Why isn't...

[THECATINTHEHAT]

BL trying to work on partnershiips around the country with local drug and alcohol services. Surely this is something that could be really beneficial for both BL and the drugs teams?

Is it something that has been tried before and failed?

 

[Eveleivibe]

That would be an ace idea to be honest.

Evey

 

[One Thousand Words]

Somehow I don't think it would be appropriate to align themselves with a website where people score drugs

 

[Eveleivibe]

Not even in terms of 'if people are going to take drugs (n let's face it they will) better to teach them to do it safely' or if not teachinf kids on the dangers of drug use? Or would that be seen as hypocrisy?

Evey

 

[F.U.B.A.R.]

Somehow I don't think it would be appropriate to align themselves with a website where people score drugs

Surely no one scores drugs through BL... That's against the rules innit? Not to mention illegal...

 

[Eveleivibe]

Surely no one scores drugs through BL... That's against the rules innit? Not to mention illegal...

Ye bloody sarky bugger. Hah :D

Evey

 

[Dark Side]

Yeah drug users follow rules religiously, go to church every sunday and help old ladies across the road.

 

[foolsgold]

bugger me you got me spot on there dark side

 

[THECATINTHEHAT]

Somehow I don't think it would be appropriate to align themselves with a website where people score drugs

They align themselves with people who use drugs and hand out equipment to help them use them so I feel that's kind of a fallacious argument, especially given that it is expressly against the rules.

 

[Shambles]

I have helped the occasional old lady across the road. I have also used local drug and alcohol services to score (this is fairly standard practice as anybody who has ever had a heroin habit will almost certainly confirm). I'm sure BL is used in such fashion too at times but - as with offline drug service providers - this is very clearly not the intent and is firmly discouraged and when witnessed dealt with.

On the actual question, I think it would be difficult to achieve. Whilst the BL Mission Statement would fit well with many offline drug service providers there will also be others where there is some areas of conflict. Specifically when dealing with abstinence only organisations as BL clearly does not go down that line.

Many offline drug services are heavily (often more or less completely) focussed on addiction primarily with general harm reduction being a distant second place at best - you only need flick through the leaflets and literature presented at such places or speak to workers (and/or volunteers) to see that there is little knowledge of any aspect of drug use beyond alcohol, benzo and street opioid addiction.

Where offline drug services have wider scope (such organisations do exist I'm sure although I've not really come across them myself) I could see more scope for working together in some way or another but vaguely recall something like this being attempted once in the past and it all going a bit tits up which rather put the brakes on any subsequent toe-dabbling in these waters.

 

[Sammy G]

I have helped the occasional old lady across the road. I have also used local drug and alcohol services to score (this is fairly standard practice as anybody who has ever had a heroin habit will almost certainly confirm).

Don't 9/10 users obtain methadone scripts purely to widen their circle of using associates and collect more numbers, as the meth makes their habit soar?

Maybe 9/10 is an exaggeration, but it has to be close.

 

[THECATINTHEHAT]

I have helped the occasional old lady across the road. I have also used local drug and alcohol services to score (this is fairly standard practice as anybody who has ever had a heroin habit will almost certainly confirm). I'm sure BL is used in such fashion too at times but - as with offline drug service providers - this is very clearly not the intent and is firmly discouraged and when witnessed dealt with.

On the actual question, I think it would be difficult to achieve. Whilst the BL Mission Statement would fit well with many offline drug service providers there will also be others where there is some areas of conflict. Specifically when dealing with abstinence only organisations as BL clearly does not go down that line.

Many offline drug services are heavily (often more or less completely) focussed on addiction primarily with general harm reduction being a distant second place at best - you only need flick through the leaflets and literature presented at such places or speak to workers (and/or volunteers) to see that there is little knowledge of any aspect of drug use beyond alcohol, benzo and street opioid addiction.

Where offline drug services have wider scope (such organisations do exist I'm sure although I've not really come across them myself) I could see more scope for working together in some way or another but vaguely recall something like this being attempted once in the past and it all going a bit tits up which rather put the brakes on any subsequent toe-dabbling in these waters.

