03-04-2024, 07:14 PM
(03-04-2024, 06:32 PM)KillerGoose Wrote: Thanks for the links. I read the NPR article as legal language in bills tend to make my eyes gloss over. While I think some of the things I have read may be hyperbole (e.g. only one additional rehab center has been constructed) the overall point seems to be accurate. There isn't enough infrastructure to support what the bill wanted to do. More importantly, though, they aren't getting enough calls to their hotline. Hardly anyone was taking advantage of the program it seems.
Not sure why there'd be such a variance in the use of these services. Addiction behavior is rather consistent across cultural boundaries.
Quote:Here is another NPR article about Portugal's implementation. It's a great and insightful read. One glaring difference is how the two societies view police officers. In Portugal, you will read that the officers are viewed as "friends" whereas in the United States, perhaps more on the left, police are viewed as enemies e.g. "ACAB". Where Oregon has had barely anyone contact the hotline established by Measure 110, Portugal sports a 90% hit rate.
Law enforcement as the enemy is a rather recent phenomena, for much of the country that is. A large part of the problem is that we, also until recently, had some rather odious laws in place that law enforcement was obligated to enforce. Sometimes with far too much enthusiasm. Today it is colored far too broadly by bad actors receiving disproportionate media coverage.
