Elizabeth Barrette (ysabetwordsmith) wrote,
Elizabeth Barrette
ysabetwordsmith
  • Mood: busy

The Words We Say

I've been saying things much like this about the recent shooting, just shorter.
Tags: networking, politics, safety
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  • 83 comments
...go 4 levels up... Expand
siege

siege

January 11 2011, 03:07:59 UTC 10 years ago

Mentally ill persons often abuse substances in order to suppress their illness; however that doesn't appear to be the general case (meaning, not all the people who abused substances were considered mentally ill) based on the article about that study. It makes me wonder what the true correlation is between addictive behaviors (not just drugs or alcohol, but also gambling, smoking, and so on) in the general populace and their tendency toward violent or strongly reactive behavior -- and whether there is a correlation between progression in addiction and progression in violent or reactive behavior.
ford_prefect42

ford_prefect42

January 11 2011, 03:21:42 UTC 10 years ago

Yes. All that is true. It is also true that when you have someone with pronounced violent tendencies, mental illness, AND substance abuse issues... Something is going to happen and it's probably not good. Such was the case here.
siege

siege

January 11 2011, 03:32:05 UTC 10 years ago

I'd call it "slipping through the cracks", a failure of both the social and public safety nets.
ysabetwordsmith

Well...

ysabetwordsmith

January 11 2011, 08:06:44 UTC 10 years ago

I wouldn't call it "slipping" when there are people sawing at the safety nets and jackhammering the edges of the cracks. I'd call it being pushed. Instead of trying to keep as many people in society as active functioning members, it's more like we've made a high level of performance the prerequisite for social worth and put great effort into shutting out everyone who doesn't measure up. The mentally ill. Physically handicapped people. The unemployed. The elderly. Immigrants. Trouble is, that kind of behavior not only shreds the social fabric, it also gloms up the gears. This does nobody any good.
ford_prefect42

Re: Well...

ford_prefect42

January 13 2011, 23:58:09 UTC 10 years ago

Can you give me some examples of "sawing through the safety net"?

This is a graph of welfare spending since 1960. Note that the decline at teh right is a projection. Where else did it see significant reductions?



Here's the same thing for government spending on healthcare.



I am just really not seeing what you are talking about here. Some specific examples would really help.


Can you give me some examples of anyone going to any lengths to exclude the less than fully capable? Or do you really mean to say "not going as far out of their way to make a place as I would like"?



Side question: I am sure that you are aware of the current status of the budget deficit and national debt, as well as the current trade deficit. How do you intend to pay for the programming you'd like to see?