LIST FILE ON MARGIN IS 76 STATUS: ALL ALLOWED NUMBER OF LINES: 629 1 If you are in need of help, you need but ask.... 2 ****************** REMOVED: 7 JAN 84 *********************** 3 Welcome to BWMS (BackWater Message System) Mike Day System operator 4 ************************************************************ 5 GENERAL DISCLAIMER: BWMS IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INFORMATION 6 PLACED ON THIS SYSTEM. 7 BWMS was created as an electronic bill board. BWMS is a privatly owned 8 and operated system which is currently open for use by the general public. 9 No restrictions are placed on the use of the system. As the system is 10 privatly owned, I retain the right to remove any and all messages which 11 I may find offensive. Because of the limited size of the system, it will be 12 periodically purged of older messages. (only 629 lines of data can be saved) 13 To leave a message, type 'ENTER' and use ctrl/C or break to get out of the 14 ENTER mode. The message is automatically stored. If after entering the 15 message you find you made a mistake, use the replace command to replace 16 the line. To exit from the system, type 'OFF' then hang up. 17 Type 'HELP' to see other commands that are available on the system. 18 *********************************************************** 19 20 "So that is the way of it!", he says. He had been listening to "Prospero's 21 apprentice" when that one let fall the fateful reference. "Dungeons, Agnath, can 22 it be?" he thinks, while failing to restrain a start. 23 "Is your master one of the five?" he inquires, drawing forth a silver coin with 24 a five-ponted star on its face. As he talks, he turns the coin as if he were 25 fingering it absently. The reverse bears the odd inscription - R.P.B. Ltd. He 26 watches the other's face intently searching for any sign of recognition. 27 ....................................................................... 28 (I beg the pardon of the other patrons of the inn, but Prospero's apprentice MAY 29 be an old acquaintance. I must be sure of this however, before going much 30 further) 31 To the one yclept "Prospero's apprentice": 32 Sirrah, though I admit to being an apprentice, I did NOT claim to be 33 apprenticed to YOUR master! 34 Dost thou recall the monk who went by the unlikely cognomen of "mouse"? Or 35 perhaps my master's old "friend" Grishnakh? "Eight foot, six & aint NONE of it 36 fat" is, I believe, the way the creature put it? 37 ..........................the apprentice........................................ 38 Leroy: I have good joke for you! I hear that last year in Tangiers NSA agent 39 (ptuie!) was captured. His captors make him keep radio schedule, but he cleverly 40 omit true check so headquarters will know something is not right. 41 Good agent, da? 42 So what did radio operator at headquarters do? He send back, "next time, please 43 remember to include your true check"! And Americans wonder why their agents are 44 to make laughter all over world. (so help me, my sources SWEAR story is true!) 45 ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Boris Badenov,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, 46 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 47 REVOLUTIONARY ALBANIAN BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIONS 48 SECRET COMMUNIQUE # 08163-B 49 50 RE: LEROY McKANE 51 52 Dear Comrade Yassar; 53 I have been observing the subject, McKane, since his escape from prison. 54 He recently surfaced in Maracaibo accompanied by Petrov and his gang of drag 55 queens. Information on the intelligence nets suggests he may next appear 56 in Ashkhabad within 48 hours. This one is definately not your typical 57 American Imperialist dog...Whatever his intent in Turkomen, I think it can't 58 do anything but benefit our goal of a free revolutionary state of Albania. 59 The pressure on the 60 Soviets in Central Asia, especially with their Afganistan folly will direct 61 their attention away from Albania. Besides, Leroy is a likeable rascal... 