It’s time for a stupidity detox, Newsweek.

I went on a wee bit of a rant on my Facebook wall about the recent Michele Bachmann Newsweek cover photo. It pisses me off. Can we all just take a deep breath and then grow the hell up for a second? First that weird Princess Di photo and now this. There was some talk about how the Michele Bachmann photo was sexist and then I read a Salon article saying it’s not sexist; it’s just that she’s “a crazed zealot.” Oh well, thanks for debunking that one, Salon. Apparently making fun of the mentally ill isn’t as chic as being anti-sexism right now. Hold on to your Prozac, crazies...hopefully not offending you wacky folks and your kooky antics will come back in fashion when we all get tired of caring about homophobia and sexism and stuff. (Sorry old people- ageism is always at the bottom of the list. You guys are fucked.)

(I don’t think it’s sexist, either. I just think it’s childish.)

There are many things that annoy me about this use of the word “crazy” and the photo in general. One is that it evades the actual issue. Saying someone like Michele Bachmann is “crazy” is getting her off the hook. How about we stop for a second and realize how we as a community of people vote for people who support the decisions of the Michele Bachmanns of the world AND many of us hold those same opinions.

Second, the Newsweek editors had to know that was an extremely bizarre photo. I’m sure they had hundreds of photos to choose from at least one of which wasn’t so strange looking.

What is crazy? I realize I’m particularly sensitive to this now that I work for an agency that serves people who have severe mental illness. Many times when I tell people where I work, I get that insincere shoulder shrug, with the deep breath and the “Oh wow...what you do is so important.” And if I share a story about what a client did or said, I’ll get the, “Ohhhhhh...that’s so cute.” Adults with schizophrenia are adorbs! I get it. People don’t know what to say. They’re being nice. But, would that same guy be so cute if he was talking to himself on the train? Do we all have the “Ooh…that’s so cute” compassion then? I know I often don’t. Cause I’m all holier than thou and inconsistent and crap and dude, don’t you realize I’m a yuppie stereotype trying to listen to the “This American Life” podcast and you talking to yourself nonsensically is totally bumming out my commute?

Today when I got to work, I saw a client that I often see in the morning, and had the same little chat we seem to have every day. He comes practically every day to hang out our drop-in center, participate in groups, and receive therapy and primary care medical services. He visits with friends and is part of a community. After our little daily chat, it occurred to me that he laughs constantly as he talks. I hadn’t really noticed it before. I’m not sure why I hadn’t noticed. He’s just so friendly and always has something interesting to say that I’m usually absorbed by the content of what he’s saying and hadn’t really paid attention to the delivery. And, admittedly, my sensitivity to such things while I’m at work is different. I’m ready for some odd behaviors so I’m not as sensitive to them when they occur. It made me think- what if he was my friend and I brought him out to a party? He would be that weirdo that wouldn’t freaking stop laughing. I’d feel self-conscious and awkward about it and people would likely wonder how the hell I know him and what the deal is. But the thing is- this guy has admitted that he has a mental illness and sought help for it and has become part of a supportive community. Nothing about THAT is crazy. That’s courageous and smart and noble. Many of us read countless books and attend workshops on how to live our best life and travel around the world looking for answers and go on maple syrup/cayenne pepper detoxes and this guy is just doing it. Who’s the crazy one now?

Speaking of detoxes...this seems like it’s trendy lately too. (That maple syrup/cayenne thing is not made up. I wish it was). It reminds me of something one of Chicago’s top gastroenterologists once said to me when I worked at the American Liver Foundation and hung with gastroenterologists on a regular basis: “As someone who has seen the inside of more colons than I’d like to admit, I can tell you that detoxes are bullshit. A few days of fasting isn’t going to help what’s going on in there. You either live a healthy life or you don’t.”

Here’s where I say something brilliant connecting all of this. Something about what it truly takes to clean out the shit from our lives. But instead, I’ll just say that that stupid Newsweek cover and detoxes get on my nerves.