Of the five Shore Pool board members who were asked yesterday when they learned of the voucher program that had been going on for 18 months, only Commissioner Mike French answered:
Hi,
I was made aware of the program because of information shared on social media; I was not aware of the program before the public was informed. I also saw roughly at the same time that Director Amiot had responded on social media and announced that the program would be paused. Around that same time, I began receiving emails from citizens sharing their thoughts on the program. Director Amiot also publicly announced that the program would be discussed at the next Board meeting, which I thought was a good idea.
Mike French
Clallam County Commissioner
Here is today's email to the county commissioners:
Dear Commissioners,
When harm reduction policies are not producing improvement—or conditions are clearly getting worse—what is your threshold for pivoting, and what specific indicators trigger that decision?
French wasn’t aware because he has his head up his ass. Unacceptable! At least he answered, big deal, he gets his county news from social media, God help us. I truly mean God help us, as options erode.
This area and the entire State for that matter needs different leadership. Sadly, our current political system is dominated by only two choices. There is no legal barrier to more political parties, but political power and influence makes it entirely too difficult for others to survive. Like it or not, we typically have just two choices. One of those two choices have dominated the O.P. and the entire State for as long as this senior can remember. The question then becomes not which choice of the two, but are you satisfied with the status quo ? If you are, keep voting for more of the same. If not, give the other choice a shot. Are you fine with a child holding a jar full of disposable needles provided by your taxes ? How about two nearly fossilized Senators with enough seniority in the Senate to get this Sate whatever it wants; but they get us nothing. The only thing for sure in life is change; try it.
I think moving to the Oregon coast is my personal answer. At least Jake is young but the three musketeers are a stubborn bunch that hide behind half truths and act like we, the citizens are too simple to understand the many working layers of county government. We get it. Look at the Public Health Official. That tells you how little respect is afforded the county and those three jack asses live here. The tribe will never quit going after land and destroying the ecosystem with their faster nonnative oyster scheme.
Hi, Geoff. “Overnight” may be a little aspirational. But, I think that we can make a significant difference rather quickly.
We can start here (Number 1 and number 8 would yield significant and immediate results):
1. End outdoor living on public land by consistently enforcing existing laws.
2. Prioritize local housing resources for individuals currently residing in Clallam County.
3. Strengthen shelter policies so services are supportive and attractive for those leaving outdoor living.
4. Expand transitional shelter capacity rather than focusing primarily on costly permanent supportive housing.
5. Reduce the cash flow that fuels addiction through clear anti-panhandling signage and public education.
6. Redirect funding from drug-use supplies to treatment programs with measurable results.
7. Expand OPNET and co-responder programs like Operation Shielding Hope.
8. Reinstate the Sheriff Department’s Chain Gang to provide outdoor opportunities for the incarcerated and remove trash and abandoned RV’s from the community.
9. Measure success by outcomes — tracking how many individuals move from addiction to sobriety and from homelessness to stable lives.
All good! But what about jobs for the hopeless? No jobs, no hope, it's the needle.
Hopelessness is the root cause of the drug problem. The current kommissars Assissted Suicide Program helps only the 'harm reduction' industry profiting from their agony.
Your horse is looking at the back of the cart. Don’t assume massive change will come because we pass out harm reduction kits. Also, we are not the addicts first rodeo.
If they can get it, they will use.
Hopelessness is tax dollars being thrown at programs that don’t work, while Larry,Curley and Moe insist ( but can’t prove)success. We are so sick of the rhetoric, drug companies should work on a cure that shields us from the
Hopelessness comes after years of abuse. The addicts abuse family, steal from them, promise to get sober, all they need is a little money to get headed in the right direction.
By the time they are homeless, they have destroyed every relationship because using was more important. When your own family insist that you to stay away, they are trying to protect themselves from the chaos that is addiction. Now as strangers to these unhoused addicts, we are suppose to affect a change that others couldn’t? Why does any rationally minded person think that the totally misguided
“Harm Reduction” program is a success? It has long been eliminated from much larger cities. Why the hell would it work here.Who is benefiting?
Always look for that answer when government behaves directly contrary to the citizens. The population could not be any clearer. We need to stop all these programs that waste our money, don’t help but a few( like 00.0001 percent) and genuinely piss the rest of us off.