62 To be safe, I'm sending my top agent, the seductive Serena, to the 63 area by rail. She has successfully completed the Tibetian affair and will 64 be leaving Gyangtse shortly. Of course there is the problem of replacing 65 the three-legged donkey, but I'll explain that later. I'm also trying to 66 contact one of the top freelance operatives, Arien of Estolad, to see if he 67 can shed any light on McKane's intentions. As always, I close with our 68 party motto: MAQUID SALUDE (Which loosely translated means GO DUCKS!!!!) 69 FOR A FREE ALBANIA 70 MOHAMMED WASSIR 71 72 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 73 74 TXTXTX 1132 ABEL 75 COMSAC HQ9 76 CONTREMON 77 ACK ACK CODED TRANSMISSION FOLLOWS 78 OURCESAY AYSAY CKANEMAY ONAY AYWAY ATCHWAY OURYAY ASSAY 79 END TRANSMISSION 80 SPIKE 81 82 ______________________________________________________________ 83 go ducks? there's a sick mind somewhere out there..... 84 _____________________________________________________________ 85 Ha, Ha....I've broken your ack ack code you Albanian devils.......McKane 86 >>----------------------------------------------------------------------------<< 87 88 He awoke from his restless sleep as was always the case his first night on 89 land. Musing to himself he thought when my seafaring days are over will I ever 90 learn to accept the solid earth as home ?....swinging his legs from the bunk 91 a dagger of pain slashed through his knee reminding him that the day he dreaded 92 most drew closer.....he laughed, a most imposing character he would be with a 93 walking stick. With unthought familiarity he massaged the sinews and flesh 94 to working order. Testing the flex he walked to his chest with a slight sway , 95 speaking of his many years at sea. Opening his case he removed his modest 96 " Land " attire and with resignation clothed himself. 97 98 He had taken his morning repas in mute silence pondering his alternatives. 99 In his mind he had always harboured the idea of starting a small chandlers 100 shop. His reputation as a shipwright and rigger was known to most in those 101 circles. Yet the final decision could wait. He had the means and the resources 102 to afford another voyage ....one of pure exploration ....if he was to make this 103 his last port..... 104 His years at sea had denied him his childhood quest. And if this was to be 105 his ...home ... he knew he must come to know this land as he did the sea. 106 As he awaited the bill his thoughts drifted ........................ 107 108 In that bawdy tavern the night before he had asked many of the locals of 109 what lay upstream. The answers were many and varied. Some spoke of the glades 110 and forests inhabited by elusive elfs, reluctant dragons and apprentices 111 practicing their craft. Others spoke of boggs and spindly trees and exibited 112 an unspoken fear of the places upstream.Yet one wizened man recounted an 113 adventure he had been told as a boy. A place near the headwaters .....a place of 114 beauty , wonderment and peace...... 115 The name he could not recall ... but he said I would know it should I find it. 116 117 .................The shrill voice of the taverness asking if he was in need 118 of more fare jarred him from his thoughts. He drew a few coins from his pouch 119 and handing them to her thanked her. And strode thorugh the portal. 120 Once in the sunlight his eyes again strayed to the west ............ 121 With an unconscious movement he withdrew from his overcoats breast pocket 122 the ....satin ribbon.....still damp 123 124 And wondered....... 125 126 >>--------------------------------------------------------Brendan-------------<< 127 **************************************************************** 128 129 I've noticed patrons of the Inn lean towards controversies 130 that are impersonal and distant. I thought, for a change, you 131 might like to ponder something a bit closer to home. 132 133 Did you folks know that hundreds of seriously mentally ill 134 people have been dumped from state mental hospitals into the 135 community? That Dammash has reduced its bed usage by nearly 136 half, closed whole hospital wings to save money, and turned 137 the mentally ill out into the street? 