Is involuntary psychiatric treatment the solution to the intertwined crises of untreated mental illness, homelessness, and addiction? In recent years, politicians and advocates have sought to expand the use of conservatorships, a legal tool used to force someone deemed “gravely disabled,” or unable to meet their needs for food, clothing, or shelter as a result of mental illness, to take medication and be placed in a locked facility. At the same time, civil liberties and disability rights groups have seized on cases like that of Britney Spears to argue that conservatorships are inherently abusive.
Conservatorship: Inside California's System of Coercion and Care for Mental Illness(Columbia UP, 2023) is an incisive and compelling portrait of the functioning—and failings—of California’s conservatorship system. Drawing on hundreds of interviews with professionals, policy makers, families, and conservatees, Alex V. Barnard takes readers to the streets where police encounter homeless people in crisis, the locked wards where people receiving treatment are confined, and the courtrooms where judges decide on conservatorship petitions. As he shows, California’s state government has abdicated authority over this system, leaving the question of who receives compassionate care and who faces coercion dependent on the financial incentives of for-profit facilities, the constraints of underresourced clinicians, and the desperate struggles of families to obtain treatment for their loved ones.
This book offers a timely warning: reforms to expand conservatorship will lead to more coercion but little transformative care until government assumes accountability for ensuring the health and dignity of its most vulnerable citizens.
Michael O. Johnston, Ph.D. is a Assistant Professor of Sociology at William Penn University. He is the author of The Social Construction of a Cultural Spectacle: Floatzilla (Lexington Books, 2023) and Community Media Representations of Place and Identity at Tug Fest: Reconstructing the Mississippi River (Lexington Books, 2022). His general area of study is in the areas of social construction of experience, identity, and place. He is currently conducting research for his next project that looks at nightlife and the emotional labor that is performed by employees of bars and nightclubs. To learn more about Michael O. Johnston you can go to his website, Google Scholar, Twitter @ProfessorJohnst, or by email at johnstonmo@wmpenn.edu.
Alexander the Great was one of the most famous people from the ancient world.
He defeated a vastly larger Persian Empire and conquered everything from Egypt to India.
Yet, what Alexander achieved wouldn’t have been possible without his father. In fact, if Alexander hadn’t accomplished what he did, his father would probably be the one given the title “great.”
Learn more about Philip II of Macedon and how he changed the world of Ancient Greece and laid the foundations for his son on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday dissolved his war cabinet that’s overseen the country’s fighting in Gaza. The move was expected, but it came after two centrist members of the cabinet resigned in frustration over Netanyahu’s handling of the war. Meanwhile, representatives from dozens of nations left a weekend conference in Switzerland aimed at ending the war in Ukraine with little to show for it. Ben Rhodes, former U.S. deputy national security advisor and co-host of ‘Pod Save The World,’ talks about what these developments mean for both wars.
And in headlines: U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy called for tobacco-like warning labels on social media platforms, President Biden is expected to issue an executive order expanding protections for undocumented immigrants married to U.S. citizens, and Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore signed an executive order pardoning more than 175,000 low-level marijuana convictions.
The Biden campaign puts big money into a new ad slamming Trump as a convicted felon, fraudster, and sexual predator, and painting Biden as a fighter for working families. Trump courts the Black vote in front of a mostly white audience in Detroit, and CNN announces the final rules for next week’s debate. Plus: Jon, Lovett, and Tommy talk about who’s up and who’s down in the race to be Trump’s VP.To preorder you copy of Democracy or Else, visit http://crooked.com/booksFor tickets to upcoming live shows and book events, visit http://crooked.com/events
For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.
In this episode, the Goods from the Woods Boys are joined by the ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS Mike Kim for another spin around the block of comedy city. We test out the new fruit punch lemonade from Atlanta hip-hop sensation Lil Baby and the "Rap Snacks" brand. Then we chat about the guy who (kinda) started Venmo being an absolute freak and, seemingly, a werewolf for baked chocolate sweets. Sam's parents are in town, Carter took a trip to Palm Springs, and Rivers gave a tour of L.A. to elderly Polish tourists on a party bus complete with a stripper pole. Plus, we chat about a barista in Seattle gave an angry customer exactly what he deserved. Green Day's "Basket Case" is our JAM OF THE WEEK! Tune in now, folks! Follow Mike on all forms of social media @MikeKimComedy Rivers is @RiversLangley Sam is @SlamHarter Carter is @Carter_Glascock Subscribe on Patreon for an UNCUT video version of the show as well as HOURS of bonus content! http://patreon.com/TheGoodsPod Pick up a Goods from the Woods t-shirt at: http://prowrestlingtees.com/TheGoodsPod
About Us: From the creators of Robinhood Snacks Daily, The Best One Yet (TBOY) is the daily pop-biz news show making today’s top stories your business. 20 minutes on the 3 business, economics, and finance stories you need, with fresh takes you can pretend you came up with — Pairs perfectly with your morning oatmeal ritual. Hosted by Jack Crivici-Kramer & Nick Martell.
A catholic school’s ability to operate in accordance with its faith is in jeopardy.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit heard oral arguments in St. Joseph Parish v. Nessel on Tuesday, June 11. The case involves a Catholic school in Michigan that is asking the court to protect its ability to hire staff who align with its faith.
The Michigan Supreme Court reinterpreted a state civil rights statute’s definition of sex in July 2022 to include sexual orientation without any exemption for religious organizations. In March 2023, the Michigan legislature wrote this into state law, expressly prohibiting discrimination on sexual orientation or gender identity.
The school’s right to hire staff who hold its views on marriage and gender is at risk. St. Joseph's asks all staff to be practicing Catholics and uphold the faith.
Senior Counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty Will Haun argued the case before the Sixth Circuit Court on June 11.
He joins “The Daily Signal Podcast” to discuss what the case means for Christian institutions nationwide.
Pluto hasn't been a planet for almost 20 years. In the early 2000s, scientists discovered several objects of a similar size to Pluto. So, during the summer of 2006, members of the International Astronomical Union convened in Prague to reconsider what counts as a planet in our solar system. IAU members decided that there were three criteria to be a planet — and Pluto didn't meet all of them.
But planetary scientist Wladymir Lyra says that even though it was downgraded to a dwarf planet, Pluto still has much to teach us about planet formation. This episode, he also lays out his case for Pluto — and many other objects in the solar system — to be considered a planet.
This episode is part of Short Wave's space camp series about all the weird, wonderful things happening in the universe. Check out the full series.
Questions about the state of our universe or smaller happenings here on planet Earth? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we'd love to consider it for a future episode!