Maybe a similar mindset, "if you're bored, you're boring."
There's no question that if people can see their possibilities then they can act to move toward those possibilities. Societies job is to highlight those possibilities, the rest is on the person needing to make a change.
I guess it depends on what jobs we're talking about. There are plenty of construction and services sector jobs. Those are a different cross-section from white collar jobs which appear to be fewer in numbers but there are jobs.
IF that's true, then there has to be a pathway away from drugs into meaningful existence. But HARM REDUCTION simply moves the needle from one day to the next.
We seem to have a form of the caste system in India that is run by the greedy leaders and yes, our world is in need of a major flushing but it won't by water
like last time but fire. There is evidence of muc volcanic destruction as well, and some are saying that this country has too much blood on it to be overlooked; that in itself is scary. Let's enjoy the chemtrail skies while we can.
I confronted a man panhandling and standing outside a grocery store with a big help wanted sign on the window. I pointed to the sign. He replied that he had a job. Begging for money.
Number 8 - work improves self esteem. Self esteem motivates a reduction in self harm. Keeping a schedule changes those little brain synapses in a good way. Personal hygiene may improve some sort of a social life. Old alcohol, stale tobacco, smoke soaked hair, yellow teeth and fingers and soiled clothes of your own doing plus the breathe of a thousand dead fish rotting in a the noon day sun,
This is not the path to “How to Win Friends and Influence People”.
It’s a bold plan, mostly because it assumes Clallam County can ignore state law, federal law, constitutional law, and the laws of physics. Half of it reads like someone skimmed a legislative wish list and forgot the part where courts exist.
Before any of this becomes a campaign promise that boomerangs, it’s worth grounding it in what the law actually allows. And because you may end up in a position where implementation matters, I’d genuinely like you to start on the right foot rather than with a list that collapses on first contact with a judge.
“End outdoor living overnight” sounds great until you remember Washington can’t enforce camping bans without available, accessible shelter, and “available” doesn’t mean “a mat somewhere across the county.” Courts have been very clear about that. So has the ADA. So has HUD. The plan skips all of that like a kid hopping over sidewalk cracks.
“Locals only” housing? Also not a thing. HUD funded programs can’t legally screen by ZIP code, and counties can’t invent residency tests because they feel tidy. It’s housing, not a nightclub.
The shelter section is equally optimistic. Federal and state dollars require low barrier access, not “make it more attractive by adding rules we can’t legally enforce.” If funding agreements were people, they’d be waving red flags here.
The panhandling bit is my favorite. Courts have repeatedly ruled that panhandling is protected speech, which means you can put up all the signs you want, but you can’t outlaw the First Amendment because it makes you uncomfortable.
And then there’s the chain gang. Nothing says “we didn’t read the liability section” like proposing a program that runs headfirst into Eighth Amendment concerns, labor regulations, disability accommodations, and the small matter of not wanting to get sued into the next fiscal year.
And here’s the part that really matters for anyone who might hold office: you cannot redirect federal earmarked funds. Not for shelters, not for treatment, not for harm‑reduction supplies. Earmarks and categorical grants come with binding conditions. Counties don’t get to repurpose them because a bullet point sounds good on Facebook.
The whole thing ends with “measure success by outcomes,” which is lovely, except counties already have to use state mandated HMIS metrics, not whatever homemade scoreboard someone dreams up on a Sunday afternoon.
In short: it’s a plan that would require rewriting state law, federal law, and a couple of constitutional amendments
If you look at the county spread sheet submitted through 2025, they have already violated the use of funds that were explicitly provided for drug prevention and treatment, not butt drug supplies. This county has a problem.
Just like you Mr Monkey you are afraid to roll up your sleeves and challenge some of the asinine policies that got the county elbow deep in drug addicts, dealers, and the unfortunate collateral damage we see. But thanks for playing “How to Ruin a County”. The fast home version game.
I think there is a new law that says incarcerated people must be paid minimum wage to work, such as on a chain gang. With Washington's minimum wage being so high, we can't really afford to do that. Unless we also start charging for room and board.
This picture says ten thousand words. Maybe I'll have the photo blown up on a posterboard, bring it to the county and city meetings, and instead of speaking during the public comment period I'll just ask for a moment of silence while everyone stares at the image for three minutes in uncomfortable quiet.
