I Went to A Common Council Meeting!

HipKat

HipKat

Administrator
Staff member
I wasn't going to get up and speak, but I did, twice.
Both times after the woman in yellow.

The backstory is that I'm a very vocal Trump hater, Illinois hater, and now fed up with the Homeless problem here, and I said I would go to a meeting and bring this up.

This was my post in the Pekin, IL FB Group I'm in.
If you want he long boring backstory on the 2nd video,go back to the 25 minute mark, but I summarize it below


So, about that common council meeting…

I did go, as I said I would, and I did not plan on saying anything because I just wanted to see how it works, but, never being too shy to speak lol, I did get up during the public input session and talked about the homeless problem

I did not say we need to find the answer to this right now. I did not accuse anybody of not working on it. Just the opposite, in a rambling, nervous three minutes, explained that it’s a growing problem that we’re all aware of. The answers are not easy, and I know it’s getting attention, but it’s growing faster and faster, and we need to come up with some solutions.

Latest count puts the number of homeless people in Pekin at about 500, BTW.

I also said that I’ve never been to a council meeting before, and the mayor said I should come often, and I said I plan on coming to all of them now, and I am.
During one of the amendments, talking about potential HUD money that could be used for a lot of different projects, including low and medium-income housing that needs repairs, where the homeowner doesn’t have the financial means to make those repairs. Block grant money for targeted neighborhoods and a whole list of things.

So I got up again on that note and requalified myself as someone who’s not from Illinois or Pekin, but from upstate New York. I love Pekin, and I do love Pekin, and I get chastised for that often. I pointed out that as you move further south, the houses become more rundown. The yards are less taken care of, and people need to be aware that this program is potentially going to be available to them.

I thought it was frustrating when the presenter said that if the last public input meeting, only one person showed up
That seems to be the problem that I can’t relate to because back home. I was a very involved type of person. In Illinois, I have not been that way, but I’m going to be. Why aren’t people here interested in getting involved in their community? Whenever the city of Buffalo needs public input for a project like, for example, replacing the Peace Bridge to Canada, it gets massive amounts of attention from the citizens.

That is a question that I would like to find an answer to.

Anyway, when we broke, I had several people who came up and told me that they thought I did a good job speaking and that they’d like to see me come back. Councilman Able said that it’s important that we keep the topic of the homeless problem in front of everybody’s faces until it starts to get the kind of attention that it deserves.

Somebody accused me of being a future council person lol

And Trent, the fire chief, said it was refreshing to hear somebody say positive things about Pekin.

But the best part of the night was Chief Ranney giving me his card and asking me to call him.

Which I would’ve been able to do today if this town wasn’t so goddamn out of control this year.

Regardless, I should probably tone it down on here a little bit because I feel motivated to spend as much time as I can going forward, trying to get involved with this city.

So yeah, I put my money where my mouth was. I wish more people would do the same at the next meeting.



 
Okay skimmed that puppy… really nice Mr politician. I can see it now.

Homelessness and drugs are two completely separate issues. Homelessness is solved by homing people. Very doable BUT the secondary problem is the drug problem. Treatment doesn’t work unless it’s the addicts idea. Getting high is easier than quitting. Now combine the 2 problems… boom big problem. So what you said is true… no easy fix. No one ever got clean because mom, dad, sister, husband wife or friend wanted them to do so. Forced rehab is a wasted resource. These people need to be to hit bottom and really how further down can they go. They are living a bottom.

In a lot of ways allowing drug infested homeless camps is major enabling. Why get clean when they are surviving just “fine”.

It sucks.
 
sukie said:
Okay skimmed that puppy… really nice Mr politician. I can see it now.

Homelessness and drugs are two completely separate issues. Homelessness is solved by homing people. Very doable BUT the secondary problem is the drug problem. Treatment doesn’t work unless it’s the addicts idea. Getting high is easier than quitting. Now combine the 2 problems… boom big problem. So what you said is true… no easy fix. No one ever got clean because mom, dad, sister, husband wife or friend wanted them to do so. Forced rehab is a wasted resource. These people need to be to hit bottom and really how further down can they go. They are living a bottom.

In a lot of ways allowing drug infested homeless camps is major enabling. Why get clean when they are surviving just “fine”.

It sucks.
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All true, and the combination of a drug-fueled midwestern small city and homelessness is what we have here
 
HipKat said:
All true, and the combination of a drug-fueled midwestern small city and homelessness is what we have here
Click to expand...

Similar issues in my city of Hamilton.

You may want to look at the online Hamilton City Council meetings.

The province gave municipalities additional powers last year to deal with the tent people and now the tents are all gone and public housing was increased.

Still a mess but no longer as visible a mess.

With respect to drug addiction, my childhood friend ran for the last City Council and unlike me lives in the inner city.

He breaks down the homeless drug addicted group into 3 groups: (a) 25% who can easily be helped with their drug addiction with proper funding and professionals, (b) 25% who can't be helped and have no mental capabilities to make decisions to help themselves and (c) a middle group of 50% who are the real challenge.

He and I support the forced rehab of the (b) group who are a danger to themselves and society. If their families were involved, they would seek a wardship and have them committed. I am thinking of a one year rehab detainment program. Fuck their individual rights. They don't have the ability to exercise them.

The (a) group needs ongoing support and does not require committal. They need to be monitored for their own good and supported so they do NOT fall off track.

