Not anymore. The "heroin epidemic" in Clallam County came up in the last County Commissioner's debate between Dim King Jim and his challenger Mark Ozias. This allowed Dim King Jim to explain how his lust for cutting taxes was kinda sorta his way to fight drug abuse - or something.
A lot of people who turn to drugs, especially in economically devastated places like Clallam County, are looking for an out, an escape from the grim reality that they live in. Sort of like Dim King Jim's denial of basic science - hello, climate change! - also seems like a desperate attempt to escape an unpleasant reality. (Rising tides below, and shrinking water supplies from above.) So I can't help but wonder...Is voting for Dim King Jim as bad for a community as shooting up smack?
If it's not sewage on the beaches, it's...
We know the Republican mantra of "Personal Responsibility". People should pull themselves up by their own damned boot straps! No abortions, family planning or welfare. If you don't have a job, it is your fault.
ReplyDeleteBut, as we see here with all the millions of tax money spent on "economic development", people like Jim McEntire doesn't mind welfare and assistance for "private enterprise". These guys like "free trade" deals that "open up foreign markets to US companies", which translates into American workers losing their jobs as American companies move operations to China. You know the majority of companies operating in China are US owned? You know, the ones with the terrible working conditions, the ones that create all that pollution we hear about?
But, it is the people who are the poorest, weakest and most unable to function in society that are the REAL problem.
Port Angeles welcomes the jobs created by Health and Human Services, Salvation Army, the dental and medical clinics, and more. That those are located in town, and their employees patronize the local eateries at lunch times, and buy groceries and other things on their way home is all good.
But allow the clients of those services be seen on the streets of downtown? No way. People who need help are not welcomed by the downtown merchants. In fact, the merchants want the poor and needy removed from sight, as we saw in the PDN yesterday. Not the kind of people I will support with my business!
And, they (Revitalize Port Angeles group) convince the city to have the chief drive hours and hundreds of miles to review another city's panhandling law, while doing nothing about the open drug dealing on the streets? (What is wrong Skype? The city has money to burn on a trip like this?)
Any of us downtown know the vehicles. We've called the police. Repeatedly. For weeks and months. But the same people, in the same vehicles frequent the same places, every day.
The response? A group of squeaky clean (church group?) kids with an un-named group of adults (right) clean Hollywood beach of needles before Crabfest. Don't want those visitors to see needles, or poor people.
If you don't see a problem, there is no problem.
The majority of companies operating in China are not US owned. China has millions of companies, ranging from tiny noodle stalls to huge conglomerates owned by the People's Liberation Army or the Communist Party. A handful of US companies are allowed to operate in China. They are under strict government control, and they are Chinese companies in all but name.
DeleteGreat jobs project. Start building subterranean tunnels so the poor people can move from their panhandling jobs downtown to the hospital, dental clinics, HHS offices and the overnight shelter without being seen by the hoards of tourist in town.
DeleteCalling Don Perry!
Delete@ Anon 4:51 " A handful of US companies are allowed to operate in China.."? Really, you should look into these things.
DeleteAny American company of any size moved it's manufacturing facilities to China years ago, in order to remain competitive. Look on the label of just about any consumer goods, and you will see " Made in China". To quote an Apple executive "The entire supply chain is in China now.."
But you are right. The noodle stands are mostly still Chinese owned. But, McDonalds, and Burger King are making headways.
When you put some time into this topic, you'll find out that China is losing it's luster with foreign corporations as the workers want to be paid more, and the country is enacting pollution control laws. So, the new President of India has promised to "out China, China", and is offering India as a place to relocate to, with even lower worker costs, and less environmental controls.
And, India has been "at war" with environmental and social justice groups in the country, trying to raise awareness of what is happening there.
Do you really think anybody in North America can live on the wages paid workers in China or India? Do you really think any company can compete against corporations that manufacture their products in countries with wages as low as they are in China, Singapore, Pakistan and India?
Here is a long list, even though only a partial one, of companies you may recognize that are operating in China. Of course, we know they are manufacturing their products in the US, and shipping them TO China, right?
