Alcohol and Mental Health
Mr King, why don't you tell it like it is?
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Are you so lonely?
You don't even know me
But you'd like to stone me
Mr Writer, why don't you tell it like it is?
Why don't you tell it like it really is
Why don't you tell it how it really is
Before you go on home?
Writers: Stuart Cable, Richard Mark Jones, Kelly Jones, Marshall Ross Bird
This newsletter is about Mike King’s unfortunate remarks about alcohol and mental health, but I’ve got those lyrics above ringing in my head.
I don’t know Mike King - who the hell am I to throw stones at someone who, whatever else we might think of him now, started out with only the best of intentions to do something about the mental health problems in this country that no one else was?
It’s bloody sad, eh?
We see this guy who we loved now vilified because he sometimes says stupid things. Many of us also think there needs to be some explanation as to how he received so much funding while other services had their funding cut.
In case you have no idea what I’m talking about, it’s this headline from yesterday, which I really wish wasn’t real:
If you haven’t seen it, you can read that article here.
I cringed when I saw it. I’ve been open about the fact that until three years ago, I’d spent the previous thirty years as a heavy drinker. There were some dark times, and while the alcohol certainly did numb the pain - it sure as hell didn’t make things better.
I’ve included a couple of comments people made under my post here, with the names changed
Mo: “That 24 million should be reinstated to the caregivers and mental health organisations that got robbed by Nicola Willis and her budget. I get that Mike King is a sufferer himself, but it doesn't make him an expert on mental health; his judgement is really questionable.”
Eileen: “I was keeping out of the whole Mike King media goings-on. But as a fellow alkie (I no longer drink), I can categorically say alcohol did terrible things to my mental health. And to others, I know with the same affliction. It's an incredibly irresponsible thing for King to say”
Mike King certainly said something stupid—not exactly a newsflash there. Whatever you think of the guy, he wears his heart on his sleeve and brings massive passion, but gee, it really looks like he needs a bit of oversight. You know, what with the government looking to get a return on their investment?
For the record, I don’t think Mike’s intention was to blow the lot on cocktails for the depressed—a bit of bourbon to chase that black dog away. But I do think some serious questions need to be asked about how he got his funding, how he is spending it, and, most importantly, who cuts his hair.
As it happens, the Spinoff has done a superb job at covering this with these two articles yesterday:
The King and his god complex by Madeleine Chapman
“This is not a man who wants to see mental health problems in New Zealand solved. King is a man who wants to see mental health problems in New Zealand solved by him. That is an impossible outcome, and by continuing to encourage his thinking, successive governments have built a rod for their backs. Now, we as a country are left with a mental health approach that seems to hinge on a former comedian with a propensity for anger delivering two counselling sessions to people in need. No solution can be achieved through one man or organisation or approach, but it’s so nice to pretend it can.”
The bleak reality of working in mental health when you don’t have Mike King’s funding by Anna Sophia
“While the I Am Hope Foundation accepts $24m in government funding, the Counselling Centre in Marton has some tough decisions to make about its future. Centre manager Anna Sophia shares her experience and views on life in rural mental health.”
YeeHawTheBoys Direct also covered the issue yesterday afternoon:
If you saw 1 News last night, you’ll have seen Mike King issue a video seeking to clarify that he was really talking about alcohol and drugs being used in the absence of proper mental health support services. This is undoubtedly true, but I was more concerned about his denial of the science than his badly chosen words about how alcohol helped.
University of Otago professor Rose Crossin said it was “important we take an evidence-based approach to understanding alcohol-related harm.”
“There is a well-established body of literature that links alcohol use both directly and indirectly with mental ill health, including with suicide risk. Self-medicating with alcohol, out of a coping motivation, is unlikely to be helpful. In fact, it might actually make the circumstances and situation quite substantially worse,” she said.
Alcohol is quite a well-known depressant and it also can lead to somebody having increased suicide risk because when a person is intoxicated, their judgement is impaired, they are more impulsive, they’re more aggressive and that can actually be directed at themselves sometimes.”
In response, Mike King said, “Everyone’s entitled to their opinion, right?” No, Mike, we’re talking about scientific research - you don’t get to have an opinion as a layperson.
A comment from Barbara: “Not only did he defend his comments, he denied the science behind the studies that showed that alcohol and depression can lead to suicide. He's gone full cooker... As the mother of a son and wife to a man with mental health issues, I can tell you for a fact that alcohol is the last thing they need.”
Given Mike’s own issues with addiction and mental health, I was really surprised by his comments. Anyone who has come out the other side of a battle with drugs or alcohol will know how much better their mental health is without it. This ain’t rocket science, Mike - you must know it’s true yourself.
I doubt that Mike really believes alcohol is the answer to the nation’s mental health issues. This seems more like his standard gig of saying stupid shit and then stubbornly standing by it.
In my view, someone should look very closely at how King’s charity received so much money even as other programmes were having their funding cut. The government should oversee things to ensure that the money is being used well because it is needed.
But even though he is a dick, he’s said some stupid things and been incredibly naive, let’s not entirely castigate the man.
Remember, when all is said and done, here is a bloke who has put himself on the line to try and do something to help. He doesn’t necessarily have the experience or the ability to say the right things. You might look at the funding and think something stinks, but even if he says some stupid things, it’s hard not to believe that he is, at some level, well-intentioned.
We have a huge problem with mental health in this country, and there is so much more that needs to be done. Piling in on Mike King might be easy now, but I’m glad he has spoken out so much, barring this latest idiocy, and he has challenged politicians to do something.
So when we see the headlines in the paper talking about an increase in youth suicides in Northland, let’s not get bogged down in berating Mr King - it’s the government who have been cutting the funding of so many essential services that are the problem - they are the ones who should be under a microscope in my view.
It doesn’t help that the headlines focus on this. Maybe instead of looking at our Covid response, we should hold an enquiry into our current mental health funding and whether it is compatible with the platitudes of our politicians.
Have a good one, all you lovely people. Despite the stupidity of his statements, I hope Mike has a better day today, too. Thinking before talking might be a good start.
Mike King got the money because he is a celebrity of sorts, and sucked up to NZ First. Which other organisations had specific mention in the Coalition Agreement? - and had to have the rules bent to meet contract requirements? That's right, none. Meanwhile good organisations have been defunded. The police are stopping mental health callouts, we don't have enough mental health workers and the many programmes already existing are struggling. Suicide ideation is a serious issue. So is self medicating with drugs and alcohol. I should know. Bottom line for me if you are getting $24 mil from the govt to run a programme you have some higher responsibilities. This was all about getting an alcohol licence for one Mike's fundraisers. That's when he made the comments. I agree with Labour ; review his funding. Urgently. Now.
The worst aspect of this whole debacle is that ALL the funding goes to Mike King's Gumboot Friday. So whilst he swans around ponificating about things he knows absolutely nothing about, reputable agencies are starved of funding and have been forced to close down. Mike is an unwell man by any measure and by his own admission, he deserves help in his journey towards personal wellness, what he doesn't deserve is a platform, funded by the tax payer, to spout his ignorant and ill informed nonsense. But then again he's not alone in being afforded this privilege, Seymour, Chour, Costello, and McKee are all bedfellows with no real mandate for the garbage they spew day in day out. How did New Zealand come to be controlled by such a circus of clowns?