Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for January 06, 2017

Zonker, you shouldn’t have rescued him from slavery.

I didn’t think it was legal to forcibly commit people anymore…

Years ago I read a history of Bellevue. It was more interesting than just be a place to take disturbed people.

Zonk! You gotta go save Uncle Duke!!!

Here in the UK it’s called “sectioning” because it comes under section whosit of some act of Parliament. You can only do it if the person is an obvious danger to themselves or others and not mentally capable of making their own decisions.

Wow! Crazy coincidence. I’m sitting here wearing my Oxford sweatshirt.

Maybe the Duke “long national nightmare is over” but the Trump “long national nightmare” is about to begin. Google: impeach Trump

I would assume homelessness would be more prevalent in the warmer climates. My daughter is now at college in Savannah, Ga, where she says there are a lot of homeless around. People in Savannah were complaining about the temps being around 55 the other day. Brrr.

Anyone else think it sounds more natural to say “go in on some flowers with me” rather than “come in on some flowers with me”? I wonder if this is one of those strange local linguistic tendencies, like how people in Philly call the sandwich a “hoagie” while the rest of the country says “sub.”

In Colorado we have something like the Baker’s Act (don’t know what it’s called; the hospital I work at calls it an M1) where a person with suicidal or homicidal intentions can be involuntarily hospitalized if they could hurt themselves or others. They do it every day. But it does have to be a doctor who orders it here at the hospital) or perhaps a court order (but then I think they would go to the state hospital; not sure), not the city government or some outside entity. They can also be held longer than the norm of 72 hours if they are still considered dangerous. That’s called a Short Term Certification, and I’m not sure how long those are, but they can be renewed if the treating physician feels it’s necessary.

The involuntarily committed in Georgia get their day in court, if they ask for it. …Probate court, where the burden of proof is quite different than criminal court, and the judge can pretty much rule on a whim, disregarding facts.

leftwingpatriot said,

@Argythree

" Koch ordered that all homeless be taken off the streets and put in either shelters or the psychiatric units of hospitals."

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The Republicans-haters complain about the free-range crazies no longer institutionalized because the Supreme Court ruled doing so violates basic human freedom.

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They also accuse the Republicans of trying to lock everybody up.

Motto: Republicans are to blame

Simple, all-purpose, “If they’re fer it, I’m agin it.” even if they’re not “fer” it.

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“When reporters asked him if the policy could be unconstitutional, he said if it is then the “Constitution is dumb.” "

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Interestingly. he was right.

The Constitution IS dumb.

It doesn’t think, change its mind by itself, change color depending on the pH, expand when heated.

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It doesn’t do any of the things it wasn’t designed to do.

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Ii is an agreement — an agreement regarding the framework for a federal government to be formed in the first place and to operate after.

It includes methods for altering the agreement.

It agrees a supreme court will rule on matters of legality.

Sometimes the agreement is altered without realizing all the implications.

All the implications are never realized.

jbee2 said,

@Linguist

“When we lived in Florida in the 80’s, I had a close friend who was “Baker-acted.” This person has threatened suicide, and refused to get help. The Baker Act saved my friend’s life.”

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My nephew became violent with my mother about 8 years ago. He was held pending a Baker Act hearing. Nobody wanted to push for it and she wouldn’t press charges.

He was released.

I had to remind him my son had warned him he would kill him if he harmed his grandmother and that I would prefer my son not go to prison.

He moved to Alabama.

Then North Carolina grabbed him for internet efforts involving a minor.

Now he is in prison in NC again for failure of a convicted sexual predator — or some such — to register a change of address.

They are providing mental health counseling — or trying to do so. He explained in his last letter it is still not his fault.

He doesn’t accept himself as being responsible for his choices and actions.

Maybe help is impossible with current understanding.

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“Where did the name Baker Act come from?”

“The act was named for a Florida state representative from Miami, Maxine Baker, who had a strong interest in mental health issues, served as chair of a House Committee on Mental Health, and was the sponsor of the bill.”

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dhg here again,

I had always thought it was a federal law until I just called it up.

Don’t know why Colorado has it too, unless they’re copying us — evidence they might qualify for Baker-Acting.