You'd think when their spending out paces their revenues and they're looking for cuts they'd want to put eyes on all these social programs and departments.
In the real world of business this is a given.
I guess they don't care because it's not their money.
I absolutely agree with the majority of Doggers, Leadership from top to bottom in our beautiful state and gem of a county must change. They have a propensity for destruction of Washington as we have loved it.
Please vote Jake Seegers, Marcia Kelbon!
They are a great local start!
My heart goes out to Jake for his family trauma that shouldn't have to be...
Their intense political entrenchment is anchored in cognitive biases—such as confirmation bias and belief perseverance—strongly hinders their ability to pivot or change their views.
This entire homeless addicted people problem is fluid and dynamic, it is not static as is currently viewed by the people in charge using taxpayer money. The question is why are we still doing the same thing and not adjusting what we do as we learn more things? What I'm left with is that money is involved. To disrupt the status quo means that someone will lose out on a benefit that does not benefit the intended goal, rather the person claiming that they are helping.
We need people who have other ideas that should be infused into the equation, not doing the same old thing for the last 16 years that we claim could be fixed in 10 years.
The Wedge party, vote for Jake Seegers.
On a side note, David Zelenka's article yesterday was about these societal problems. Incredibly thoughtful perspective that is worth reading IMO.
The people that have the ability to do something about this just DONT CARE… and they never will … just pathetic human beings lacking standards and morals
Today my husband and I are showing up for a longtime friend who is only a few months into recovery.
Someone from his past- someone he used with- has overdosed and died.
This is the part people don’t talk about when they reduce addiction to “bad choices” or act like recovery is just a matter of willpower. Early sobriety means facing moments like this head-on, when grief and memory and temptation all show up at once.
And it doesn’t help that it’s everywhere. The evidence of it- on our streets, in our neighborhoods-isn’t invisible. For someone trying to stay sober, those aren’t just passing sights. They’re triggers. They’re reminders. They’re invitations back to something that once felt like relief.
So today, we do what actually helps. We show up. We sit with him. We listen. We keep him connected to something stronger than that pull.
Before writing people off, before reducing them to a problem or a talking point, understand this: recovery is fragile, it’s ongoing, and it’s deeply human.
If you can, take a moment today to hold space-for those still struggling, and for those fighting every single day to stay sober anyway.
I wait for the day that this entire policy is recognized as one of the most recognized and deadly failures of our lifetime.
Recovery is very, very fragile. Those addicted and in recovery have to completely have a new life. They need to leave the "friends" they had before and away from all temptations and triggers. I've seen more than once, that in a moment of weakness they went back. It's an ongoing battle for rest of their lives.
Let’s give Clallam County some credit in reducing harm, by reducing the supply of illegal drugs. Sheriff Brian King with the cooperation of other agencies has put a very small dent in the supply chain with the recent busts of the “pusher man”. Jake and Jeff, include this guy and law enforcement in your discussions. Who doesn’t love tough crackdown on the drug scourge?
The drug environment in Clallam County continues to change, and it has changed far faster than the resources available to address it. Our Sheriff’s Office is required to prioritize 911 response and daily public safety demands, which leaves limited capacity for the long, labor intensive investigations that drug cases require. OPNET still exists in name, but without meaningful Byrne JAG funding, while neighboring counties such as Kitsap benefit from HIDTA designation and the federal support that comes with it. Clallam County does not.
At the same time, recent state laws have reduced enforcement authority, narrowed investigative tools, and limited judicial sentencing options. Deputies, prosecutors, and judges may be committed to acting, but they can only operate within the boundaries the Legislature has created. The result is predictable: fewer tools, fewer consequences, and a drug market that replaces traffickers as quickly as they are arrested.
At the state level, many lawmakers have emphasized concepts of equality for individuals violating the law, while locally the focus has shifted toward reducing stigma around drug use rather than prioritizing effective pathways out of addiction. Commissioner Ozias has publicly stated that he explored rehabilitation centers but found them financially unsustainable. That leaves our region without the residential treatment capacity needed for individuals with severe addiction — the very population least likely to succeed in outpatient only models.
