Courtesy of Adrian Raine

Several years ago, I attended a lunch discussion with the Nobel Prize winner, Eric Kandel, where we had a lively discussion about whether someone could be born missing a part of their brain that tells them the difference between right and wrong. Dr. Kandel predicted the use of brain scans would become commonplace in courtrooms in the future. They would be used by defense attorneys to explain violence.

I don’t like to reprint articles here but this Op Ed piece in The Washington Post is well worth your time.

Can Brain Scans Explain Crime?

By Adrian Raine and Sally Satel, Published: June 7 in The Washington Post.

University of Pennsylvania neuroscientist Adrian Raine, author of “The Anatomy of Violence,” believes that advances in brain imagery are helping to explain the biological roots of crime. American Enterprise Institute scholar and psychiatrist Sally Satel, co-author of “Brainwashed,” is wary of the seduction of brain scans. The Washington Post brought them together for a conversation about the promises and pitfalls of brain imagery. An abridged version of that conversation follows.

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I’m thrilled to announce that Diane Kratt, Joe and Elizabeth Meyer and Greg Arms will be writing blogs for us about the National Alliance on Mental Illness convention. More than a dozen of you answered my request for correspondents to cover NAMI’s convention on June 27th to 30th in San Antonio, Texas. Thanks so much.

Diane Kratt is a native of  Fort Myers, Florida and has worked as an educator for the past 25 years, most recently as an instructor in the College of Education at Florida Gulf Coast University and as the coordinator of the Level 1 Student

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My friend and long-time National Alliance on Mental Illness advocate, Joanne Kelly, attended the White House summit and felt that my criticism this week was much too harsh. She kindly offered to share her views and specifics about what the conference accomplished. Thank you Joanne!

Obama: You are not alone. Recovery is possible. There is hope.

By Joanne Kelly

President Obama opened Monday’s National Conference on Mental Health with inspiring words for people with mental illnesses and their families. “Let people who are struggling in silence know: You are not alone. Recovery is possible. There is hope.”

He convinced me he understands the stigma problem. I am also convinced his words were not empty platitudes. He intends to do something about it, and the conference was a first step. A baby step, perhaps, but a step in the right direction.

The conference brought together people from across the country, including mental health advocates, educators, health care providers, faith leaders, government officials, and individuals with mental health problems, to discuss how we can work together to reduce stigma and help the millions of Americans with mental health challenges recognize the importance of reaching out for assistance.

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I’m grateful to the Rev. Alan Johnson for writing yesterday about the White House summit on mental health. As you might imagine, I have a different take, as I explained in an editorial that USA TODAY posted online yesterday.

President Obama deserves credit for hosting a White House summit on mental health on Monday, but the White House forgot to invite the people who arguably deal daily with more mentally ill persons than anyone else.

No police officers, sheriff’s deputies, correctional officers, probation officers or judges spoke at the summit. No high ranking Justice Department official attended. Nor was there any detailed mention by the president or his hand-picked speakers about the recent mass murders committed by young men with diagnosed mental disorders in Newtown, Conn., Aurora, Colo., and Tucson or on the Virginia Tech campus.

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Glenn Close was one of the celebrity advocates invited to The White House

My friend, the Rev. Alan Johnson, was one of the 150 guests invited to the White House’s summit on mental health yesterday.  Here is his report. Thanks Alan for being our eyes and ears!

Are you listening, America?  The White House is talking!

Who would have thought that over 150 people from across our country who are working in the trenches for better mental health would be invited to a whole day in the White House?  But it happened! The White House brought together mental health advocates, educators, faith leaders, veterans and local officials for The White House Conference on Mental Health.

President Obama was the first one to speak to us at the conference, and he empathetically stated that we must “do a better job recognizing mental health issues in our children, and making it easier for Americans of all ages to seek help.” The President was not only speaking to those of us gathered, but to the whole country,where the overwhelming stigma on mental illness blocks people from even acknowledging there is mental illness and keeps them from seeking help.  In this climate of embarrassment and fear, the President acknowledged there needs to be education to overcome the misunderstanding of mental illness and support to come out of the closet to speak with authentic stories of one’s own mental health challenges.

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