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Posts published by “Jim Shields”

The Real Deal On The Homeless Mess, In Case You Want To Know

In the past month I’ve written a couple of pieces on the homeless dilemma looking at what I call the Unholy Trinity, those inextricably intertwined maladies of homelessness, mental health afflictions, and substance abuse. We…

Mental Health & County Finances

In the past couple of weeks I’ve written columns dealing with the county’s (and the state’s) 50 years of failed mental health practices, programs, and policies. I’ve also shared with you my opinions and analysis…

Bad Timing, Bad Optics, Bad Idea For Supes Pay Raise

I’m going to try to keep this piece short. Personally, I don’t care much about what the Supervisors pay themselves (assuming it’s within a reasonable range of reality) but I do care about the job…

County Finances & Laytonville Grocery Store

Happy Independence Day! I think we're still independent, thanks to a gang of big brain misfits who all had the King's death warrants on their heads. We can hang together or hang separately, as B.…

What Is A Weed Ordinance “Re-Interpretation”?

One of the items we took up at this week’s Laytonville Area Municipal Advisory Council (LAMAC) meeting on June 26, dealt with more problems at the County’s Cannabis Department. Our Council was asked to support…

The Mental Health Game

Several weeks ago, a reader sent me an email: “Thank you so much for the very thorough article (“Who Closed Mental Health Hospitals In California?”) about the history of mental health issues in California. I…

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