[Puffer Fish]

California is supposedly the most progressive and "compassionate" state in the nation. But the homeless problems have been so bad there that now the state has just passed a new law. The governor, Newsom, has felt pressure to show the voters he is "doing something", in preparation for his expected Presidential bid.

The law will allow homeless persons with mental health or drug issues to be subject to probation-like restrictions and requirements, with the threat of imprisonment into prison-like treatment centers. For example, they could be forced to go to appointments or be required to take medications.

For many of these homeless people, it may be difficult to go to these appointments without a car or money. For others, they might be told they have to take medications which are not actually very helpful for their condition or which has severe negative side effects. This is not uncommon.

Many supporters of civil liberties are seeing this as a potential violation of rights.

I think it could be very understandable to require drug users to be put into treatment, but those with mental health issues usually have that condition through no fault of their own, and the reality that much of the public doesn't want to believe is that medications and treatment are usually not very effective at treating mental health conditions.

There is however a large segment of the homeless population with both borderline mental health conditions and drug issues, so this could further confuse matters.

Another likely problem with this policy is there simply do not exist enough facilities in the state to put all these people. Does it really make sense to be forcing homeless people into facilities when there does not exist enough treatment capacity for all those homeless persons who would voluntarily want treatment?

Lots of progressive organizations are speaking out and raising alarms over this new law, and normally the state of California, with its progressive politics, listens to these voices, but this time it may be that most of the voters are simply fed up with the out of control homeless situation and want something to be done, and have run out of sympathy.

Keep in mind that in many parts of the state even many middle class people struggle to be able to afford to live there, due to the high housing prices.

Why housing advocates oppose a new California law designed to help the homeless, Salon.com, Troy Farah, September 18, 2022
https://www.salon.com/2022/09/18/why-ho ... -homeless/

A new California law ostensibly aimed at helping unhoused people shreds their autonomy, advocates say.
On Wednesday, Sept 14, Newsom signed SB 1338, the Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment Act (CARE) into law.​

[ckaihatsu]

Officials in Nevada demolish tiny homes built for homeless in Las Vegas

[Puffer Fish]

Looks like not just California but also New York is hopping onboard.

Amid homeless crisis, New York to step up forced hospitalization of mentally ill

New York City Mayor Eric Adams rolled out a plan on Tuesday to allow more homeless and mentally ill people to be hospitalized against their will in order to tackle "a crisis we see all around us."
Speaking from City Hall, Adams said the city had a "moral obligation" to help New Yorkers struggling to meet their own basic needs because of mental illness, even if those people resisted intervention.
The Democratic mayor has made addressing the city's homelessness crisis a priority for his administration since taking office earlier this year.
"We can no longer deny the reality that untreated psychosis can be a cruel and all-consuming condition that often requires involuntary intervention, supervised medical treatment and long-term care," Adams said.
New York law allows for involuntary hospitalization when a person's mental illness prevents them from providing for their own basic needs, as well as when they present a danger to themselves or others. But law enforcement has not commonly used the practice.

Amid homeless crisis, New York to step up forced hospitalization of mentally ill, Reuters, November 29, 2022
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/amid-h ... 022-11-29/

[Puffer Fish]

Most likely this will end up being used as a tool by police, who will tell homeless to move out of the area, with the threat of having them arrested and put into "treatment" if they don't. Great way to clear out areas where they don't want the homeless. And I suspect "mental health" may just be used as a convenient excuse to haul away homeless people who didn't actually have any real signs of mental illness. With a homeless person continually being arrested, held for a few days, and then released far away, separated from all their belongings, it will subject them to harassment and send the message that they are not welcome in that area.

[Rich]

For example, they could be forced to go to appointments or be required to take medications.​

Here's what its about, Medical fascism pure and simple. The power of the Pharmaceutical - Sickness industrial complex is quite terrifying. The power of the Pharmaceutical - industrial complex is rooted not just in the huge share of the economy it now occupies but also in its alliance with the Cultural Marxists.

[ckaihatsu]

Here's what its about, Medical fascism pure and simple. The power of the Pharmaceutical - Sickness industrial complex is quite terrifying. The power of the Pharmaceutical - industrial complex is rooted not just in the huge share of the economy it now occupies but also in its alliance with the Cultural Marxists.

Fixed:

Here's what its about, Medical fascism pure and simple. The power of the Pharmaceutical - Sickness industrial complex is quite terrifying. The power of the Pharmaceutical - industrial complex is rooted not just in the huge share of the economy it now occupies but also in its alliance with the [Democrats].

[ckaihatsu]

Cultural Marxists

---


What Biden and Congress’ move to ban railroad strike reveals

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/1 ... s-n30.html

[Puffer Fish]

More Californians with untreated mental illness and addiction issues could be detained against their will and forced into treatment under legislation signed Tuesday by Gov. Gavin Newsom. The new law, which reforms the state’s conservatorship system, expands the definition of "gravely disabled" to include people who are unable to provide themselves basic needs such as food and shelter due to an untreated mental illness or unhealthy drugs and alcohol use. Local governments say current state laws leave their hands tied if a person refuses to receive help.

