Hello Everyone,
For your third Writing Journal assignment, please read the following article: “Compassion Compulsion and the Mentally Ill" by E. Fuller Torrey, Wall Street Journal. (Eastern Edition). New York, N.Y.: Jun 9, 2008. p. A.17
- From Falvey Library's homepage (on the left side), choose "Databases A-Z."
- Then choose "ABI/INFORM Global (ProQuest)."
- Next, click on the "Publications" tab.
- Choose Wall Street Journal: Eastern Edition.
- Write the article’s title or author in the “Search for articles . . .” data field, and perform your search.
You’re welcome to respond to the article however you wish. I do encourage you, though, to consider the following:
Do you think the ideas discussed in the article need to be treated as a homelessness issue, a mental health issue, or something else? Why?
Consider the arguments both for and against keeping people with severe mental illnesses confined to institutions. Which arguments do you find to be persuasive? Why? Which arguments are weak? Why?
Suppose the medical community determines that a person must take medication, otherwise he may become a danger to himself and others. What can or should be done if he refuses? Do such patients have a right to refuse treatment?
Please include the following information as a heading on your work:
Your name
Eng1050 – 20
Writing Journal Assignment #3
Please post your Writing Journal response to this article (200 - 250 words) by Thursday, October 1, 2009.
Have a good day.
Mr. Dierkes
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Tim Wolfgram
ReplyDeleteEng1050 – 20
Writing Journal Assignment #3
Wow… This article was extremely eye opening. I knew that a percentage of the homeless population, suicides, homicides and people in jail in the U.S. were mentally unstable; I had no idea it was such a staggering number. I also had no idea that the number of those in mental hospitals had dropped so rapidly within the past fifty years. It is just really sad to me to think of all these people who are not getting any treatment. Of all the people in the world, they are the people who deserve treatment the most. I studied homelessness and suicide last year in my social justice class in high school, and the number of these populations that was made up of the mentally challenged was very high, but unlike the numbers shown by the homicide rates. The part that frustrates me the most about this entire topic is that the government over the past fifty or so years has not really been doing anything about this except make the situation worse. I feel that it is up to the government to turn the circumstances around. Individual private institutions help, however, on the big scale it is up to the United States Government to set things straight.
I found this article to be very informative and interesting. I had no idea that so many of the mentally unstable we not receiving proper care, and that this lack of care stems from the healthcare system. I found it very troubling that the number of patients in mental hospitals has been dropping rapidly and consistently over the past 50 years while suicide and homelessness statistics with respect to the mentally ill have been taking a negative turn. These numbers clearly show that there are people out there in need of help, and they are not receiving it. Another fact that caught my attention was the number of homicides committed by the mentally ill. If these people were receiving treatment for their conditions we would be saving the lives of countless individuals who otherwise could have become been victims of an unnecessary crime.
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