138 139 The 1982 Oregon legislature, in response to the tax revolt, 140 mandated that usage of Oregon's mental hospitals be 141 drastically reduced. They argued that the chronically mentally 142 ill would be served better, at less cost, in community mental 143 health programs. 144 145 Before I go further I'll explain who the chronically mentally 146 ill are so you'll know who I'm talking about. 147 148 The chronically mentally ill are folks who have spent a great 149 part of their lives in mental institutions. Inspite of the 150 stereotypes they are seldom dangerous. In fact, they are more 151 often the victums of violent crime than the cause of it. 152 153 Their symptoms include things like hearing voices that aren't 154 there, having bizarre delusions, or becoming so withdrawn that 155 they can't relate to what's going on around them. Throughout 156 most of history they were locked away, burned as witches, or 157 tortured to exorcize their demons. 158 159 In the 1950's psychothropic drugs (Lithium, Thorazine, Haldol, 160 ect.) were found to control many of the symptoms of mental 161 illness. Though the drugs were unreliable, and dangerous, they 162 did control the symptoms enough for many of the mentally ill 163 to "survive" in the community. 164 165 The Oregon legislature used this as justification for emptying 166 the mental hospitals. The theory was that the chronically 167 mentally ill could now recieve adequate treatment from 168 community (county) mental health departments. 169 170 Unfortunately, as funds were transfered from hospital budgets 171 to community mental health programs they took drastic cuts. 172 This resulted in hundreds of the chronically mentally ill 173 being turned loose in the community without adequate support. 174 175 Most of them are now attempting to survive on around $200 a 176 month in welfare and a fistfull of food stamps. With their 177 severely disorganized thinking they often have great 178 difficulty doing even simple tasks such as shopping, cooking 179 or budgeting. 180 181 Many of them become destitute and gravitate to the cheap 182 living along Burnside. There they become easy victums for 183 thugs, con-artists, and street people. Some survive by 184 scavangering food from garbage cans. Many, it's safe to 185 assume, froze to death during the recent cold snap. 186 187 It's a terrible situation. What makes it worse is that there 188 isn't the public support to make things better. This is some- 189 thing I don't understand. 190 191 I've always thought of America as a compassionate nation; it 192 is extremely painful to learn that it is not. Perhaps I don't 193 really understand. Perhaps you can help me. 194 195 I have some questions I hope you can answer. 196 197 1) Did you know this was going on? Do you care? 198 199 2) Is this the kind of world the Libertarians and 200 tax revolters are asking us to believe in? 201 202 3) The difference between civilization and barbarianism, 203 as I learned it, is in how we treat our weak and 204 helpless. I was taught that it was the barbarians 205 who leave their people to die from the elements. 206 Does this mean we've reached the end of civilization? 207 208 209 You have impressed me as an intelligent group. I am looking 210 forward to reading your responses to what I have written 211 Perhaps you have some answers that I have somehow missed. I 212 hope so. 213 214 215 Aretaeus 216 217 ************************************************************* 218 THAT LAST DISSBIT OF RAMBLING ABOUT ME^NTALLY ILL PEOPLE BEING TURNED OUT INTO THE COMMUNITY WAS GREAT. LETS HERE IT FOR 219 THE STATE TAX SYSTEM 220 ******************************************************************************* 221 I think that all the mentally ill people must have got computers and now hang out here 222 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 223 **************************************************************** 224 That very well could be. Many mentally ill people are very 225 intelligent and creative. Many of the great artists, poets, 226 and philosophers had bouts of mental illness. Neitzsche, Van 227 Gough, Edgar Allen Poe were all sufferers. You are probably 228 working or going to school with mentally ill people. But you'd 229 never know it because their symptoms are controlled by the 230 medication. They act as normal as you or I...and isn't that 231 all that really matters? - Aretaeus - 232 **************************************************************** 233 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& 234 ARETAEUS: 235 COULD YOU ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS FOR ME? 236 ONE: IF THERE ARE MENTALLY ILL PEOPLE AROUND US WHO WE DO NOT RECOGNIZE AS BEING SO, THEY MUST HAVE MEDICATION. 