The flow of drugs into this country is deeply entrenched, and the demand remains high. Without meaningful enforcement authority, adequate funding, and treatment infrastructure, the system becomes a revolving door. What we are experiencing in Clallam County is not the result of a lack of effort by local law enforcement; it is the result of structural limitations imposed at the state and federal levels.
If we want different outcomes, we must acknowledge these constraints and begin advocating for the tools, funding, and treatment capacity that rural counties like ours need.
Where have you found information that backs up the claim? I’m all for credit when it is actually due and a positive outcome is guided by strict accounting standards.
The pictures of drug users in PA are way worse than two years ago, one year ago, even six months ago.
It's going to take YEARS for the environment to recover from these horrible decisions being made by these elected jackasses. Not to mention the HARM done to the young children exposed to these unspeakable filthy human-made dissasters. Wake up, Clallam county! Your beautiful land is being decimated by criminal politicians. i will vote for Jake Seegers!
Not sure what size bottle she’s holding in the photo, but since the smallest bottle listed by the health services for syringes taken in is 20oz and estimated to fit 40 syringes (shown in Jake’s article from 3/1/26), the photo does a great job of disproving that estimate. LOL.
For the Friday podcast, Strait Shooter and I will be discussing the May Day protest promoted by Indivisible Sequim, happening on Friday as well. And for Saturday, the podcast is going to be focused on security as far as pro-active awareness to counter threats to public safety. We sit in parking lots while running errands and notice how many people walk and look at phones, fumble in their purses, and do something other than pay attention to their surroundings. So, we’ll get into stuff like that because we want people to be safe, especially if local law enforcement isn’t doing enough to keep people safe.
I was thinking, how could 3 people fu** up an entire county as quickly as the three mentally challenged commissioners have done? There has to be money (big money) in it for them to sell out the entire population to ingratiate the tribe on any whim it may have. I don’t think this will end. You saw the map of what they feel is their tribal heritage.
I don’t know how Jake is going to right all the shit those three morons have done. It is very serious when 200 tribe members are being prioritized over all the tax paying citizens. Ron Allen is the King of all he sees and all that surrounds him. He will shove the treaty language down our throats, and make it seem like our generation has wronged his people.
When a kiss ass like Ozias is a commissioner, the population really has no representation.
Jeff, Thank you, I guess better to be informed. Feel bad for newcomers moving to a drug infested, sleazy political mine field. Oh but we don’t get much rain….shoot me please!
Jeff Tozzer, you got us all thinking about how funding is being mismanaged now. When anyone opens the Clallam County resources webpage, there are links to partner agencies. Click on the Harm Reduction link, and it clearly states that it is a philosophical and ideological program, “Started by drug addicts, for drug addicts.” They briefly mention that their philosophy is “evidence based,” but then sends you to multiple informational links to the CDC.
I’m all for the county supporting addicts to receive services through continued paid connections to outreach and services, however, supplying an unknown amount of needles “as needed” without accountability for a one on one exchange, is reckless. If the hospital managed their supplies the way that the harm reduction does, they would get fined by the state for damages. While the hospital uses science within a reasonable margin of error to practice medicine while also philosophically driven, their outcomes are measured. I totally agree with you on this topic: We cannot manage outcomes based on philosophical or ideological input alone.
yesterday I went to the Sequim transportation center to pick up my wife arriving on the 123 bus at 4:30. The homeless were just setting up their camp at the denture clinic for the night and a guy was nodding off while actively shooting up in the bus shelter. The public bathrooms were not available to the public (locked up) and all in a twig's toss from the police station. What do the police do for a living????
Of the five Shore Pool board members who were asked yesterday when they learned of the voucher program that had been going on for 18 months, only Commissioner Mike French answered:
Hi,
I was made aware of the program because of information shared on social media; I was not aware of the program before the public was informed. I also saw roughly at the same time that Director Amiot had responded on social media and announced that the program would be paused. Around that same time, I began receiving emails from citizens sharing their thoughts on the program. Director Amiot also publicly announced that the program would be discussed at the next Board meeting, which I thought was a good idea.
Mike French
Clallam County Commissioner
Here is today's email to the county commissioners:
Dear Commissioners,
When harm reduction policies are not producing improvement—or conditions are clearly getting worse—what is your threshold for pivoting, and what specific indicators trigger that decision?
