letters
TO THE EDITOR
SAFETY NET HOLES
I want to commend Alan Pitman for his
cover story on “Wet Beds” (9/29). Since the
1980s when I went to visit the homeless
shelters and volunteered at the soup
kitchens run by the Community for Creative
Non-Violence in Washington, D.C., I have
been aware of the homelessness in the self-
proclaimed “richest nation in the world.”
And we all know that the problem has
gotten worse during the last three decades.
When my wife and I opened the Eugene
International Hostel in Eugene in 1997, we
tried to accommodate as many transients as
we could, without jeopardizing the business.
Especially during the last decade, all
the safety nets seem to act like big sieves.
Many people have no safe place to rest at
night. Our governments, from national to
local level, seem to have been bought out
by the rich; they pass laws and ordinances
that defy basic needs.
Why can’t we have safe sleeping
quarters for anyone in need in every
community, large and small? The nonprofi t
sector has successfully taken on projects
like soup kitchens and groceries for the
viewpoint
needy and small projects like Cahoots
help substance-abusers. But the charitable
sector can not take on the whole burden
without collective action through public
funding.
And, of course, we need to work on
the root causes. In a democratic country
such as ours, government must bear the
full responsibility. President Reagan was
uninformed and irresponsible when he
suggested that the nonprofi t and charitable
sector take care of these problems. We can
be caring, loving and compassionate in our
daily lives. But alcoholism, drug abuse,
mental problems, rampant homelessness
and poverty are symptoms of a much larger
problem in society.
We have not seen the worst yet. The
current economic and political policies
will put millions more on the street, and
hundreds of thousands will be regular
alcohol or substance users. What good is
this so-called democracy when the elected
government bodies fails to fulfi ll social
needs and obligations?
Arun N. Toke’
Eugene
IT’S JUST A TEST
Dr. Michael Lee, a public health
advocate and sociologist, recently raised
concerns about the health effects of
EWEB’s plan to test residential smart
meters (Viewpoint, 9/22).
BY LYNNE SALVI
A New Mental Hospital?
leading to many investigations since 2003. These
investigations have uncovered a shocking trail of
horrendous abuse and outrageous living conditions.
In August 2004, Gov. Ted Kulongoski’s inspection
stated the standard of care at OSH “is atrocious.”
In September 2004, other offi cial investigations
revealed, “Oregon allowed two of its employees to
molest a mentally ill girl in their care and then paid
her to keep quiet.” In 2005, OSH made headlines
after rows of “cremains” were discovered in the
hospital’s basement.
down a sidewalk, stopped and yelled towards a group
in the distance who were golfi ng. Unfortunately, one
of the men golfi ng held a high professional title,
and it was later found that this young man was not
taking the psychiatric medications that were being
prescribed to him. After several years committed in
OSH, this man has 10 more years to go for merely
raising his voice and yelling towards a crowd.
Val Hoyle was asked about alternative treatments
in mental health care and two highly regarded
documentaries recently shown in Eugene. These
fi lms are centered on successful alternative
treatments implemented for mental health clients
outside the U.S. These alternative treatments are
far more humane, costing fractions compared to a
new hospital.
Negotiations with authorities continue to stall
as representatives say the lack of state funds for
community based programs cause overcrowding
in OSH. A large percentage of committed patients
are needlessly being held without justifi cation when
these patients would be better served in discharged
placement programs.
Then in October 2009, Moises Perez died and
laid in his bed across from the nurses’ station for
hours before he was noticed. In light of his death,
the U.S. Department of Justice sent another letter
citing OSH’s obligations under the Americans with
Disabilities Act as conditions continued to be a great
concern. “Our defunded economic times” is the
running scapegoat for not taking actions sooner.
Under this mounting pressure, representatives
now claim that Oregon can afford a new $280
million-plus state psychiatric facility as a way to fi x
the problems: a 620-bed psychiatric unit in Junction
City and another 300-bed unit down the road. Their
fi rst target to fi nance this is the already defl ated
funds for mental health community based programs
including programs for discharge placement.
Charlie Wright told a story of a young man
currently committed at OSH. This man was walking
Despite all of the reporting about OSH history
of abuse and overcrowding, there is more interest
in the creation of new jobs for Junction City and
its neighboring areas, rather than providing better
services for those who receive mental health care.
State lawmakers say Oregon can afford to spend
millions during diffi cult economic times to build
another hospital and claim this is the way to solve
horrendous issues of abuse and overcrowding.
Is the difference between those who supposedly
need these beds and those who push to build them
the fact that one has a label and the other holds a
title?
It seems quite clear that questionable actions in
public can be disregarded by technical diffi culties
with video for some and others will be strapped to
beds. A young man will lose 12 years of freedom,
and I struggle to see the crime he committed. I
overheard one of the panelists assert, “We need a
place to put all of these people ... some are waiting
on the Johnson Unit more than a month for a bed in
the state hospital.”
Is there an agenda to create criminals out of
those who have psychiatric diagnoses in order to
create jobs at their expense?
Investing in bricks and mortar will not stop abuse
EDITOR’S NOTE: This column was submitted to EW
just before Lynne Salvi of Eugene died after driving
her car into the Willamette River in Portland Sept.
23. A memorial service was held Sept. 28. A longer
version can be found on the MindFreedom website at
http://wkly.ws/13w
T
he National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI)
held an open meeting at the Lane County
Mental Health building in Eugene Aug. 30,
giving the public an opportunity to hear about the
issues regarding a proposal to build a new state
psychiatric facility in Junction City.
Speakers for the meeting were Charlie Wright,
chair of the Lane County Mental Health Advisory
Subcommittee; Bruce Abel, program manager of
LaneCare mental health agency: Rep. Val Hoyle;
Linda Hammond, coordinator for the state hospital
project in Junction City; Chris Bouneff, executive
director of NAMI Oregon; and Angella Kimball,
director for NAMI state policy.
Hammond and Hoyle were the only two on this
panel holding positions allowing them the authority to
vote on the behalf of Oregonians regarding the fate of
those committed in Oregon state psychiatric hospitals.
Kimball presented a brief and overarching
account of problems patients face in Oregon’s state
psychiatric facilities. A major focus was Oregon
State Hospital (OSH) in Salem, famously known as
the institution where One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s
Nest was fi lmed. There is also a branch of OSH
located in Portland.
Kimball said the conditions at OSH in Salem
caught major attention in 2002 when a patient was
verbally abused without hospital staff realizing his
family’s social ties. Allegations of mistreatment
in OSH alerted state and federal authorities
4
OCTOBER 6, 2011
The Integrated Electric Resources
Plan Advisory Panel, of which I am a
member, generally favors a fi ve-year trial
of demand management strategies as an
adjunct to EWEB’s current exemplary
and transparent conservation policies and
EUGENE WEEKLY
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