Initiative 101 offers Denver a chance to lead the nation in using a proven, cost-effective approach for reducing crime, violence and the city budget deficit simply by reducing society-wide stress.
The devastating epidemic of stress is crushing our youth, crippling our economy by costing businesses over $300 billion per year and driving youths, and adults to substance abuse, violence and poor health. Stress is burdening taxpayers while denying many affordable and effective health care. Over 50 percent of Denver’s city budget is allocated for addressing stress-related problems. That’s why alleviating societal stress should be a high priority for the city of Denver. It’s just common sense.
Initiative 101 introduces the discovery, now verified by over 50 scientific papers, that society-wide stress can be reduced, which significantly reduces numerous societal problems efficiently and cost-effectively. Prestigious peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Conflict Resolution at Yale University and others have published many of these studies. Top experts in health, economics, government, law enforcement and defense have promoted approaches for reducing societal stress to federal officials in Washington D.C. One such approach reduced total crime in Washington, D.C. by more than 23 percent during the summer of 1993.
Initiative 101 allows the city government to decide what to implement of “any systematic, stress-reducing techniques or programs…that are scientifically shown to reduce society-wide stress, as measured by reduced crime, accidents…and also shown to be of net financial benefit for the city.”
Initiative 101 is estimated to produce over $80 million in net financial benefits annually for city government without raising taxes. This would result from a combination of reduced stress-related social problems, and increasing tax revenues from a stronger economy both of which are documented results when societal stress is lifted off a community.
To date, no one has offered any legitimate argument in opposition to Initiative 101. City workers, firefighters, police officers and needy citizens are sacrificing their income, job benefits, or community services to help balance the city budget. The least that voters and city officials should do is explore and support proven innovative, money-saving solutions, like those Initiative 101 will inspire, to avoid unnecessary and painful budget cuts.