237 IF THEY HAVE MEDICATION, WHAT IS THE PROBLEM? 238 TWO: IF THEY HAVE SUFFICIENT MEDICINE(AS THE PROGRAM ORIGIONALLY INTENDED) IS IT NOT BETTER TO KEEP 239 THEM IN SOCIETY WHERE THEY WILL LEARN TO ADJUST? 240 THREE: WHAT WOULD PUBLIC REACTION BE IF THEY WERE TOLD "MENTALLY ILL" PEOPLE WERE ALL AROUND THEM, NOT GETTING TREATMENT? 241 WOULD THEY NOT TRY TO STUFF THEM BACK INTO THE HOSPITALS WHERE THEY DO NOT BELONG? 242 243 NO CRITISM IS INTENDED OF YOUR WORK, AS IT SHOWS EXELLENT THOUGHT AND INVESTIGATION. 244 J.C. 245 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& 246 P.S. TO CISTOP MIKEY: 247 I ENTER A PLEA ON BEHALF OF ALL TRUE PATRONS OF THIS WONDERFUL INN. 248 WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE FOR YOU TO COLLECT AND STORE ALL WRITINGS ABOUT THE INN (SUCH AS THE ONES BY D, ETC.) 249 AND MAKE AVAILABLE TO PEOPLE WHO INFORM YOU SO A COMPRESSED LISTING OF ALL THE TALES, EXCLUDING THE COMMENTS, ETC. 250 I BEG THIS BOON OF YOU, INNKEEPER 251 JONATHAN CHANCE 252 HA HA HE HE 253 IM MENTAILY ILLLL YHW OD UOY WRITE SUUCHH WIRRED 254 tHINGS OIN THis BoArD!?.$#@&^%* 255 i t'NAC read anything ouy pople puutt on siht thHING 256 * * 257 * 89 j u st to Wared !!! 258 *********************************************************** 259 that boy's nunts ^ 260 ********************************************************** 261 im also ill copy copy copy !!!!! i must copy everthing there is to copy!!!! 262 locksmith copy ][ + EDD back it up super disk copy 263 wildcard snopshot alaska card disk muncher quick & dirty 264 i LOVE it !!!!!! 265 copy copy copy crack crack crack 266 i even copyed this computer!!!!!! 267 ha ha ha ha ha ha ohhh he he tee hee 268 ~```~```~```~```~```~```~```~```~```~```~```~```~```~```~```~ 269 270 ************************************************************************* 271 AH! SO YOU KNOW OF MOUSE AND THE EXCITING TIME HE SPENT AS A REAL MOUSE IN 272 BAST'S OWN HOME. WHAT SAY YOU OF THE BREW HERE AT THIS STRANGE INN, SITTING 273 AT THE CROSSROADS OF SO MANY DIFFERENT UNIVERSES. THE CONVERSATION IS CERTAINLY 274 STIMULATING. SOMEHOW THOUGH I KEEP EXPECTING EACH TIME I GO OUT THE DOOR 275 FOR A BREATH OF FRESH AIR TO FIND MYSELF IN SOME POOR MUNDANE UNIVERSE 276 WHERE MAGIC IS DENIGRATED AS A MYTH AND THE PEOPLE HAVE LOST TOUCH WITH THE LANDSPOILING IT FOR THEIR YOUNG ONES. 277 WHISPER 278 (PROSPERO'S APPRENTICE) 279 280 HELLO THERE EVERYBODY! I REALLY NEED SOMEONE TO LEAVE ME A MESSAGE BECAUSE 281 I NEED THE GLORY!!!!! JUST CALL ME "LONESOME LONER". YOU KNOW EVERYONE NEEDS 282 SOME ONE TO TALK TO ONCE IN A WHILE! EVEN IF IT IS THROUGH A COMPUTER! SO 283 PLEASE HELP ME OUT, OCKAY? YOU DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH IT WILL HELP ME!!!! 284 THANX!!! 285 ---------------------------LONESOME LONER------------------------------------- 286 287 THIS MESSAGE GOES TO ALL OF THE FANTASTIC PEOPLE WHO USE THIS BOARD! ESPECI- 288 ALLY THE WRITERS OF THE STORIES. I CAN SIT HERE IN FRONT OF MY ELECTRONIC 289 BRAIN FOR HOURS READING ALL OF THIS MATERIAL!!!!!!! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK YOU 290 GUYS AND GALS. MY COMPLIMENTS TO EVERYBODY!!!!!!!!!!! 291 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* 292 My dearest Mohammed: 293 Every moment away from you seems like an eternity. 294 295 The Tibetian affair went well. Enclosed you will find several 8 by 296 10 glossies of me, the Dali Lama, and our three legged donkey, Pedro, in 297 a cheap Gyangtse hotel. The Dali Lama is now completely under our control. 298 He really is a sweet old geezer. Unfortunately, Pedro died of exhaustion 299 soon after the caper. (Sniff) But he died for the cause of a free 300 Albania. 