attack the root of the problem: addiction. A fine idea, but impossible to accomplish, unless we all subject ourselves to some sort of brain operation, or mass immunization, should someone come up with a way to shut down the part of our brains that is predisposed to developing a preference to a sensation.
metalman.

The LARGEST DRUG DEALER IN THIS PROVINCE is well, the province. The Liquor Distribution Branch to be specific.

The war on drugs has been lost. What we are doing now isn't working. To expect a different result while repeating the same process is, quite simply, insanity.

Money talks, the crime industry as I call it is a very lucrative business empire, hardly any different than any legitimate business. To suggest it doesn't stimulate world economies is just nonsense. We are talking here about trillions of dollars in expenditures and assets worldwide. Albeit illegal activities occur within a so called crime industry, so it does in the legitimate business world. Anyone heard of tax evasion. This applies to both parties regardless of the manner in which it is manipulated or achieved. Income is income, lets nail everyone. There is no solution for remediation. Just jesting of course ;)

When one parks their head in the tropical sands, beware as you ass will be in the air.

"Police program criticized
The report singles out a program called DARE, which sends police into schools to talk to young people about the dangers of drug abuse. In 2006, 75,000 students in 1,600 Canadian schools heard from police officers as part of the program.

DARE receives a lot of money and attention in Canada's official drug strategy, but hasn't shown any proof of effectiveness, said Montaner.

"Having politicians pretending they know what is going to fix the drug problem in the absence of objective indicators is a recipe for disaster," he said. "It's a recipe for hidden agendas, recipe for ideological agendas and a recipe for people to try to impose a world on you as opposed to what the world really is."

DARE and similar programs should face the same level of scrutiny as the safe-injection site and have their funding taken away if they don't show success, he said.

"The DARE program is entrenched into the strategy and begs the question, why? If it's not working, let's fix it, let's change it, let's modify it," he said.

An Ottawa RCMP officer who helps run the program said that while there's little scientific proof it works, he believes it is successful.

"From my experience as a front-line officer working in those schools, I have to say it has the ability to bring some very positive outcomes to those kids," said Sgt. Mark Sorokan.

When Canada's new drug strategy was launched in 2003, the government promised to deliver status reports every two years. No reports or evaluations have been made available so far, say the authors."


Taken from an online report. These kids need to be informed at an earlier age about just how uncool it is to do drugs in my motherly opinion. Ages 3-5 is the most crucial period in a childs life on how their minds will be shaped. Age appropriate teaching.

Kids react to peer pressure.
We all did, if we think back that far.
I grew up in the 60's so I do remember!
It is a tough job to convince kids in general that drugs are as evil as they are, when they are surrounded by peers and a culture that doesn't agree with that theory.
And kids don't exactly swallow what adults may tell them either!
Fact of life, and I recall that too.
Later on in life however, we find out that grown-ups were mostly right,but not at the time.
Other kids have more sway on kids than WE do!
Maybe somehow,that is the key?

*good post Heidi!

Good post Andyfreeze,true,true, some things will never change. Rebellion was fun!

hehehe...wasn't it?
They say if you remember the 60's,you weren't there...umm..what were we talking about?
:-)

lol...so glad I was born in the 70's. We were all such sweet little angels!!!

;)

To be safe, we just have to lock ourselves up and be afraid then let the criminals roam free. Logical, eh?

Metalman, expect to be debated. Don't take it personally. You'll get used to it.
That's how we develop our thinkin'.

Thanks for the tip, Rman.
I am a little thin skinned at times, but that's another story.
metalman.

The DARE program was born in LA at least a couple of decades ago by Police Chief Gates. The RCMP is far behind the times when it adopted it. I would have to say that from the numbers (ie: gang violence, increase in drug traffic) that it isnt working, however, to see one or two kids shrug off the temptation and peer pressure is always nice to see.