French wasn’t aware because he has his head up his ass. Unacceptable! At least he answered, big deal, he gets his county news from social media, God help us. I truly mean God help us, as options erode.
This area and the entire State for that matter needs different leadership. Sadly, our current political system is dominated by only two choices. There is no legal barrier to more political parties, but political power and influence makes it entirely too difficult for others to survive. Like it or not, we typically have just two choices. One of those two choices have dominated the O.P. and the entire State for as long as this senior can remember. The question then becomes not which choice of the two, but are you satisfied with the status quo ? If you are, keep voting for more of the same. If not, give the other choice a shot. Are you fine with a child holding a jar full of disposable needles provided by your taxes ? How about two nearly fossilized Senators with enough seniority in the Senate to get this Sate whatever it wants; but they get us nothing. The only thing for sure in life is change; try it.
I think moving to the Oregon coast is my personal answer. At least Jake is young but the three musketeers are a stubborn bunch that hide behind half truths and act like we, the citizens are too simple to understand the many working layers of county government. We get it. Look at the Public Health Official. That tells you how little respect is afforded the county and those three jack asses live here. The tribe will never quit going after land and destroying the ecosystem with their faster nonnative oyster scheme.
You hit the nail on the head. How is anyone going to make any waves when the ocean tide of stupidity prevails?
Hi, Geoff. “Overnight” may be a little aspirational. But, I think that we can make a significant difference rather quickly.
We can start here (Number 1 and number 8 would yield significant and immediate results):
1. End outdoor living on public land by consistently enforcing existing laws.
2. Prioritize local housing resources for individuals currently residing in Clallam County.
3. Strengthen shelter policies so services are supportive and attractive for those leaving outdoor living.
4. Expand transitional shelter capacity rather than focusing primarily on costly permanent supportive housing.
5. Reduce the cash flow that fuels addiction through clear anti-panhandling signage and public education.
6. Redirect funding from drug-use supplies to treatment programs with measurable results.
7. Expand OPNET and co-responder programs like Operation Shielding Hope.
8. Reinstate the Sheriff Department’s Chain Gang to provide outdoor opportunities for the incarcerated and remove trash and abandoned RV’s from the community.
9. Measure success by outcomes — tracking how many individuals move from addiction to sobriety and from homelessness to stable lives.
All good! But what about jobs for the hopeless? No jobs, no hope, it's the needle.
Hopelessness is the root cause of the drug problem. The current kommissars Assissted Suicide Program helps only the 'harm reduction' industry profiting from their agony.
Your horse is looking at the back of the cart. Don’t assume massive change will come because we pass out harm reduction kits. Also, we are not the addicts first rodeo.
If they can get it, they will use.
Hopelessness is tax dollars being thrown at programs that don’t work, while Larry,Curley and Moe insist ( but can’t prove)success. We are so sick of the rhetoric, drug companies should work on a cure that shields us from the
our own governments 🐃💩.
Hopelessness comes after years of abuse. The addicts abuse family, steal from them, promise to get sober, all they need is a little money to get headed in the right direction.
By the time they are homeless, they have destroyed every relationship because using was more important. When your own family insist that you to stay away, they are trying to protect themselves from the chaos that is addiction. Now as strangers to these unhoused addicts, we are suppose to affect a change that others couldn’t? Why does any rationally minded person think that the totally misguided
“Harm Reduction” program is a success? It has long been eliminated from much larger cities. Why the hell would it work here.Who is benefiting?
Always look for that answer when government behaves directly contrary to the citizens. The population could not be any clearer. We need to stop all these programs that waste our money, don’t help but a few( like 00.0001 percent) and genuinely piss the rest of us off.
Hopelessness is a choice
Maybe a similar mindset, "if you're bored, you're boring."
There's no question that if people can see their possibilities then they can act to move toward those possibilities. Societies job is to highlight those possibilities, the rest is on the person needing to make a change.
Really? I don't think so.
I don't believe that. You live in CC, no jobs for you, that's not a choice it's your reality.
I guess it depends on what jobs we're talking about. There are plenty of construction and services sector jobs. Those are a different cross-section from white collar jobs which appear to be fewer in numbers but there are jobs.
IF that's true, then there has to be a pathway away from drugs into meaningful existence. But HARM REDUCTION simply moves the needle from one day to the next.