Deletehttp://www.jiesworld.com/international_corporations_in_china.htm
The man just blathers. He pontificates and blathers. I can't believe that anyone would vote for him. His insincerity and small thinking is beyond the pale for this area.
ReplyDeleteMark is a decent guy. He needs to relax, and speak more off-the-cuff, and less from notes. He's smart. He's engaging. He lacks that element of grating arrogance that might be why voters keep electing into positions around here.
Maybe there is something else in the water -- some brain altering chemical that is just called "fluoride"?
Because if you watched the two of the speak, and listened, there is no way you'd want to vote in that dim blowhard ass-hat -- yeah, that's right, Jimbo, pontificate away.
" DEA spokesperson Jodie Underwood says one of the many reasons for the heroin epidemic is prescription drug medications and people you may not suspect.
ReplyDelete"The people that were and are abusing prescription pain relievers are going to be soccer moms, professionals -- people who were prescribed these medications legitimately and were taking them under a doctor's supervision, but became addicted," Underwood said.
And when that prescription runs out, its chemical kin" is readily available and often cheaper on the streets.
"What happened was the Mexican drug traffickers capitalized on that, and they began to flood the US market with heroin," she said."
And: "We do see cartels here," said DEA special agent Doug James.
We asked James to explain the presence of Mexican drug cartels here.
“We're 1,300 miles from the Southwest border, from Tijuana, but might as well be on our back doorstep," he said." This was about Seattle, which has a lower statistical ranking for heroin use than Clallam.
What is wrong with this, besides it coming from the DEA?
Here is a clip from a recent Seattle Times article : " There were nearly 44,000 drug- overdose deaths nationwide in 2013, the most recent figures available. Washington state ranked 23rd highest for drug overdose deaths, at a rate of 13.7 for every 100,000 people in the state, the report found." That is for all types of drugs.
One study states 25 people died of "Prescription and/or heroin" over the three year period of 2008-2010, putting Clallam at 11.7 deaths per 100,000 population.
Don't get me wrong. Too bad, so sad. People who play around with dangerous things know of the possibilities. But to go all wiggy over an average of 8 people a year dying from "prescription and/or heroin" who are engaging in these activities by their own free will? Calling it an "epidemic"? Out of a county population of 70,000 ?
By comparison, an average of 25 people who up-front want to kill themselves die in Clallam County every year, committing suicide.
Having said all that, of course there needs to be support, crisis intervention, treatment etc services for those who want help. Of course.
Whoever you are, thank you for trying to inject some facts into this discussion.
DeleteHave no fear, Cherie Kidd is gathering money to build fences on the 8th Street bridges. At least she said she would. Hey Cherie, How's that fencing fund doing. Been pretty quiet on that front after you got all into a tizzy at the council meeting where you begged the council to authorize you to do your election year grand standing.
DeleteYeah, I see the soccer moms sneaking around in the parking lot getting their smack from the dealer before they pick up the kids from school. But, they are too embarrassed to leave the used needles around the house, so they take them down to Hollywood Beach and dump them there.
DeleteHey "anon at 10:18: That's good writing. I know what you mean...
DeleteFor drug dealers in PA it truly is 'another great day to do business in PA"!
ReplyDelete"I'd jump off a bridge for some of that great PA heroin! Try some today! Or tomorrow. Whenever your despair gets the best of you!"
DeleteGee! And we see the leadership of Port Angeles all excited about the oil rig coming back.
ReplyDeleteMaybe they should look into the drugs and crime the oil biz brings with it:
"The oil boom in the Bakken shale fields has touched off an explosion of growth and wealth on this remote wind-swept prairie. Big money is raining down in small towns. Oil rigs light up the night sky. But the bonanza suddenly flourishing here has also brought with it a dark side: a growing trade in meth, heroin, cocaine and marijuana, the shadow of sinister cartels and newfound violence.
Small-town police forces have been struggling to keep pace. In nearby Watford City, for instance, police calls for service have multiplied at a staggering rate — almost 100 times — in a five-year period. County jails overflow on weekend nights. Local sheriffs no longer know every name and face when they stroll down Main Street.
