Seattle Needs Healing

No amount of affordable housing and shelter beds will end tent encampments and the practice of enabling addiction through theft. The medical definition of an addicted person is one who will do anything to support their addiction, and will choose their addiction over their partners, their parents, their children, their job, their reputation, their body, and their housing. If given free housing, they will trade it to support their habit. We have created autonomous tent encampments all over the city that protect and promote this addicted way of life at the expense of the rest of our citizens.  Reinforcements arrive daily.  No amount of resources will solve this problem without taking decisive action. We must get all tent dwellers out of city parks and off of city streets permanently, completely and all at once.  Anything less will continue to grow the problem. While we have many challenges in our city that require wise and decisive action, addicted tent encampment is our most dangerous and pressing. 
 
To decisively tackle this problem, we need emergency housing and treatment in a controlled environment that does not allow for ongoing drug and alcohol use.  Just like we would do if we had a surge of COVID cases, we need to open an emergency treatment hospital within one of our stadiums.  Hospitalization is the model we use for intensive treatment programs everywhere, whether for addiction, eating disorders, mental health problems, or medical problems. Addiction is a medical problem that needs medical attention. This, more than anything else, is why I am running for mayor.

In my campaign, I am not accepting any contributions, nor seeking endorsements, and as your mayor I won't have to pay back campaign debts and endorsements with public funds and contract favors. Our city cannot afford to continue to make reactive and biased decisions that waste our precious resources. We need real value from our tax dollars if we are to solve our problems. That’s why I’m running for mayor.  

If elected I would immediately nullify any section of the police union contract that limits accountability and oversight; create a robust and rapidly responsive police force that provides constitutional community policing, provide basic emergency food, shelter, security, and treatment to our residents who have no other options; and permanently remove addicted tent encampments from public spaces and city parks.

If you want more of what you’ve been getting, vote for our city leaders who brought it to you.  If you want a leader with integrity who will act decisively to bring lasting solutions to our pressing problems of addiction, homelessness, and police brutality, vote Dr. Bliss for mayor.