Mental Health
Mental illness as political weaponry: A (former) Prime Minister’s low-point
[Repost from the Times of Israel] Monday the 10th of January (2022) marked the first day of yet another Netanyahu court case. This time, however, not related to corruption, but a defamation trial versus former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. In the election-craze of April 2021, Olmert had publicly made several claims about the Netanyahu family and their ‘mental illnesses’. The Netanyahus thought this to be so damaging, that they are now seeking financial compensation for the slanderous remarks: in the form of a hefty NIS 837,000 (nearly $270,000). It’s at least interesting to note that the Netanyahus seem to be mainly worried about their own damage and need for financial compensation, when maybe the…
Sarah Halimi’s murder and the moral challenges of Forensic Psychiatry
[Repost from the Times of Israel] Yesterday, on the 25th of April 2021, approximately 25.000 people gathered in Paris to demonstrate against the Supreme Court of Cassation’s decision to declare the killer of Sarah Halimi z”l as not criminally responsible for the gruesome and tragic murder, that took place just over four years ago. Not only in Paris, but also in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, London and other cities around the world, Jews and others gathered to demand justice for Halimi. Dr. Sarah Attal-Halimi z”l was a beloved Orthodox-Jewish mother and grandmother, who dedicated her life to caring for others as a family physician. On the night of the 4th of…
The normalisation and celebration of online gambling (apps)
[Repost from the Times of Israel] Recently, Israeli high-tech company Playtika made major headlines with their business success. Started in 2010 from Tel Aviv, Playtika is considered one of the tech stars of our Start-Up Nation. Going public on Wall Street with a 17.11% growth on the first day of trading last Friday the 15th of January and with a market cap currently estimated at $13.052 billion, Playtika is now the 6th most valuable Israeli company trading on Wall Street. [Source]. Something that is highly celebrated in the media, portraying Playtika as a role model and ultimate business model for ”high-tech companies” to strive…
The psychiatric stigma and ‘diagnosing’ our society
[Repost from the Times of Israel] ”The problem we Israelis suffer from is a form of bipolar disorder – we are either extremely euphoric or experience so much anxiety we assume a fetal position waiting for it to pass, and that is not healthy for the soul.” Those are the words that ex-director-general of the Health Ministry Moshe Bar-Siman-Tov used in a recent opinion piece — its topic further unrelated. Something that unfortunately appears to be common in our current day language: the use of diseases as a way of expression. Amongst these also psychiatric disorders: not only used to relate to the mental status of an individual, but…
