We must invest in mental health

This tragic event in Tucson, Ariz., is generating a lot of finger pointing. To err is human. To blame it on someone else is even more human. This event demonstrates the serious need for better research in mental health. We need to be better at identifying and helping people who are mentally abnormal.

Mental health is just beginning to emerge from the dark ages. New methods are developing that identify specific brain areas involved in mental disease. New drugs are being developed. But, the pace is very slow because little money is available to do the needed research. Wake up, people! There is no such thing as a free lunch. We need to tax ourselves to fund progress in mental health.

What if, before this tragic event, friends and family of this assassin had specific indicators in a person’s behavior that would indicate he should be referred for help. And, what if that help could accurately assess his ability to function in society with treatment or if he should be kept in a controlled environment until he was able to live normally.

I think everyone who is charged with a crime should have a mental health evaluation and follow-up if needed. That will cost some tax dollars. But it could save loss of property, save on insurance, save on money spent on keeping people in prison (it costs more to keep a person in prison for a year than it does to send him/her to Harvard for a year), save money that is spent on welfare, and save lives.

Richard Guthrie
Snohomish