Drugs and dealers are popping up in all kinds of places: Heroin is being trafficked on isolated Indian reservations. Mexican cartels are slowly making inroads in small-town America. And hard-core criminals are bringing drugs in from other states, sometimes concealing them in ingenious ways: liquid meth in windshield wiper reservoirs."
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/04/12/dark-side-nd-oil-boom-meth-heroin-cartels-all-part-growing-drug-trade-1418696252/
Just like a bunch of old hens sitting around cackeling. Pathetic.
ReplyDelete...and yet here you are. At least the rest of us are productive citizens trying to make the best of what we can while our leaders allow our community to crumble around us. We volunteer, work hard and keep our own homes and businesses running and attractive. What are YOU doing?
DeleteKeep in mind about 90% of the addicts in PA are never heard from. They don't make the news or the jail roster. They're your hard working neighbors and friends. If you don't believe me check out they're teeth. It's a dead give away. :D
ReplyDelete"... they're teeth." You have neighbors who are teeth? Really?
DeleteT-H-E-I-R.
"You have neighbors who are teeth?"
DeleteFunny! Thank you!
What? I thought the fluoridation here prevented tooth decay!?
ReplyDeleteI see the cleanup costs for the old Kply site have now doubled from what they originally thought they'd be, and the cleanup isn't over yet. These are the kinds of costs that the people who are always wanting "industrial development" never seem to want to talk about.
ReplyDeleteThat is how this area funds itself. Other peoples money.
DeleteAs we know, "private enterprise" is marginally viable here, as evidenced by around half those employed work for some government and/or tax funded agency or organization.
And, it is seeking grants to fund projects and proposals that makes anything happen here.
It sure isn't "private enterprise" cleaning up the former Kply site, which received how much taxpayer money when in operation?
People who didn't live here when Rayonier emissions were peeling the paint off cars, and keeping school kids inside for their own protection, have no idea how bad things used to be. Compared to those days, Port Angeles is wonderful these days. Except.
It's called privatizing your profits and socializing your costs. Fat cats walk away with the money and the community cleans up their mess. It's how capitalism works for those who have the money to game the system.
DeleteAny reputable engineering company could have bored enough holes to know exactly where the plume went and what the concentrations were.
Get in with a low bid and know you are going to fuck them once you're in.
Works every time in this area.
Kickbacks? hard to prove so we have to assume mere incompetence on the part of those spending the public's money. Bet the current election will not see 50% of the voters voting. Maybe we should start a 'Crimestoppers" unit locally. Offer a reward for anyone reporting graft and corruption.
Even private businesses here work on projects funded by tax money. How much of the income of Country Aire, Gastro Pub or Devil's Lunchbox comes from people getting their paychecks from State, Federal, City or Tribal funded projects?
DeleteOpening my mail, I see my taxes have gone up. Assessed value has supposedly increased, even though I haven't done any significant improvements to my business and property.
ReplyDeleteAs a downtown merchant, all I have experienced this last year has been the noise, shaking, dust and congestion of the city's tear up the roads projects, the log trucks loading up the site for that Chinese log ship, and the noise and dust from the clean up of the old Kply site. All that gets blown into downtown by prevailing winds.
Then, there is the very visible increase in the drug dealing down town. We all complain, but the city does nothing. Why?
I go to the downtown association meetings. I go to the Revitalize meetings. I see the council members there, and the police chief there. Everyone there is so happy about everything.
But it is worse! I've been here long enough to see how much worse things are.
It seems that, because these people are running around saying everything is so great in Port Angeles have got the assessors thinking things are better, for what reason I sure don't see.
It looks like Revitalize has gotten my taxes to be higher. Downtown taxes are already ridiculous. For what I pay, I should be living in luxury.
Instead of a declining mill town with drug dealers everywhere.
I'd leave if I could.
I wish I knew what to say to you. I'm sorry. I'm truly sorry.
DeleteThe message of PADA/Revitalize seems to be - if we don't see a problem, the problem doesn't exist.
DeleteThis mantra simply proves that these two groups, along with the rest of the city are utterly out of touch.
I, too, am sorry to hear about your trouble.
Elect Dan Bateham. Will that solve these problems? No. Will it get Miss "Everything is beautiful in Port Angeles" out of the squall line of bumbling leadership. Next we heave Brad Collins to the curb. Next, well you fill in the blank. In 3 elections we can get a council that gives a shit about the concerns you raise. Your ballot is on the table, use it. Don't re-elect anyone.
