Jail Addicts Cash payout

[youngmafbog]

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1 240570,00.html
Now we're paying out a fortune for druggies who had to dry out, poor darlings.
Is there ever to be an end to this madness?
What about the people whose lives these b*stards make a misery robbing and mugging.
This Govewrnment has alot to answer for.
HRA again I suppose
Any views ?

[admarlow]

Worst thing you can give someone who has just come off of Heroin...........�5,000 and loads of free time.

[chicklin]

I'm right with jonnythebosh here, I don't have any problem with heroin addicts going cold turkey. As he rightly says 'if they don't want to go through it, they shouldn't do it in the first place'. Lightof truth - you're just wanting to mollycoddle them again. Giving them methedone - Pah! Let them suffer. Why should we have to pay to keep them high? Perhaps if a few more addicts went through cold turkey it would put the rest off, knowing what they'd have to go through instead of thinking they can take whatever they like and there will always be a safety net of methedone waiting for them. Nobody made them take it in the first place, that was their decision.

[admarlow]

Do you think that I would be allowed to go on AB all day if I got banged up?...well I am addicted, and you wouldn't want to see me go cold turkey.

[andy-hughes]

Any chance of a little perspective here?

The prisoners involved were already in a recovery programme and making the progress we would all want - to get them off drugs. On arrival at prison, the continuation of the programme was denied to them - and that is the abuse of their rights.

On the surface, it's really easy to bang on about 'getting what they deserve / PC gone mad / compensation culture' etc. etc. but if you take an objective civilised look at the situation, it's not quite that simple.

Our laws providde a tarrif of sentences for crimes. They don't include pulling teeth with pliers, electric prods to genitalia, starvation, and so on. Neither do they include inhumane treatment of human beings who are in the process of being weaned off drugs which they have embarked on due to a complex series of life-style situations which those of us who are employed, intelligent, and supported, don;t have to encounter.

It is really easy to take the knee-jerk right-wing view that these people don;t seserve or help and compassion, but in the interests of stopping the vicious circle of drugs / theft / prison / drugs - they actually do.

Human rights are there to support all of us - not just those the self-righteous feel deserve them based on their own lifestyle and code of ethics.

Support and education are the route to curing addictions, not lofty sneering and self-righteous abuse. If we want to be a civilsed society, then understanding this situation, and the people involved.

Be nice!

[chicklin]

Nope sorry, can't agree at all. The bottom line is regardless of lack of opportunities, or any other ' complex series of life-style situations' you may care to mention - they embarked on this drug addict lifestyle voluntarily. They made that choice and now they have to live with the consequences of that. Not expect us to bail them out of it when they decide they don't like it anymore. I (and I'm sure hundreds of others) could have gone the same route but we chose not to. I'm not saying that makes me better than them, but they made that choice, let them take all the rest of the horrible things (in this case going cold turkey)that come as a result of their decision. Just leave them to take responsibility for their own actions.

[andy-hughes]

The point I made was that starting drug addicition is not a concious decision. We are talking people who do not know how to take control of their lives. Things happen to them, and they lack the basic intelligence to look ahead and see the consequences. We are fortunate enough not to be in that situation, but for those that are, some practical help and support benefits all of us as a society. The notion that 'this is your fault, you sort it out ...' simply doesn't help these people. They arenot able to sort themselves out without structured help and support. Leaving them without is simply set them on the merry-go-round i described, which doesn;t help anyone - them or us.

A civilised society is a compassionate society. Punishment is clearly an appropriate response to a criminal act. the wider issues preventing a repeat of that act involve some thought, some planning, some support, and some desire to make things better for society as a whole. Simply sitting back with a smug smile on your face, and a feeling of vengence served in your mind is not going to help anyone.

[BigDogsWang]

Andy. Your input is always reasoned, constructive and intelligent. However, I think you are missing the point. These people are not in prison because they are drug addicts. They are in prison because the committed criminal acts whilst trying to fund their habit. You can bang on all day about it being societys fault that these people have turned to Heroin out of depair, but my 'scales of justice' would tip heavily in favour of only compensating the victims of these people's actions.

I know a very intelligent chap, who in his teenage years fell into the Heroin trap. He came from a very stable and loving family. I know that whilst trying to feed his habit, he broke into a Chemist and severly beat a young girl Pharmacist. She ended up needing hospital treatment and was traumatised for a number of years after. He is not proud of what he did and has been 'dry' since the early 80's.

She never received a penny. And i've no doubt that a number of the victims of the addicts currently in the media have never received anything either. Thats why people have got the hump.

[Fulton]

Over 25 years of working in prisons, I have seen many people go through cold turkey, and have cut them down from window bars and stemmed blood flow from severed veins.
I do agree that this case is ridiculous. Many prisoners complete a detox programme, get clean, go out, back on the gear and then back in for another go at detox. It seems to be a never ending cycle. I just think that in many cases we are simply delaying their inevitable early death, and prolonging their self inflicted agony.

[chitchat]

There cannot be anyone in this country who is not aware of the dangers of taking drugs. So anyone who does so deserves everthing they get. If they suffer with cold turkey then it serves them right - they dont care about their familes or their victims. Why the hell should the taxpayers pay them because they were too stupid to say no in the first place. The country is a bl00dy joke and so are the judges who makes these decisions. It makes me sick!

[admarlow]

I agree I have been offered Heroin before and of course I said, no so its not that hard really is it, as has been said before everyone knows what it does.

[chicklin]

Andy-Hughes How can you say ' starting drug addiction is not a conscious decision?' Of course it is.
I applaud you for your compassionate views but I'm afraid I can't say I share them, no matter how hard I've tried to see your point of view. I can't agree that we should keep throwing good money after bad at these people (most of whom don't seem to want to help themselves anyway) when there are so many more worthwhile uses we could put the money towards. We should be helping people who are genuinely ill through no fault of their own. Sorry, I suspect we'll have to agree to disagree on this! I'm obviously much more heartless (though I prefer realistic) than you are!