Amen!
We seem to have a form of the caste system in India that is run by the greedy leaders and yes, our world is in need of a major flushing but it won't by water
like last time but fire. There is evidence of muc volcanic destruction as well, and some are saying that this country has too much blood on it to be overlooked; that in itself is scary. Let's enjoy the chemtrail skies while we can.
I confronted a man panhandling and standing outside a grocery store with a big help wanted sign on the window. I pointed to the sign. He replied that he had a job. Begging for money.
Number 8 - work improves self esteem. Self esteem motivates a reduction in self harm. Keeping a schedule changes those little brain synapses in a good way. Personal hygiene may improve some sort of a social life. Old alcohol, stale tobacco, smoke soaked hair, yellow teeth and fingers and soiled clothes of your own doing plus the breathe of a thousand dead fish rotting in a the noon day sun,
This is not the path to “How to Win Friends and Influence People”.
It’s a bold plan, mostly because it assumes Clallam County can ignore state law, federal law, constitutional law, and the laws of physics. Half of it reads like someone skimmed a legislative wish list and forgot the part where courts exist.
Before any of this becomes a campaign promise that boomerangs, it’s worth grounding it in what the law actually allows. And because you may end up in a position where implementation matters, I’d genuinely like you to start on the right foot rather than with a list that collapses on first contact with a judge.
“End outdoor living overnight” sounds great until you remember Washington can’t enforce camping bans without available, accessible shelter, and “available” doesn’t mean “a mat somewhere across the county.” Courts have been very clear about that. So has the ADA. So has HUD. The plan skips all of that like a kid hopping over sidewalk cracks.
“Locals only” housing? Also not a thing. HUD funded programs can’t legally screen by ZIP code, and counties can’t invent residency tests because they feel tidy. It’s housing, not a nightclub.
The shelter section is equally optimistic. Federal and state dollars require low barrier access, not “make it more attractive by adding rules we can’t legally enforce.” If funding agreements were people, they’d be waving red flags here.
The panhandling bit is my favorite. Courts have repeatedly ruled that panhandling is protected speech, which means you can put up all the signs you want, but you can’t outlaw the First Amendment because it makes you uncomfortable.
And then there’s the chain gang. Nothing says “we didn’t read the liability section” like proposing a program that runs headfirst into Eighth Amendment concerns, labor regulations, disability accommodations, and the small matter of not wanting to get sued into the next fiscal year.
And here’s the part that really matters for anyone who might hold office: you cannot redirect federal earmarked funds. Not for shelters, not for treatment, not for harm‑reduction supplies. Earmarks and categorical grants come with binding conditions. Counties don’t get to repurpose them because a bullet point sounds good on Facebook.
The whole thing ends with “measure success by outcomes,” which is lovely, except counties already have to use state mandated HMIS metrics, not whatever homemade scoreboard someone dreams up on a Sunday afternoon.
In short: it’s a plan that would require rewriting state law, federal law, and a couple of constitutional amendments
Sometimes doing better takes work. The housing law passed by Olympia should be repealed but until then it is the knife in our backs.
If you look at the county spread sheet submitted through 2025, they have already violated the use of funds that were explicitly provided for drug prevention and treatment, not butt drug supplies. This county has a problem.
Just like you Mr Monkey you are afraid to roll up your sleeves and challenge some of the asinine policies that got the county elbow deep in drug addicts, dealers, and the unfortunate collateral damage we see. But thanks for playing “How to Ruin a County”. The fast home version game.
I think there is a new law that says incarcerated people must be paid minimum wage to work, such as on a chain gang. With Washington's minimum wage being so high, we can't really afford to do that. Unless we also start charging for room and board.
This picture says ten thousand words. Maybe I'll have the photo blown up on a posterboard, bring it to the county and city meetings, and instead of speaking during the public comment period I'll just ask for a moment of silence while everyone stares at the image for three minutes in uncomfortable quiet.
Maybe you should take a walk with French and Alison Berry Unthink whom say everything is ok
You'd think when their spending out paces their revenues and they're looking for cuts they'd want to put eyes on all these social programs and departments.
In the real world of business this is a given.
I guess they don't care because it's not their money.
