We had Mental institutes till fear paranoia from horror movies the publics imagination, and some of the dark days of ignorance in practicing medicine made them extremely unpopular in the public eye. My Grandmother was head nurse at one. They handled everything from a drunk picked up by police that would spend days to months there receiving rehabilitation and often the same people came back, also people who where permanent. There where less homeless then because we cared for the least among us. Now as a society we care only for ourselves, and practice tough love which in essence and definition not love at all., mentally ill people do not choose to be that way., and if we are a care only for ourselves society and do not adequately fund these types of programs our problems will become worse.