The (c) group requires a ton of money and a societal attitude shift.
 
SpikedLemonade said:
Similar issues in my city of Hamilton.

You may want to look at the online Hamilton City Council meetings.

The province gave municipalities additional powers last year to deal with the tent people and now the tents are all gone and public housing was increased.

Still a mess but no longer as visible a mess.

With respect to drug addiction, my childhood friend ran for the last City Council and unlike me lives in the inner city.

He breaks down the homeless drug addicted group into 3 groups: (a) 25% who can easily be helped with their drug addiction with proper funding and professionals, (b) 25% who can't be helped and have no mental capabilities to make decisions to help themselves and (c) a middle group of 50% who are the real challenge.

He and I support the forced rehab of the (b) group who are a danger to themselves and society. If their families were involved, they would seek a wardship and have them committed. I am thinking of a one year rehab detainment program. Fuck their individual rights. They don't have the ability to exercise them.

The (a) group needs ongoing support and does not require committal. They need to be monitored for their own good and supported so they do NOT fall off track.

The (c) group requires a ton of money and a societal attitude shift.
Click to expand...
I can't disagree with any of that
 
Success rate in forced rehab is miniscule. The category that seems hopeless is in dire need of a long controlled detox at which end rehab may be an option if they want to get clean. Cannot force sobriety on any individual. The drinking and doing drugs is merely a symptom of the disease if addiction.
 
sukie said:
Success rate in forced rehab is miniscule. The category that seems hopeless is in dire need of a long controlled detox at which end rehab may be an option if they want to get clean. Cannot force sobriety on any individual. The drinking and doing drugs is merely a symptom of the disease if addiction.
Click to expand...
After talking to the Chief of Pekin police, 98% of the homeless are there by choice. Many of them are suffering from Mental Illness, including Schizophrenia, and are not being treated. Drug addiction is rampant.

The real shocker is that in the Peoria Metro area, there are only 23 beds. Which is consistent regionally.

Also, the guidelines for incarceration have become so regulated that arrests don't lead to jail and on top of that, the no-cash bail policy adds to them getting back on the street.
 
sukie said:
Success rate in forced rehab is miniscule. The category that seems hopeless is in dire need of a long controlled detox at which end rehab may be an option if they want to get clean. Cannot force sobriety on any individual. The drinking and doing drugs is merely a symptom of the disease if addiction.
Click to expand...
Hey I am a liberal who is willing to pay higher taxes for a forced 12-month rehab program staffed by the best medical personal and using the world's best practices however if you say it does not work, I prepared to do what society is currently doing right now and watch people slowly kill themselves through addiction without society making the tough choice to help them.

I am willing to intervene but I guess I look the other way like everyone else.

What would Jesus do?
 
Jesus would offer accessible help but only those that want it will gain recovery. Again no need ever raised their hand at a “anonymous” meeting saying they got recovery because someone else wanted them to.

Forced AA for DUI cases has single digit success. There will always be homeless the key is reduction not attempted elimination.
 
I don't have the answers and I am not even sure where to begin honestly. Can we ever really eliminate the drug trade in this country? Those who are homeless as already stated most prefer it due to mental illness. I appreciate Spikes empathy and willingness to what is ever necessary to help but will it? As it has been stated already addicts typically change by their own choice usually by hitting rock bottom. Are we doing enough in early child education to identify mental illness early and hopefully correct it. This is a very complex issue that most likely will take several complex solutions. I am curious to see as we dive deeper in quantum computing and AI that these issues may be solved in the near future through technology. Unfortunately or fortunately depending on how you look at it we may need to lean on technology to solve issues like these. I commend you Hipkat for getting involved.
 
SpikedLemonade said:
Hey I am a liberal who is willing to pay higher taxes for a forced 12-month rehab program staffed by the best medical personal and using the world's best practices however if you say it does not work, I prepared to do what society is currently doing right now and watch people slowly kill themselves through addiction without society making the tough choice to help them.

I am willing to intervene but I guess I look the other way like everyone else.

What would Jesus do?
Click to expand...
I talked to the Chief today for a good hour.

These are the numbers;
98% want to be homeless. They choose it.
Most have mental illnesses like PTSD and Schizophrenia

23; The total number of Beds in the Peoria, IL metro area
19, the number of line items on the questionnaire that a judge uses to determine if a non-violent arrestee goes back to the street or to county jail.

The number of Homeless in the Pekin, IL area (Pop. 31,000) is about 500

These numbers I looked up on my own;
The percentage of homelessness in Los Angeles is 1.19
The percentage of the Homeless in Pekin, IL is 1.61
 
Curious as to who evaluates all these homeless to diagnose them? I kinda call bullshit on the most comment. Since most do have the mental obsessive disorder called addiction , naturally they want to remain where they are. Life without alcohol or drugs isn’t a pretty picture for them. Allowing camps however is a form of enabling. Why get clean? No bottom to hit.
 
sukie said:
Curious as to who evaluates all these homeless to diagnose them? I kinda call bullshit on the most comment. Since most do have the mental obsessive disorder called addiction , naturally they want to remain where they are. Life without alcohol or drugs isn’t a pretty picture for them. Allowing camps however is a form of enabling. Why get clean? No bottom to hit.
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I would say the police who have to deal with them every night
 
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