301 The only hitch was an amorous ChiCom colonel who kept getting in the 302 way. He is now wearing concrete galoshes at the bottom of the China Sea. 303 I'm sure the Chinese will blame the Russians for it. 304 I'm now on my way to Turkomen to see what McKane is upto. I miss you 305 terribly and await our week of paridise in Venice. 306 MAQUID SALUDE 307 Serena 308 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* 309 310 ARTAEUS 311 YOU SHOULD SEE IF YOU CAN GET YOUR INFORMATION AND POINT OF VIEW TAKEN 312 UP BY THE NEWS PAPERS. THAT'S THE FASTEST WAY THAT I CAN THINK OF TO REACH 313 A WIDE AUDIENCE. WHILE THIS BOARD IS FUN AND THE PEOPLE ON IT, SMART AND 314 CONCERNED, I HAVE MY DOUBTS AS TO THE AMOUNT OF PUBLIC INFLUENCE AND PRESS- 315 URE THAT THEY CAN BRING TO BEAR. 316 CONCERNED 317 -------------------------------------------------------------------?----- 318 319 THIS MESSAGE IS TO ALL OF YOU "LADIES IN WAITING" WHO MAY BE NEEDING SOME 320 COMPANIONSHIP REAL SOON!!!! I HAVE A VERY GOOD FRIEND WHO NEEDS A COMP- 321 ANION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!!! AND HERE IS A DESCRIPTION OF HIS 322 NEEDS: 323 324 1. BLONDE HAIR (PREFERABLY LONG) 325 2. BLUE EYES 326 3. ABOUT 5'6" IN HEIGHT (NOT WEIGHT!) 327 4. 36 X 24 X 32 328 5. A PLAIN, OVERALL, GOOD LOOKIN' YOUNG LADY. 329 330 I PLEAD TO YOU TO HELP THIS POOR DEEKREBID SOUL IN HIS SEARCH FOR THE 331 HIGHER SPECTRUMS OUT OF THE LOWER MIND AND BODY!!!! 332 333 ----------------------------LONESOME LONER------------------------------ 334 335 THERE ARE TIMES WHEN A PERSON SEEMS TO FLOAT INTO A DREM STATE OF 336 MIND AND HE/SHE LOSES ALL SENSE OF HIS/HER SURROUNDINGS. I WAS 337 ONE SUCH PERSON. AND MY STORY GOES LIKE THIS: 338 339 I WAS WALKING THROUGH A PARK ONE FOGGY EVENING. FOR SOME REASON 340 I FELT LIKE SOMETHING VERY RARE AND MYSTERIOUS WAS GOING TO 341 HAPPEN, BUT I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT IN THE WORLD IT COULD BE! 342 343 SUDDENLY A SPOT LIGHT AS BRIGHT AS THE SUN SHOWN ON ME AND A VERY 344 SOFT VOICE CALLED OUT AND SAID, "HEY THERE, LONESOME LONER. HOW 345 WOULD YOU LIKE TO ENTER A WORLD WHERE TIME, SPACE, AND MATTER DO 346 NOT EXIST?" 347 348 ALL I COULD MANAGE TO SAY WAS, "WHY ME? ALL I AM IS A POOR 349 DEEKREBID SOUL WALKING THROUGH THE PARK!" 350 351 THE VOICE THEN CAME BACK, BUT WAS MORE LOUDER, AND SAID, "LONESOME 352 LONER, WE PICKED YOU BECAUSE YOU HAVE AN OBSCURE VIEW ON LIFE 353 AND PEOPLE. WE HAVE FOUND, THROUGH RESEARCH, THAT YOU DEAL WITH 354 NO ONE. YOU ONLY TALK TO THOSE "BACKWATER INN FOLK". 355 356 ALL OF A SUDDEN THIS FIGURE APPEARED THROUGH THE HAZY FOG AND BRIGHT 357 LIGHT---- IT WAS A "WOMAN"! A VERY BEAUTIFUL WOMAN DRESSED IN A 358 SILK GOWN AND LONG BLONDE HAIR THAT REACHED DOWN TO HER ANKLES. 359 360 I JUST STOOD THERE IN AMAZEMENT; WATCHING THIS "WOMAN" FROM NOWHERE. 361 SHE BEGAN TO SPEAK ONCE AGAIN: "I WILL GIVE YOU POWERS BEYOND YOUR 362 WILDEST IMAGINATION. FOLLOW ME AND RECEIVE THIS GIFT. THEN, AND 363 ONLY THEN, WILL YOU BE ABLE TO DWELL AMONG THE GIFTED AND POWERFUL 364 PEOPLE OF MY HOME". 365 366 I THEN THOUGHT OF ALL MY FRIENDS BACK HOME AT THE "BACKWATER INN" 367 AND HOW I WOULD MISS THEM. IT WOULD BE RUDE OF ME TO SAY "SO LONG 368 WHEN WE ONLY JUST MET THREE DAYS AGO!!! WHAT WAS I TO DO????!!! 369 370 FINALLY, I FIGURED 'WHAT THE HEY' AND FOLLOWED THE "WOMAN" 371 THROUGH THE FOG TO FIND OUT WHAT IT WAS I WAS TO RECEIVE......... 372 373 Is this a trick? 374 375 Will I survive? 376 377 What will happen to me? 378 379 The answer lies in my next session of "WOMAN FROM NOWHERE"! 380 381 WATCH FOR IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 382 383 *************************LONESOME LONER**************************** 384 !?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! 385 ARETAEUS: THE THINGS YOU WROTE OF WERE TRUE, UNFORTUNATELY. I KNOW FROM PER- 386 SONAL EXPERIENCE OF MANY SUCH CASES. FOR SEVERAL YEARS, 15 AT LEAST, I HAVE 387 WORKED WITH SUCH PEOPLE. MANY ARE CAPABLE OF ADJUSTING, BUT THE VAST MAJORITY 388 ARE NOT. 389 MOST STATES TAKE BETTER CARE OF THE MENTALLY HANDICAPPED THAN OREGON. 