There are resources in place, but at least in my area, they aren't being utilized to capacity.
So while it seems logical to the rest of us that addicts don't want to be addicts, they're also apparently not willing to tap into that help.
You can argue this or that about something not being funded right, or set up right, but at the end of the day, these people have to make efforts. And a lot of them try! I talk to them! A lot just don't give a crap and have given up on life.
Then begs the question: who's going to pay for it, and from where? Our education is already underfunded, and personally I'd rather see funds go to education, particularly non-special education (already well-funded) and Career Technical Education.
Why don't they utilize them? What's keeping them from doing so? Addiction is brutal, and getting clean is not a simple process of rehab.
Getting clean requires a ton of energy and patience and it often hurts like hell. For someone who is spending 100% of their energy on surviving and managing their addiction, they might not have the reserves to try to get clean.
We need to figure out how to reach them, not write them off.
Also, "I'd rather fund x instead of y" is a trap. We can do both, and we can say the bar is fully funded education and fully funded support for addiction and recovery.
So while it seems logical to the rest of us that addicts don't want to be addicts, they're also apparently not willing to tap into that help.
You can argue this or that about something not being funded right, or set up right, but at the end of the day, these people have to make efforts. And a lot of them try! I talk to them! A lot just don't give a crap and have given up on life.
Then begs the question: who's going to pay for it, and from where? Our education is already underfunded, and personally I'd rather see funds go to education, particularly non-special education (already well-funded) and Career Technical Education.