Ahhh, that was just a bad thread (the other one) to come home too. We face discrimination everywhere we go, regardless a number of great americans were mentaly ill. Oh well, I'll keep fighting the good fight..lol;^]

I have several mentally ill people in my family and I know that sometimes they must be protected from themselves. The laws make it hard to do. When my mother decided that she was the virgin Mary, my step-father couldn't legally stop her from running off to Arizona to live with the "Indians" to wait for God to come and marry her. Months later she came home, but she could have been robbed, raped or murdered and there was nothing we could do. The only option the law gives is to have someone commited and my step-father won't do that, even to save my mother from herself. This whole topic of protecting the mentally ill from themselves is important to me. I know that it can be seen as a slippery slope, but I think something has to be done in this area.

Yes, but there has to be a careful balance. When someone becomes dellusional, as I have in the past, you're right, they must be protected. My problem is, there's a mentality that we can't do anything productive, have valid opinions, or are always unable to make our own choices. But yeah, getting surgery to look like a cat might be a little far, that's tricky;^]

Right. People who don't experiance mental illness first hand don't understand that the mentally ill can be perfectly normal and productive people most of the time and then enter a delusional state that lasts hours, days or even weeks. During those delusional states, a mentally ill person might become dangerous to others, but is far more likely to be dangerous to themself. Protecting the mentally ill while they are delusional should be a given, but as it stands, it's very dangerous to even try. When my mother was very sick one day, my step-father tried to get her to come back into the house. She screamed until the cops showed up and although she was obviously delusional, the cops stated that they would arrest my step-father if he tried to move my mother into the house against her will. So she stood in the yard screaming terrible things in a neighborhood full of children. They had to move after that, because they were no longer welcome in the neighborhood.

Just look at John Nash, this guy was pure genius yet if his wife hadn't stepped in when he started spinning out of control he may have not survived long enough to win that Nobel prize. Interesting though to note he was in a dellusional state when he figured out the governing dynamics theory, these dellusions though were at their worst after the fact;^]

Well certainly its nothing I would do to myself, however this doesnt necessarily mean the woman is mentally ill...maybe it would be a good idea to include mental evaluations before allowing some one to commit to such radical surgery, however Im wondering about the "doctor" that was willing to do this to her.
I guess for the right price you can have anything done to yourself.
Maybe the thread should have focused on the ethics (or lack of) plastic surgeons who perform these surgeries...hmmmm, Michael Jackson just popped into my head for some strange reason....

Good point;^]

If it wasnt for the "mentally ill" there wouldnt exist the great art that we have today...imagine Michael Angelo today, he'd be on thorazine painting happy faces on the Sisten Chapel or VanGough...with his schizoid disorder, pump him full of drugs and you got nothing. Arrogance of the sane deciding what is "best" for the insane. If they are not hurting others let them live their lives in peace...

As long as shes an Average cat!! Here kitty,kitty,kitty

True to a point, but I know for myself that there were times I needed intervention as I was a threat to myself. But for the most part, it's definatly a stigma attached;^]