390 IN CALIFORNIA, AND IDAHO THEY ESTABLISH LARGE HOMES FOR THEM IN THE COMMUNITY 391 WHERE A COUPLE OF HOUSEKEEPERS ARE STATE SALARIED EMPLOYEES, AND ARE IN 392 CHARGE OF PROVIDING HEALTHY MEALS, CLEAN LIVING CONDITIONS, AND ALL NECESSARY 393 SHOPPING IS DONE BY THEM. IN MANY CASES THIS IS SUCCESSFUL, BUT THERE ARE AL- 394 WAYS THOSE THAT TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THEIR POSITION AS HOUSEKEEPERS, AND STEAL 395 MONEY AND ETC. 396 ALSO, THE DRUGS YOU MENTIONED ARE USEFUL, BUT THEY HAVE SERIOS SIDE EFFECTS 397 ALSO. THIS IMPAIRS THE PERSON FROM REALLY BEING NORMAL ALL THE TIME. WE RAN A 398 HOME, LIKE THE ONE MENTIONED ABOVE FOR YEARS IN EUREKA , CALIFORNIA. AND WHAT 399 MOST PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE IS THAT, FOR THE MOST PART THE PEOPLE THEY RELEASE 400 FROM STATE INSTITUTIONS ARE ONES THAT HAVE AT ONE TIME BEEN CONSSIDERED NOR- 401 MAL AND HAVE HAD NERVOUS BREAKDOWNS OR SUDDENLY BECOME PLAGUED WITH HALLUCIN- 402 ATIONS, OR ARE JUST SLIGHTLY RETARDED. SOME OF THEM CANNOT COPE WITH THE IN- 403 STITUTION TYPE LIFE STYLE BECAUSE OF THEIR PAST AND ARE BETTER IN THESE TYPES 404 OF HOMES. 405 MANY OF THE PEOPLE WE HAVE WORKED WITH ARE NOW IN PRISON, OR BACK IN INSTI- 406 TUSIONS, MAINLY BECAUSE OF LACK OF SUPERVISION, OR AS YOU MENTIONED FALLING 407 PREY TO STREET TYPE PEOPLE. 408 ANYHEY, THERE ISN'T A WHOLE LOT TO BE DONE ABOUT THIS HORRIBLE PART OF OUR 409 SOCIETY, MAINLY BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE SO MUCH INTO THEMSELVES, THAT THEY HAVE 410 LITTLE OR NO TIME TO CONSIDER THE PLIGHT OF OTHER PEOPLE, SERIOUSLY. I'M SURE 411 YOU NOTED THE MATURE, (ahem) RESPONSES TO YOUR ESSAY. YOU ARE RIGHT ABOUT IT 412 BEING A SIGN OF SICKNESS IN OUR SOCIETY. BUT THERE ARE MANY THAT ARE JUST AS 413 TERRIBLE. 414 FOR INSTANCE, OLD FOLKS HOMES, LABORATORY EXPERIMENTATION ON ANIMALS,(some is 415 necessary,but their so far beyond some it's ridiculous) WHOLESALE KILLING OF 416 WILDLIFE,(over 300 species become extinct each year) AND THE LIST GOES ON AND 417 ON. EVERYONE HAS THEIR FAVORITE PEEVE TO GRIP AND WORRY ABOUT, BUT GETTING 418 ANYTHING DONE ABOUT IT MEANS COMING UP AGAINST THE GUYS RUNNING THE SHOW. AND 419 THAT TAKES MORE TIME AND MONEY THAN 99.95% 420 OF US HAVE. WE ALL NEED TO FEEL A LITTLE RESPONSIBLE FOR THESE THINGS ABOUT 421 OUR SOCIETY THOUGH AND DO WHAT WE CAN TO ALLEIVIATE PART OF THESE PROBLEMS. 422 BUT LET'S FACE IT FOLKS, THE SYSTEM STINKS IN SOME WAYS, AND CHANGE IS NECES 423 SARY. THE SOONER THE BETTER. 424 425 d, WHERE ARE YOU...........I'M WAITING. 426 427 LONESOME LONER: HERE'S A "HELLO" JUST FOR YOU. 428 !?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?DEBORAH?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! 429 The two apprentices sit at a corner table exchanging tales. 430 "Whisper, my master often speaks of the great tunnel dug from the sea to the 431 mountains. In fact, he claims to have aided in the construction! What dost thou 432 know of this wondrous work?" 433 Words tumbling over one another, like pebbles in a mountain stream, he 434 continues. "Another tale tells he of great & terrible experiments carried on 435 by his companions. I suspect these had somewhat to do with his leaving Agnath 436 and taking up a quiet life here. He once spoke in his sleep of destroying a 437 city wall by mixing flasks together." 438 "I fear for him, canst thou tell me aught of his companions of old, the 439 members of that company (of the five) whose token I showed you? Canst thou 440 tell of Sam, the stealthy, their leader? Or mayhap of the good cleric, Pater?" 441 "And tell me of your master and the members of his company. For I must 442 confess, whilst thy words and visage are familar, I cannot call to mind thy 443 name!" 444 "No, no! Speak it not aloud and straightly, for while all appears safe, thou 445 knowest not what may be lurking in the corners. Rather, wreath thine identity 446 in allegory and riddle, as I have my master's." Thus speaking, he poured his 447 companion, Whisper?, a mug of cider and sat back to listen to his reply 448 .................................................................... 