DeleteI live n Sequim and our assessment went up too - why, I don't know. It went up on the structure, not the property itself and we haven't done anything differently.
DeleteWhat was going on in downtown this morning? Nothing, and plenty of it!
ReplyDeleteIn driving into town today, I saw that the mattress is still propped up against the wall outside one of the ground floor rooms at the Air Crest Motel.
ReplyDeleteThis is on the main road into town. Before the turn up to the National Park.
How many weeks did the cleaning staff put new linens over that black moldy stained mattress, before they decided to put it outside?
It has been there a week now.
What kind of management works there, where they think a moldy mattress is okay. That it is okay for it to be put outside for patrons to see? That it can be left outside a room, for other patrons to walk past?
It is only about 50 feet from the front door of the motel.
Beyond comprehension.
Photos anyone? PLEASE?
DeleteIf it is still there today, I'll snap a pic.
DeleteHere is an online review of the Red Lion Motel from three days ago:
ReplyDelete“Please don't”
1 of 5 starsReviewed 3 days ago NEW
Our stay is actually making me sick. The smell is awful and turning on the air made it worse. We had to sleep with window open for all to see and parking lot light in face. Toliet ran, refrigerator didn't work. If it hadn't been late I would have left or slept in my car.
Here is another Red Lion Review , from four days ago:
ReplyDelete“Love is in the details-- and this hotel shows no love”
And another:
"“the mint was the only refreshing thing about this place”
1 of 5 starsReviewed 4 days ago NEW
i am a local on the peninsula and I have to say that I would never recommend this place."
And another;" “Are you kidding me?”
1 of 5 starsReviewed 6 days ago NEW
Eventually Esprit will give up on the Red Lion - and the rest of the town as well.
DeleteI read reviews of the Red Lion on Google Reviews and Yelp. Good God, what a dump of a place!
DeleteHere are the top complaints:
Expensive - it's obvious to many visitors that they're being gouged, especially during the summer months.
"Resort Tax/Fee" - another charge on top of the regular taxes. Many guests are not fooled by this add-on dip into their wallets.
Moldy bathrooms - mold growing in the shower grouting. Seriously.
Uncleaned rooms - The RL frequently rents out rooms that the housekeepers obviously haven't touched. Guests complained about finding drug paraphernalia in drawers, unclean bedding, soiled carpets and such.
Broken Fixtures - Everything form non functional refridgerators, wifi connections, TVs, low water pressure in the showers, toilets that run endlessly, stained carpets and soiled furnishings.
Smell - Yep, they rent out stinky rooms.
The RL takes better care (sort of) of the rooms with on the water side of the property. Still, people complained about the "crazy people" on the trail and the paper thin walls and the drunken screams issuing from the streets when the bars close at 2:30.
The street side rooms are clearly the worst rooms, with many guests complaining about the dismal/disgusting state of these rooms.
The property is old, tired and is in dire need of a sprucing up (attention, Revitalize: you like to paint things. How about volunteering to fix up a local business?).
Who are the owners of this place? Are they local? It's obvious they don't care about their property or it's effect on the reputation of Port Angeles. While there were several positive or satisfied reviews of the Red Lion, the majority of reviews are negative - and it's on the internet for the world to see.
What is worse is that this was all brought up a year ago in the Port O Call, and still nothing is different. A year after Revitalize meetings on how to improve the city, and they can't see the obvious.
DeleteHey! Hello! Look at what the visitors think. This is more revealing, relevant and important that voting for yourself as "The Best".
Yeah, think of all those visitors who are returning to their homes, to tell friends and neighbors of what they experienced in Port Angeles. "Our stay is actually making me sick. The smell is awful...."
Is it time for the city council to give Revitalize another award?
What's up at the PA airport today? Between 11:00 am and 11:20 am a Navy Growler practiced touch and go landings. Is this the Port's plan for bringing regularly scheduled flights to town? Maybe the Navy is probing for a new location where the citizens are not so picky or cranky about noise?
ReplyDelete