Good morning Jeff and Doggers,
I absolutely agree with the majority of Doggers, Leadership from top to bottom in our beautiful state and gem of a county must change. They have a propensity for destruction of Washington as we have loved it.
Please vote Jake Seegers, Marcia Kelbon!
They are a great local start!
My heart goes out to Jake for his family trauma that shouldn't have to be...
Thank you all and have a great day!
There is only one way to change course.
Our current leadership must change!
Their intense political entrenchment is anchored in cognitive biases—such as confirmation bias and belief perseverance—strongly hinders their ability to pivot or change their views.
This entire homeless addicted people problem is fluid and dynamic, it is not static as is currently viewed by the people in charge using taxpayer money. The question is why are we still doing the same thing and not adjusting what we do as we learn more things? What I'm left with is that money is involved. To disrupt the status quo means that someone will lose out on a benefit that does not benefit the intended goal, rather the person claiming that they are helping.
We need people who have other ideas that should be infused into the equation, not doing the same old thing for the last 16 years that we claim could be fixed in 10 years.
The Wedge party, vote for Jake Seegers.
On a side note, David Zelenka's article yesterday was about these societal problems. Incredibly thoughtful perspective that is worth reading IMO.
https://davidzelenka.substack.com/p/vine-and-branch-what-tumwater-creek?utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&triedRedirect=true
Great article. Thanks for posting
The grounding in reality vs pie in the sky is what's gripping. It's what we've always known, viscerally.
The people that have the ability to do something about this just DONT CARE… and they never will … just pathetic human beings lacking standards and morals
Today my husband and I are showing up for a longtime friend who is only a few months into recovery.
Someone from his past- someone he used with- has overdosed and died.
This is the part people don’t talk about when they reduce addiction to “bad choices” or act like recovery is just a matter of willpower. Early sobriety means facing moments like this head-on, when grief and memory and temptation all show up at once.
And it doesn’t help that it’s everywhere. The evidence of it- on our streets, in our neighborhoods-isn’t invisible. For someone trying to stay sober, those aren’t just passing sights. They’re triggers. They’re reminders. They’re invitations back to something that once felt like relief.
So today, we do what actually helps. We show up. We sit with him. We listen. We keep him connected to something stronger than that pull.
Before writing people off, before reducing them to a problem or a talking point, understand this: recovery is fragile, it’s ongoing, and it’s deeply human.
If you can, take a moment today to hold space-for those still struggling, and for those fighting every single day to stay sober anyway.
I wait for the day that this entire policy is recognized as one of the most recognized and deadly failures of our lifetime.
I'm so glad your friend has you.
Recovery is very, very fragile. Those addicted and in recovery have to completely have a new life. They need to leave the "friends" they had before and away from all temptations and triggers. I've seen more than once, that in a moment of weakness they went back. It's an ongoing battle for rest of their lives.
You're hitting on the thrust of David Zelenkas article yesterday. If you haven't read it, you're going to find it intriguing.
https://davidzelenka.substack.com/p/vine-and-branch-what-tumwater-creek?utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&triedRedirect=true
Let’s give Clallam County some credit in reducing harm, by reducing the supply of illegal drugs. Sheriff Brian King with the cooperation of other agencies has put a very small dent in the supply chain with the recent busts of the “pusher man”. Jake and Jeff, include this guy and law enforcement in your discussions. Who doesn’t love tough crackdown on the drug scourge?
The drug environment in Clallam County continues to change, and it has changed far faster than the resources available to address it. Our Sheriff’s Office is required to prioritize 911 response and daily public safety demands, which leaves limited capacity for the long, labor intensive investigations that drug cases require. OPNET still exists in name, but without meaningful Byrne JAG funding, while neighboring counties such as Kitsap benefit from HIDTA designation and the federal support that comes with it. Clallam County does not.
At the same time, recent state laws have reduced enforcement authority, narrowed investigative tools, and limited judicial sentencing options. Deputies, prosecutors, and judges may be committed to acting, but they can only operate within the boundaries the Legislature has created. The result is predictable: fewer tools, fewer consequences, and a drug market that replaces traffickers as quickly as they are arrested.
