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Info Ben Siegel Troubles

JCCS said:
Ben doesn't need to be blasted, he needs a significant amount of help. I am not saying that his mental health disorder is an excuse for his behavior, but it is sure as all get out an explanation of it.
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:iagree:

Should the critters and other people be protected? Sure. But there is a huge difference between trying to arrange positive outcomes for everyone involved, and turning an issue into an adversarial relationship when it may very well be that punitive relationships aren't going to help anyone.
As has been said, and mostly because of financial issues, those who need help don't get it in an adversarial setting.
 
He needs to get help. He also needs to stay compliant. And no I am not saying he should get a free pass because he has mental issues. I am just saying he needs to get help.

and to those saying mental issues is no excuse. I am not saying it is an excuse. I am just saying that sometimes a person's actions can't be helped if they have the aforementioned issues. I have been a witness to mental issues. It is not pleasant and it was not something the person can control. Their actions were basically not their own.

I have also been accused of "standing up for a friend" or "covering up for a friend" on another board. Well if that is what it is called when you hope someone gets better, then so be it. I just wish him to get better. it does not mean I am covering up a thing.

Perhaps it is time for the animals to go or what not. Either way I hope he sticks with the treatment. Mental illness is not easy for the person or anyone around said person.
 
If he was on medication which made him "normal", sorry not one to remember technical terms etc, and he was lucid when he decided to stop taking them (if that was what happened) then yes he should be held to the full extent. You cannot hide behind your illness of you willingly stop taking your medication (again of that IS what caused this) not saying it's true, just what I've heard from people who claimed to know him and said he was a normal guy when heavily medicated, so that leads me to believe he stopped taking them of his own will. Again all speculation until the truth comes out and if that info is even released.
 
But I hope he gets the help he needs. But I also believe the person, no matter who it is, needs to be held accountable.

There's only so many times you can say he's mentally ill before it becomes an excuse and he's free to do it again and again. He needs help and some one needs to monitor him and make sure he continues to stay on the medication and isn't showing signs of violence. There are how many people around him, you can't tell me no one saw anything that would make them say hmm something needs to be done.

I understand something I say may sound harsh. I don't sugar coat things or baby talk people which is probably why so many arguments break out because people who don't know me don't know how to take it. On one hand I say yes he needs help, but on the other I say he needs to be held accountable. If he can do that to a bearded dragon just out of the blue what else is he capable of on top of a few assaults?
 
One thing that I know about bipolar disorder is that one problematic component of it is delusional behavior, and one of the biggest delusions is that they don't need meds. They will get on meds voluntarily to feel better during moments of rational self reflection or are forced to, but then they will often stop taking the meds either because they decide that they don't really need them (denial) or because the meds make them feel bad.
 
Elexis, as the self professed non-expert, leave things that are more complicated than you'll ever understand to the experts. Knowing the limitations of one's knowledge is a mark of a truly wise person. I'm not claiming to be an "expert" in this, but I have a good deal of experience working with people facing mental health challenges. Something as simple as taking medication can be a massive struggle, as anti-psychotics and mood regulators have tons of very unpleasant side effects. Also, people with serious mental health conditions have a tendency towards paranoia, making med compliance very, very difficult.

There is no simple answer here because mental health conditions are extremely complex.
 
Also, taking medications isn't a push-button solution to mental health challenges even in the best circumstances. They are part of a treatment plan. These treatment plans are unfortunately not always successful. As I mentioned above, serious mental health challenges are extremely complex and affect the person's life in a multitude of ways. Try putting yourself in another person's shoes and think about what Ben must have gone through in order to wind up looking like the guy in that picture, it's called empathy. I promise you, he doesn't want to look like that and he didn't want to do what he did in the shop.
 
He can be held accountable while receiving help, which is how it should go.

It should not be either/or. Holding Ben accountable while not treating him would not be justice, it would be injustice, and it has happened to many, many people suffering such disorders. This is what Chris was referencing when he talked about criminalizing mental illness.

Yes, Donna, people with bi-polar disorder can and do disassociate so heavily from reality they will go off medication because they feel the medication is causing them more harm then good. Ben has reportedly shown this type of paranoid behavior in the past two years.

This is not about sugar coating anything, it is about understanding a disease that someone is suffering from and has suffered from for a very long time.

Ben's mental issues are not an excuse, they are the reason, it is that simple. Until he is properly treated, until there is a system he can be placed in (state or family wise) then this will continue beyond his control.
 
hitting people with lizards, choking people, holding strippers hostage, the death from the contest he started. What's next?
 

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Alan, you're as far off base as the person who compared him throwing around a beardie to Global Exotics starving hundreds of animals to death. I don't even know how you drew that line, but educate yourself before you start saying that because someone had some violent incidents that they're going to be the next mass murderer. That's ignorant and destructive.
 
James, I mentioned global exotics in a completely different context than you are suggesting here. My point was that USGE was shut down on a CHARGE, not a CONVICTION. That is not the same as comparing Ben's behavior to USGE starving thousands of animals! And to add to my point about that, the state of his store has less to do with whether or not he is shut down than an animal cruelty charge, so yes, my point is a valid one.
 
rosebud945 said:
James, I mentioned global exotics in a completely different context than you are suggesting here. My point was that USGE was shut down on a CHARGE, not a CONVICTION. That is not the same as comparing Ben's behavior to USGE starving thousands of animals! And to add to my point about that, the state of his store has less to do with whether or not he is shut down than an animal cruelty charge, so yes, my point is a valid one.
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USGE was shut down because of the hundreds of animals found to be abused in their care, not because of a singular charge.

There has been no evidence of abuse animals in Ben's facility aside from the alleged incident with the bearded dragon.
 
ShadowAceD said:
Ben's mental issues are not an excuse, they are the reason, it is that simple. Until he is properly treated, until there is a system he can be placed in (state or family wise) then this will continue beyond his control.
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If you watch the updated story w/ video, the judge revoked Ben's bond on the October, 2014 battery charge and he's being held w/o bond on that charge and the new ones. So hopefully has figured out that something just ain't right, and a psych eval with appropriate treatment and/or state commitment are in the works.
 
rosebud945 said:
One thing that I know about bipolar disorder is that one problematic component of it is delusional behavior, and one of the biggest delusions is that they don't need meds. They will get on meds voluntarily to feel better during moments of rational self reflection or are forced to, but then they will often stop taking the meds either because they decide that they don't really need them (denial) or because the meds make them feel bad.
Click to expand...


This is true.

In the case of my aunt, she will take her medications till she feels better and then stops. She doesn't seem to comprehend that it's the medication that's making her feel better.


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