449 (my apologies, Whisper, but I know not yet whether thou art man or woman! Thy 450 robe conceals much!) 451 ......................................the apprentice......................... 452 Aretaeus: Will you identify your true self? Supportive action is seldom 453 offered in highest enthusiasm to persons behind pseudonyms. I have been a 454 supporter of state and local SPENDING reform (TAX reform is a totally 455 different side of the fiscal picture). Let us explore a bit more the 456 specifics of the conditions you describe. Dave Rodman 457 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 458 *************************************************************** 459 460 JC: Thank you for your thoughtful questions. I see that 461 Deborah has already given some excellent answers to what you 462 asked; I have a bit to add. 463 464 First you must realize that there is a wide range of level of 465 severety of mental illness. Mild cases can be treated with 466 small doses of medication that leave the person virtually 467 "normal". These are the folks you couldn't spot even if you 468 knew them well. 469 470 More severe cases require greater dosages; in larger doses 471 medication can have terrible side effects. Facial ticks, 472 uncontrolled drooping of the head, serious health problems 473 etc. 474 475 Another problem is that medication is unreliable. After years 476 of success it can suddenly stop working. Then the patient goes 477 through hell while the doctor experiments to find something 478 else that will work. 479 480 On whether the mentally ill should be in the community, I say 481 yes. The obvious exception being those that are dangerous. 482 483 Normal social involvement is one of the most effective ways 484 towards mental health. Mental hospital outpatients who 485 create social networks within the community do far better than 486 those in the hospital. 487 488 The public only seems concerned about untreated mental illness 489 in the community if it doesn't raise their taxes. It costs 490 $300,000 a year to keep someone in Dammash. The taxpayer won't 491 buy it. 492 493 Some hospitals, like Eastern Oregon State Hospital, have been 494 coverted into prisons. It's extremely expensive to convert 495 them back. 496 497 ============= 498 Concerned: The public only responds to newspaper accounts that 499 are individual horror stories. Even then they only respond to 500 the person being spotlighted. 501 502 Willamette Week did a fantastic expose on conditions of the 503 mentally ill in Portland. The Oregonian has run some good 504 articles too. It made absolutely no difference. 505 ============= 506 507 Deborah: Enjoyed discovering a kindred spirit out there. I 508 agree that there are many horrible problems other than mental 509 illness. Frankly, there's only so much I can tackle. 510 511 By narrowing my social activism to mental illness in Oregon I 512 at least have a chance of making a difference. 513 514 Ever hear of "Nuts To You"? It's a four part Liberty Cable 515 Television series I created and produced using chronically 516 mentally ill outpatients. The idea was to demonstrate that the 517 mentally ill weren't the way people had them stereotyped. 518 519 We had twenty-seven outpatients, with only four of us "normal" 520 types, who produced the four part series, a "Best of Nuts 521 You" VHS videotape, and a live telephone call-in program. 522 523 The chronically mentally ill covered all studio positions, 524 both before and behind the cameras, and told their story as 525 it's never been told before. It was really something. I think 526 you'd enjoy it. 527 528 "Nuts To You" was very well recieved. It won several awards 529 and was a hit when we showed the videotape to church groups 530 and such. The Mental Health Association is helping me drum up 531 some money so we can continue these kinds of educational 532 projects. 533 534 ================== 535 Dave: There is only so much tax money and, as you're aware, 536 the competition is fierce. I don't believe SPENDING reform 537 will do the trick. Personally, I'd settle for an enlightened 538 public willing to get involved. 539 540 My real name is Gary Olson. I am also known as the GRAND 541 DRAGON MASTER. What's that do to my credibility? 