At the state level, many lawmakers have emphasized concepts of equality for individuals violating the law, while locally the focus has shifted toward reducing stigma around drug use rather than prioritizing effective pathways out of addiction. Commissioner Ozias has publicly stated that he explored rehabilitation centers but found them financially unsustainable. That leaves our region without the residential treatment capacity needed for individuals with severe addiction — the very population least likely to succeed in outpatient only models.
The flow of drugs into this country is deeply entrenched, and the demand remains high. Without meaningful enforcement authority, adequate funding, and treatment infrastructure, the system becomes a revolving door. What we are experiencing in Clallam County is not the result of a lack of effort by local law enforcement; it is the result of structural limitations imposed at the state and federal levels.
If we want different outcomes, we must acknowledge these constraints and begin advocating for the tools, funding, and treatment capacity that rural counties like ours need.
Where have you found information that backs up the claim? I’m all for credit when it is actually due and a positive outcome is guided by strict accounting standards.
The pictures of drug users in PA are way worse than two years ago, one year ago, even six months ago.
So who should we send those kudos to?
It's going to take YEARS for the environment to recover from these horrible decisions being made by these elected jackasses. Not to mention the HARM done to the young children exposed to these unspeakable filthy human-made dissasters. Wake up, Clallam county! Your beautiful land is being decimated by criminal politicians. i will vote for Jake Seegers!
Not sure what size bottle she’s holding in the photo, but since the smallest bottle listed by the health services for syringes taken in is 20oz and estimated to fit 40 syringes (shown in Jake’s article from 3/1/26), the photo does a great job of disproving that estimate. LOL.
For the Friday podcast, Strait Shooter and I will be discussing the May Day protest promoted by Indivisible Sequim, happening on Friday as well. And for Saturday, the podcast is going to be focused on security as far as pro-active awareness to counter threats to public safety. We sit in parking lots while running errands and notice how many people walk and look at phones, fumble in their purses, and do something other than pay attention to their surroundings. So, we’ll get into stuff like that because we want people to be safe, especially if local law enforcement isn’t doing enough to keep people safe.
I was thinking, how could 3 people fu** up an entire county as quickly as the three mentally challenged commissioners have done? There has to be money (big money) in it for them to sell out the entire population to ingratiate the tribe on any whim it may have. I don’t think this will end. You saw the map of what they feel is their tribal heritage.
I don’t know how Jake is going to right all the shit those three morons have done. It is very serious when 200 tribe members are being prioritized over all the tax paying citizens. Ron Allen is the King of all he sees and all that surrounds him. He will shove the treaty language down our throats, and make it seem like our generation has wronged his people.
When a kiss ass like Ozias is a commissioner, the population really has no representation.
Jeff, Thank you, I guess better to be informed. Feel bad for newcomers moving to a drug infested, sleazy political mine field. Oh but we don’t get much rain….shoot me please!
Jeff Tozzer, you got us all thinking about how funding is being mismanaged now. When anyone opens the Clallam County resources webpage, there are links to partner agencies. Click on the Harm Reduction link, and it clearly states that it is a philosophical and ideological program, “Started by drug addicts, for drug addicts.” They briefly mention that their philosophy is “evidence based,” but then sends you to multiple informational links to the CDC.
I’m all for the county supporting addicts to receive services through continued paid connections to outreach and services, however, supplying an unknown amount of needles “as needed” without accountability for a one on one exchange, is reckless. If the hospital managed their supplies the way that the harm reduction does, they would get fined by the state for damages. While the hospital uses science within a reasonable margin of error to practice medicine while also philosophically driven, their outcomes are measured. I totally agree with you on this topic: We cannot manage outcomes based on philosophical or ideological input alone.
yesterday I went to the Sequim transportation center to pick up my wife arriving on the 123 bus at 4:30. The homeless were just setting up their camp at the denture clinic for the night and a guy was nodding off while actively shooting up in the bus shelter. The public bathrooms were not available to the public (locked up) and all in a twig's toss from the police station. What do the police do for a living????
Define "police." What the officers on the streets do is because of city and leadership policy.
Police: 3-year-old poked by needle at Port Angeles playground - KIRO 7 News Seattle https://share.google/FkFuIV0sKkB6L3kzm
This was in 2018⬆️
If it wasn't for 4PA cleaning up, I'd hate to think of how many more articles like the above would be circulating our peninsula