Serbia's Shameful Secret

[Mr Peabody]

Follow the link, the story is after the commercial.

http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-us&brand=msnbc&tab=m5&rf=http://today.msnbc.msn.com/&fg=&from=00&vid=d696b0b7-632a-4c7d-9637-7663c73b001c&playlist=videoByTag:mk:us:vs:0:tag:News_Editors%20 Picks:ns:MSNVideo_Top_Cat:ps:10:sd:-1:ind:1:ff:8A

Your impressions of the video

[ForeverAutumn]

This is sickening, and I'm sure more common than we would like to believe. As the Minister said, they inherited a terrible situation born in Communism. It will take a lot of time and money to improve the system. Although, they've had time to start to work on change, they haven't done so. Hopefully, this report will put some pressure on the Serbian Gov't to do something about this.

[Mr Peabody]

I too hope the exposure will bring about some improvement. I also hoped this thread would have received more traffic. It's heart breaking.

[ForeverAutumn]

I too hope the exposure will bring about some improvement. I also hoped this thread would have received more traffic. It's heart breaking.

Weekends aren't a good time to post anything that you want a quick response to. This place always slows down on weekends.

[nightflier]

It's important to remember that this state of affairs arose from a political system that wanted to pretend this unpleasant reality did not exist - to hide it from the general public, so to speak. And that is not too far removed from any society's desire to hide it's ugly side. Has anyone here ever set foot in a mental health facility, an orphanage, a homeless shelter, or a home for the elderly that don't have a lot of money? I'll tell you from first hand experience, it's not pretty (I was at a VA hospital not too long ago). And it's not like we don't have the resources in our country to do better. It's really a matter of degrees between Serbia and us. At least they are allowing the world to take a look inside their shameful past, after all, you don't see ABC interviewing prisoners at Gitmo, either.

Yes, it's appalling, but really did anyone here not have some nagging knowledge that this was indeed the case in Serbia? If someone had asked us yesterday, before we saw this clip, what we thought might be happening in the mental institutions in Serbia, we probably would have guessed as much. That is what is so sad.

Kind of reminds me of LeGuin's People of Omelas....

[Mr Peabody]

Mental images of institutions are usually bleek but I would have never imagined the type of conditions shown in that clip. And they limit how we can execute convicted criminals because it's inhumane? People are arrested in this country for treated animals better than that.

You do have a good point about our country who has resources falling very short. There was the recent VA hospital exposure. Then you have Bush spending billions of dollars in Iraq but wouldn't approve 35 million to insure children for health services. This type of Greed and errogance could be our down fall if not checked.

One reason I think this upsets me so, we adopted a child with Cerebral Palsy at 22 months old. At this age she only weighed 18 lbs. She was literally stiff as a board and could only do a soldier crawl with her arms. No speech. With our care and the proper therapies she has advanced tremendously. We discovered a couple years back she also has Autistic Spectrum Disorder. She can walk with a walker and braces for short trips, like down the school hall way. She will be 9 in a couple days. Her weight is on the normal development chart now. Her speech is pretty much normal although her learning is still delayed. Not too bad for a kid being born at 1 lb & 6 oz.

[bobsticks]

I've written in the past about some of the community projects I've been involved with, but at the end of the day it all stopped at my front door. It's hard to put into words how much respect I have for someone that can walk that kind of walk twenty four/seven. I know I couldn't. You're a pretty special character Mr. P.



[QUOTE=nightflier] Has anyone here ever set foot in a mental health facility, an orphanage, a homeless shelter, or a home for the elderly that don't have a lot of money? I'll tell you from first hand experience, it's not pretty (I was at a VA hospital not too long ago). And it's not like we don't have the resources in our country to do better.[QUOTE]

Don't kid yourself 'flier. My Grandmother is in the final stages of Alzheimers and is now in the third facility within a year. What these "medical professionals" expect is that you'll drop them off and they'll never hear from you again. The look of surprise and horror when you walk through the door on an unscheduled visit hardly prepares you for what inevitably comes next.

And yes, it may be a matter of degree, but I suspect we can plan on hearing more stories and seeing more footage of these human husks if we don't address the criminally negligent state of care for the elderly in this country.

[Mr Peabody]

Thanks. We get a lot out of it as well. I can't express the feeling I get when ever we notice she has developed a new skill or came up a notch in a certain area.

Since this started out about another country I just wanted to clarify we adopted from our state. There are so many children in our own country who need homes. Most states don't even have the money to put the kid's profiles on the internet. If you see a child on the internet up for adoption you better bet their case is one of the most difficult placements. Either health issues or sibling groups.

[Worf101]

Thanks. We get a lot out of it as well. I can't express the feeling I get when ever we notice she has developed a new skill or came up a notch in a certain area.

Since this started out about another country I just wanted to clarify we adopted from our state. There are so many children in our own country who need homes. Most states don't even have the money to put the kid's profiles on the internet. If you see a child on the internet up for adoption you better bet their case is one of the most difficult placements. Either health issues or sibling groups.
My ole lady is an Occupational Therapist. In her last job she worked at the Center for the Disabled here in Albany, New York. She dealt with the mentally disabled of all stripe. Before she left she was trying to stem the tide of Autistic Spectrum children now flooding the system. Many times I visited her at work and my heart would litterally be breaking at the unfairness of it all and hers was/is one of the BETTER run facilities.

She always wonders why I'm with her (she's always had self esteem problems) seeing her getting on the floor playing and teaching these kids with the patience of a saint makes me ashamed to breathe the same air as her or any person who gives of themselves to any who truly NEED. It's not money, throwing money at societies problems does not always lead to a solution. Getting down in the trenches, volunteering, adopting, mentoring... getting to the nitty gritty, saving one kid or person at a time.... THIS is the only solution. God bless you Mr. P....

Da Worsfter

[nightflier]

Mr.P, I have the utmost respect for what you are doing. Hats off. Bob, Worf, ditto.

I certainly didn't mean to imply that we all fall into the neglecting category. It's just that living in South Orange County in the most insular place I've ever lived, with all the money people spend on shiny cars, shiny nail-jobs and shiny breast implants, it's mind-boggling how priorities get twisted. I can't tell you how angry some of these people will get when it is ever suggested that they should give a little more. Seeing how things change at a local charity after tax season is over is another one of those experiences that'll put things into perspective - even already pledged money disappears faster than a Republican at a Reggae fest.

Of course, as someone who's spent quite a bit on fancy electronics, I really shouldn't be tapping that kettle with my silver spoons either...

[ForeverAutumn]

One reason I think this upsets me so, we adopted a child with Cerebral Palsy at 22 months old. At this age she only weighed 18 lbs. She was literally stiff as a board and could only do a soldier crawl with her arms. No speech. With our care and the proper therapies she has advanced tremendously. We discovered a couple years back she also has Autistic Spectrum Disorder. She can walk with a walker and braces for short trips, like down the school hall way. She will be 9 in a couple days. Her weight is on the normal development chart now. Her speech is pretty much normal although her learning is still delayed. Not too bad for a kid being born at 1 lb & 6 oz.

I know that you didn't mean this to be about you...but that is just so awesome! Most people wouldn't want the responsiblity of taking a child like yours into their home. It's a big commitment to adopt any child, but to adopt a disabled child makes you a much better person than I am.

I understand now why you, especially, would be upset about the Serbian situation. You've witnessed firsthand how love and attention and receiving the proper medical care can change a child's life.