Gov. Mike Pence has been in the hot seat more frequently than not. Whether it’s his anti-equality rants or his attempt to block Syrian immigrants, Pence is far from being America’s most favored governor.
But perhaps his latest move will change that —at least for a moment, anyway.
Wednesday Pence announced a $120 million facility focusing on mental health will be built on Indianapolis’ east side. The Indiana Neuro Diagnostic Institute will be housed on the campus of Community East Hospital, at 1500 North Ritter.
With construction set to begin in April, the state anticipates an opening date sometime in September 2018. The facility will have 159 beds, 42 of which will be child-adolescent ready, and it will replace the LaRue Carter mental hospital located on Cold Springs Road. The facility will focus on treating and diagnosing acute and chronic mental illness, chronic addictions, intellectual and developmental disabilities, traumatic brain injury and neuro-degenerative illnesses including Alzheimer’s disease.
The institute’s health care focus could be the city’s answer to the upsurge in crime that has occurred recently, as many of the perpetrators suffer from mental illness and addictions.
Ever since LaRue Carter released the mentally ill patients formerly housed there, there has not been a central location or treatment facility large enough to accommodate the need. I’m not sure a 159-bed institution is large enough either, but it is a start, and I commend the governor for his commitment to work toward improving mental health care in Indiana. Now, we just need more comprehensive programs and equal access to the dissemination of state resources to help address some of the other issues that challenge the state.
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Our esteemed Congressman Andre Carson has been the unfortunate and certainly unwarranted recipient of death threats because of his Muslim faith. While he has received death threats in the past, the more recent ones are attributed to the propaganda that presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks every time he has an audience.
Trump recently called to ban any Muslims entering the country. His perspective is about as asinine and discriminatory as anything else he says in an effort to garner supporters by playing into their fears and biases.
It is amazing to me that Trump has lasted as long as he has in his quest to hold the country’s highest office. He never provides any comments or ideas of substance when asked how he will address some of the United States’ challenges or state of affairs. Instead, he rants out quirky one-liners that are only good for a slight chuckle from the handful of people who buy into Trump’s quips.
There’s nothing funny about Trump’s rhetoric or his forte for exploiting division and anger. Trump’s position in the polls and his ability to remain relevant despite saying anything of relevance is extremely dangerous. Trump is so dangerous right now because he may very well end up being the Republican Party’s candidate, if for no other reason than his sheer ability to activate his core base.
Indianapolis has seen this sort of candidacy before. And like a thief in the night who quietly gets away with your most prized possessions, Greg Ballard, a candidate with no solid plan or agenda, was elected mayor.
The Republican Party has to put a stop to Trump’s antics. They need to consider America and our role in foreign policies as well as priorities on our home front. Trump has to be stopped! I am proud of Congressman Carson for using his platform to educate the public in a way that benefits this country as a whole, not an isolated group of individuals.
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Congratulations to David Hampton, pastor of Light of the World Christian Church, for his appointment to deputy mayor. He will assume his new role in January when Mayor-elect Joe Hogsett takes office.