Thankyou for bringing a sensible answer to the party. The scoring thing is a totally fallacious point, I would say a fair percentage of users started off by asking people coming out of the services to help them score, I've certainly done it.

 

[THECATINTHEHAT]

Don't 9/10 users obtain methadone scripts purely to widen their circle of using associates and collect more numbers, as the meth makes their habit soar?

Maybe 9/10 is an exaggeration, but it has to be close.

Given that the majority of people collect from a pharmacy rather than a clinic I doubt it.

In fact I would go as far as to say you have just completely pulled that out of your arse in both theory and fractional representation.

 

[F.U.B.A.R.]

Don't 9/10 users obtain methadone scripts purely to widen their circle of using associates and collect more numbers, as the meth makes their habit soar?

Maybe 9/10 is an exaggeration, but it has to be close.

No. 9/10 users obtain methadone scripts because they feel pressured into it by the drug services or family, or they actually want to get off heroin (shock, horror).

 

[Eveleivibe]

Don't 9/10 users obtain methadone scripts purely to widen their circle of using associates and collect more numbers, as the meth makes their habit soar?

Maybe 9/10 is an exaggeration, but it has to be close.

That would annoy me if true. There are people in some really dire conditions due to their addictions n the waiting lists for maintenance scripts can be months in certain areas. I would have had to wait months if it wasn't for my keyworker rushing it through because she was worried about me. So people are doing people really ill out of a service they really need which could mean life or death for some people.

This sort of thing would annoy me.

No. 9/10 users obtain methadone scripts because they feel pressured into it by the drug services or family, or they actually want to get off heroin (shock, horror). Fucking grow up!

Just seen this. That's more like it.

Evey

 

[F.U.B.A.R.]

Evey, I really don't believe this happens. No one puts themselves at the mercy of DSPs just to find a score - why would they?

Unless Sammy knows a lot of total wankers....

 

[THECATINTHEHAT]

Evey, I really don't believe this happens. No one puts themselves at the mercy of DSPs just to find a score - why would they?

Unless Sammy knows a lot of total wankers....

You don't need to put yourself at the mercy of a drug service to score. You just sit outside and offer the first peron that walks out the door a bag to score for you.

 

[F.U.B.A.R.]

You don't need to put yourself at the mercy of a drug service to score. You just sit outside and offer the first peron that walks out the door a bag to score for you.

Exactly...

 

[Shambles]

Indeed. Much the same as how you don't have to start selling the Big Issue in order to cut a little side-deal with your local seller.

(that remark is obviously somewhat tongue in cheek - clearly not all big issue sellers are heroin addicts that will score for you, some are also alkies who will drink with you too )

Back to the actual topic for a moment, personally I'd actually very much like to see BL make better use of its online presence and "brand" (yes that was as painful to type as it will be to read but such is the way of the world these days ) out there in the other bit of IRL that involves face-to-face communications. I can see why this has so far never really happened (aside from one or two tentative steps in the past I believe - broadly unsuccessful and unsatisfactory steps I unfortunately also believe) as BL is a worldwide forum run by a relative handful of volunteers who tend to disagree on more than they agree on (despite what some may think there really is precious little in the way of circle-jerkery when it comes to matters of substance).

We've only very recently started to have anything approaching an "official BL position" on anything at all and given the sensitivity surrounding people claiming to speak or act on behalf of BL in the wider world (online and offline) I can see how it would perhaps be difficult to make much headway on these kinds of possibilities. Broadly speaking, I would certainly be in favour of expanding the site's role in the wider world but would obviously need to be on a case by case basis and I can't see there being much appetite for anything along these lines at the moment to be honest.

 

[ScotchMist]

BL trying to work on partnershiips around the country with local drug and alcohol services. Surely this is something that could be really beneficial for both BL and the drugs teams?

Is it something that has been tried before and failed?

In what way would you see BL working with the services?