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Redstate
Gun Control:
Treating The Symptoms
By Breeanne Howe
As the nation struggles to understand the attack at the Boston
Marathon, the debate over background checks for gun buyers has received
more attention from gun control advocates as a result. The left
argues that stricter gun control laws might prevent tragedies such as
the Boston bombings and the Newtown shooting. The right points
out that criminals, including the Boston bombers, do not adhere to the
law and creating new gun control laws won’t persuade them to
start. Neither side gets to the heart of the issue and yet it is
only there that two may find agreement.
Where there is a will there is a way. At times this old proverb
gives us hope for what can be achieved and, in times such as these, it
is a sad truth. If people have the desire to hurt, they will find
a way; be it gun, plane, pressure cooker or the rope used for
suicide. What gives those who do harm the will is an intrinsic
part of the investigation into the causation of violence, but in all
cases the common denominator is mental health.
While healthcare in the United States is arguably the best in the
world, in the area of mental health we have been found wanting.
For a time, mental health institutions effectively served the mentally
ill in America. However, somewhere along the way state hospitals
took a serious downturn. This resulted in horrid living
conditions for patients, as exposed by Geraldo Rivera in the case of
Willowbrook State School in 1972. With the help of the Community
Mental Health Centers Act of 1963, the country began favoring
deinstitutionalization. As explained by Jeneen Interlandi in New
York Times Magazine:
By treating the rest in the least-restrictive settings possible, the
thinking went, we would protect the civil liberties of the mentally ill
and hasten their recoveries. Surely community life was better for
mental health than a cold, unfeeling institution.
From 1955 to 1985, 80% of hospital beds in state mental health
facilities disappeared. Those in need became responsible for
reporting to community-based mental health care programs.
Families of the mentally ill were also tasked with caring for their
relatives, despite lack of medical knowledge on how to meet their
needs. Meanwhile, the country’s population increased by 41% as
did homelessness for many of the mentally ill. In addition to
finding themselves homeless, the mentally ill have often ended up in
jail; forcing the criminal justice system to create an environment that
caters to the needs of (ultimately) the minority of their population.
In addition to a lack of institutions, the costs of services have also
contributed to the mental health problem in America. According to
one study, 45% of respondents cited cost as their reason for not
receiving mental health services. Cuts to mental health funding
in state budgets have also been an issue, with funding decreasing by
$1.8 billion during the recession…
Read the rest of the article at Redstate
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