542 543 :************************************************************: 544 FIRST OF ALL...MIKEY!!! YOU'VE GOT TO BE SAVING THIS, RIGHT? 545 IF YOU ARE NOT AT LEAST DUMPING A HARDCOPY BEFORE YOU WIPE THE 546 DISKS, I WILL PERSONALLY CONTACT MCkane AND HAVE HIM GET SERENA 547 TO SAUTEE YOUR EYEBALLS. THIS IS DEFINATELY THE MOST FUN IVE 548 EVER HAD WITH MY FINGERS TOUCHING PLASTIC. 549 550 DAVER 551 552 **************************************************************** 553 554 LONESOME: If there are any of those blondes left over, let me 555 know. 556 557 --------------daver again-------------------------------------- 558 559 The mists are indeed thick this night as I leave the Inn. The 560 heavy wood door closes behind me without a sound, even my footfalls 561 muffled, nay, silent as the trees part before me. But where is 562 the bridge? Wait, the mists are clearing, how could it be daylight 563 already... 564 565 566 The landragon's fifteen feet of carniverous muscle glided 567 through the close underbrush without a sound, its tongue lashing 568 out repeatedly to keep the scent of the small boy who was playing 569 in the clearing ahead. It had rained during the night, but the hot 570 morning sun was driving the rain off of the boy and the grass 571 in billows of steam. The dense fog rendered everything nearly 572 invisible, a distinct advantage to the croc's steady approach. 573 Marcus lay in the cool, moist grass of the Garden, 574 relaxing in the feel of the wet earth on one side and the sun on the 575 other. He was enjoying the feel of sweat and water drying off of 576 his bare skin. He rolled slightly to one side to dodge the droppings 577 of a bird flying overhead. He pushed his fingers deep into the soil, 578 feeling the roots of the grass, trying to push his consciousness out 579 into those myriad tangled plants, to feel for the predator he knew 580 must be near. 581 The landragon was weary of the chase, and hungry. It would 582 advance to certain kill range this time before making the final 583 bone-crunching lunge on its prey. Marcus tried to shut off his 584 senses. If he was to survive, he would have to ignore the 585 sights and sounds around him and concentrate on the world as seen 586 by everything around him. jAs he pushed his awareness further and 587 further out from himself, he found only fear. No other creature 588 dared breathe when a dragon was in the feeding frenzy. 589 590 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ DAVER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 591 :**************************************************************: 592 593 Mohammed Wassir: 594 595 I don't believe we've formally met but LeRoy McKane asked that 596 I contact you. Things are starting to heat up and Mr. McKane 597 felt that he should go underground for awhile. 598 599 The problem is Natasha. She's gone berzerk. I probably 600 shouldn't tell you this but Natasha has a mental illness. 601 602 The doctor's diagnosis her as having a histronic personality 603 disorder. They are treating her with 50 mg of Thorazine, which 604 she now refuses to take. 605 606 Apparently her illness was triggered by LeRoy's rejection 607 combined with his plans to take up with Serena. If you 608 encounter her don't let her out of your sight. Lock her up 609 if you must. 610 611 Her illness is not dangerous but she is extremely agitated. If 612 she approaches LeRoy in this condition there is no telling 613 what Petrov will do. You know how dangerous Petrov becomes 614 if he believes someone is about to harm his master. 615 616 Thanks 617 618 Big Bill Broonzy 619 620 :**************************************************************: 621 622 [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] 623 624 I STAND AND WATCH FROM THE SHADOWS IN QUIET ADMIRATION FOR THE QUALITY 625 OF THE PLEASANTRIES EXCHANGED, AND SILENTLY WISH THAT I HAD SUCH A MARVELOUS 626 PROPENSITY FOR THE THIRD PERSON AS HAS BEEN DISPLAYED. I PRAY YOU WILL PER- 627 SEVERE, AND I WILL CONTINUE TO CLEAN THESE BACK TABLES WHILE I LISTEN. 628 629 [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]PAM.[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] >