Monday, October 5, 2015

John Oliver and the whole truth.......

You have to watch this if you haven't yet. You really do. http://bit.ly/1Mb9Eoz   I'm going to share my reaction.  First, John Oliver is telling us the whole truth and nothing but.  Which is amazing since he is a comedian and not someone in charge of public policy. Second, it is a travesty that we have to rely on a comedian to tell us the truth. As John so eloquently says, if you are going to ignore the need for gun control by blaming mental illness...then you better have a plan. And this country, and many others, don't have any plan surrounding treatment for mental illness.  This video is the absolute best explanation of the current "clusterf*ck" that passes for mental health treatment in this country that I have ever seen.  It is a mess.  And if you are going to give lip-service to the need to reform it, you had better be willing to start making comprehensive changes. People are dying. For real. This is a real "right-to-life" issue.

EVERYONE should be aware of the damage that stigma does.  We should all understand that the mentally ill are not the cause of our hugely out of control problem with violence and that, in fact, they are usually the victims in violent situations. Mentally ill people are not your 'punching bags' to be trotted out the minute that you are challenged about the fact that guns are probably more common than jelly beans in this country. I have had a front-row seat watching the whole stupid mess after the time that I spent growing up with a severely mentally ill woman.  I have watched throughout a career spent interacting with people who require mental health treatment. And I can personally tell you that we have NEVER had what is truly needed. And the situation keeps going downhill as the politicians do their dance.

The solutions presented by the comedian John Oliver should be the ideas promoted by every politician in this country. We should be willing to get over our scapegoating and deal with the HUMAN BEINGS challenged by mental illness in this country. We should be able to acknowledge that "stuff happens" (Thanks, Jeb Bush) is not an explanation when HUMAN BEINGS lose their lives to gun violence. Jailing the mentally ill or sending them out of town is not a solution. And if you aren't personally willing to address these issues...don't tell me that we are giving up our freedom if we create a reasonable system for gun control.  Every time that someone loses their life in this country, we lose part of our soul.  There can be NO freedom when people are afraid of going to school or a movie because they might get shot. More guns are not the answer. Please watch this video. If you have been reading my blog, you know that these things are the reality.  But John Oliver is much more entertaining when he explains it.  To the hilariously funny Mr. Oliver...all I can say is I love you. Thank you so much for your clear understanding of the issues. Let's talk!

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