The legislation, authored by Democratic Sen. Susan Eggman, is the latest attempt to update California's 56-year-old law governing mental health conservatorships -- an arrangement where the court appoints someone to make legal decisions for another person, including whether to accept medical treatment and take medications.

Opponents of the bill, including disability rights advocates, are worried the new law will result in more people being locked up and deprived them of their fundamental rights, since it will likely involve coercing a person into treatment.​

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signs bill expanding conservatorship law, Associated Press, 10/10/23

[Robert Urbanek]

The movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest persuaded millions of people that mental institutions were soul-destroying prisons presided over by tyrannical Nurse Ratcheds, which led to the movement to release them and let them seek voluntary treatment in community facilities. That turned out to be a disaster.

Somehow, it was possible to have a legal system that could control the life of a ditsy pop star, Britney Spears, but that same system could not control the lives of homeless people pooping in the streets.

[Puffer Fish]

The movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest persuaded millions of people that mental institutions were soul-destroying prisons presided over by tyrannical Nurse Ratcheds, which led to the movement to release them and let them seek voluntary treatment in community facilities. That turned out to be a disaster.

Somehow, it was possible to have a legal system that could control the life of a ditsy pop star, Britney Spears, but that same system could not control the lives of homeless people pooping in the streets.

I think there are some misconceptions about this that exist.
Currently there do not exist anywhere near enough mental facilities, or government-funded drug treatment centers, to house all the homeless who would want shelter, let alone all those who would not voluntarily want to go.

It seems the people and politicians just think it would be a simple matter of rounding them up, without thinking about whether the facilities and funding exists to have some place to put them all.
Unfortunately, if they make it a policy to just start rounding them up, I think a lot of them will just end up jails. (And for those who may not know, the conditions inside county jails are much worse than prisons. 4 persons stuffed in a windowless brick and cement room, having to sleep on hard benches, or if they're lucky an old smelly torn apart uncomfortable mat that's only 4 cm thick and not long enough, and only let out of that room for 3 hours every week. Then they might get released after about 2 weeks. The main issue is it's used to harass them and send the message to move on, since after they get arrested most all of their belongings will get left behind and end up getting tossed, and then when the homeless person is released it will either be right outside the jail facility usually far away from everything else or they'll be put in a vehicle and dumped off at the edge of the county)

[Robert Urbanek]

I think there are some misconceptions about this that exist.
Currently there do not exist anywhere near enough mental facilities, or government-funded drug treatment centers, to house all the homeless who would want shelter, let alone all those who would not voluntarily want to go.

It seems the people and politicians just think it would be a simple matter of rounding them up, without thinking about whether the facilities and funding exists to have some place to put them all.
Unfortunately, if they make it a policy to just start rounding them up, I think a lot of them will just end up jails. (And for those who may not know, the conditions inside county jails are much worse than prisons. 4 persons stuffed in a windowless brick and cement room, having to sleep on hard benches, or if they're lucky an old smelly torn apart uncomfortable mat that's only 4 cm thick and not long enough, and only let out of that room for 3 hours every week. Then they might get released after about 2 weeks. The main issue is it's used to harass them and send the message to move on, since after they get arrested most all of their belongings will get left behind and end up getting tossed, and then when the homeless person is released it will either be right outside the jail facility usually far away from everything else or they'll be put in a vehicle and dumped off at the edge of the county)

Given the high vacancy rate in commercial real estate, maybe some of that space can be repurposed as mental facilities.

[Puffer Fish]

Given the high vacancy rate in commercial real estate, maybe some of that space can be repurposed as mental facilities.

Unfortunately it's not so easy to repurpose buildings that are designed for one type of purpose.

A typical 4-level medium sized commercial office building costs $15 million to build. Mental facilities usually require special design and concrete block walls. If you try to put a homeless population and mental patients into a commercial office building, the walls would probably get destroyed. For reasons that would take a lot of time to elaborate upon, it's probably simply not realistic.

[Godstud]

That is the lovely caring progressive left for you.

[Robert Urbanek]

Unfortunately it's not so easy to repurpose buildings that are designed for one type of purpose.

A typical 4-level medium sized commercial office building costs $15 million to build. Mental facilities usually require special design and concrete block walls. If you try to put a homeless population and mental patients into a commercial office building, the walls would probably get destroyed. For reasons that would take a lot of time to elaborate upon, it's probably simply not realistic.

If the homeless and the mentally ill are going to destroy walls, then we certainly can't house them in regular apartments.

[Puffer Fish]

If the homeless and the mentally ill are going to destroy walls, then we certainly can't house them in regular apartments.

What I meant is you certainly can't just scoop up everyone off the streets who seems to have severe mental issues and is causing problems and throw them directly in to what used to be a regular office building. Even if only 5 or 10% will be the ones causing the problems, it still won't work.

From what I see of the local homeless population, probably only about half of them - maybe optimistically 60% - are fit to be housed in a converted office building.

[Istanbuller]

Del please.