BookRix

If ""no treatment"

A phenomenal article. But why no mention of New York State’s Kendra’s Law
(court-mandated outpatient assisted treatment or AOT)*, which I thought could
have applied in Nakesha's situation? Then, in re-examining the criteria for
Kendra’s Law, I had a startling realization.

Nakesha was apparently never hospitalized or incarcerated because of her
mental illness. Therefore she did not qualify under Kendra’s Law for AOT. She
met almost every other criteria, including posing a danger to herself when she
refused to go into a shelter in wet, below-freezing weather. Unless a mentally
ill person cycles through several hospitalizations or incarcerations
(relapsing because they failed to stay on their medication and/or had periodic
psychotic breaks) a court cannot mandate treatment.

An estimated 25-30% of the nation's homeless population suffer from a serious
mental illness. Court-mandated outpatient treatment usually includes some form
of stable housing, an assigned case worker who monitors and documents
psychiatric visits and prescribed treatments with medication and counseling.

How about a new law that doesn't require a homeless person to cycle in and out
of psychiatric hospitalization or incarceration before receiving the help they
desperately need? We could call it “Kesha’s Law.""

*(Kendra’s Law has been deemed a stunning success, cited as a model for many similar programs nationally, including one in California called Laura’s Law.)

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Video: https://moxox.com
Music: https://muxiv.com
AV: http://yofuk.com

Agoura Hills, CA

Bruni is certainly correct that the arts mimic our sensibilities regarding sex
and the interaction of men and women. ""I think the least interesting thing
one can say from the vantage point of the present about any piece of pop
culture is that it was not as enlightened as we are today."" But I wonder if
we are losing something in our ""enlightenment"" ? No, I don't think any woman
would ever have been truly comfortable with being raped and swept onto a horse
as in ""The Sheik"".

Instead, it's the myth of unbridled desire in the man and initial chastity but
belated release of passion in the woman. In a sense, we are all actors and
actresses trying to fill our part. In many ways, sex itself is about a
reaffirmation of our gender roles - both to our partner and to ourselves.
Maybe Bruni is correct that we are more ""enlightened"". The idea of gender
itself has evolved to the point that it may be more of a social construct than
a biological necessity.

But in the process, are we losing something in ourselves ... some firm grip on
the role we are supposed to play ? It's like asking actors to perform without
a script. The idea may seem liberating. But in practice, it's often
disorganized and awkward.

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Video: https://moxox.com
Music: https://muxiv.com
AV: http://yofuk.com