i don’t like the expression “disorder of brain or mind”in the legislation — as if the addition of “brain” as opposed to “mind” adds some kind of scientific rigour to our understanding — if we did understand, that would be well, but none of us have worked at teaching ourselves, learning from scientists and doctors, to seek at least a rudimentary, functional understanding of how they view their discipline. (because what good is patting ourselves on the back for attaining social justice when our attempts are founded on bad science?!!) also trying to grapple with what medical diagnostic threshold we should be using to ascertain legal impairmen. i would hate for this to descend to how diagnoses of mental illnesses are already so irresponsibly, callously used in the criminal justice system to excuse the inexcusable, even as we have not worked ourselves to developed the legal-philosophical vocabulary to delineate the experience of the genuine sufferer.
Best of the Transparent Hummingbird