Deinstitutionalization certainly seems more humane, but it only works if we're willing to invest the resources required to treat people outside the institutions. That requires a level of collective effort and empathy which many Americans seem incapable of these days. You only have to recall the infamous Republican candidate
debate in 2011 where audience members shouted their approval of letting someone die rather than using public funds to treat him. This came on the heels of applause for the 234 executions conducted under Texas governor Rick Perry a few weeks before.
We have become a callous, selfish, and narcissistic culture with a penchant for violence. I wonder how Americans who lived through the collective privations of World War II would feel if they saw the country today. I know my parents would have been disgusted.
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Originally Posted by Urzu 7
Gotta love the news media.  Notice the guy had a comment for her. |
Watching those interviews with eight-year-olds yesterday made me sick. I have even less respect for the adults who let that happen, seduced no doubt by the desire to see themselves or their children on national television.