Mental health is a delicate balance — time, therapy, medication management, and the unending support of loved ones all working in fragile coordination.
The last episode for the 2025 year of the popular South Park series ended with what everyone has known of Cheeto through observations over his first year of his second term
Without giving much away Satan through the series has been pregnant with Cheeto's baby and is preparing to deliver his "butt baby" during the holiday season while Cheeto is conspiring with Just Dance Vance to somehow terminate the pregnancy
So the ending is surprising and a must see over at Comedy Central But the conclusion by the writers and probably a consensus by the electorate is that Cheeto turns out to be even MORE evil that Satan who represents the EVIL force in the universe The closing message was that Cheeto's sick nacississtic mind is a terrible influence on the nation and even worse than Satanic universal influence
Definitely a well written article! Thank you Evan my friend. I am a baby boomer. There are moments I look at the picture of parents who raised me from the greatest generation. I ask silently what would you do mom and dad! If they were alive now mom would break the television remote! That is not what we stood for ! Daddy fought against the Nazi’s as did my own biological father! He went into fight in WW2at the age of 15. Oh how I miss them. They woul all tell to continue to fight for democracy that is what they stood for as I did. This an every day battle to us we must continue to see that are brothers and sisters who are veterans and others receive mental healthcare!
The story of mental illness, bullying, lack of mental health treatment and the broad strokes "plight of young men today" is one that must be addressed certainly but this exposition conflates too many issues.
Rob Reiner's son was obviously mentally ill from an early age. He went to rehab at 15, which indicates he was self-treating his mental illness much earlier. His mental illness likely caused his drug addiction, not vice versa. Coming from a Jewish, Hollywood family of means, it is also likely that he had the benefit of a wide variety of therapies over the years and support in every way imaginable. His problems were not neglected, yet he didn't get better.
He is not the poster boy for young men crying out for care in a world with scarce mental health resources. He had ample resources supplied. He is not the stereotypical acne-riddled incel playing video games in his parents' basement. As the son of a celebrity, he likely was never bullied, quite the opposite. His story does not comport with the societal reality of everyday young men living in a negative psychological space that is unaddressed.
No, the Reiner son is a tragic case of intractable, severe mental illness and illustrates that, no matter who your family is or what its resources, there is still no existing effective treatment or medical infrastructure to cope with it.
Thank you for this clear-eyed, unsentimental assessment. Nick Reiner's story is probably the story of how a human life can go terribly, and inexplicably, wrong.
We can say it’s “tragic” but the reality is that we, as a society, have failed these young men in ways that we don’t understand and it’s time to come to a reckoning with our neglect and ignorance.
I’m 75. I recall name calling among my brother and his buddies. Never seemed targeted or personal. We were military so when we moved to Montgomery I heard a whole new set of insults, most starting with the n word. I was horrified. It was targeted, personal, and derisive.
I'm 75 now but my mind still contains the memory of junior high school in NYC where my antagonist was Sidney [ deleting his last name], a nice Jewish boy who daily caused me fear. In those days there was no one to turn to, no bullying rules. Daily life at JHS was a living he'll. I am now over 60 years older but the response to his assaults turned me into a perpetual victim and sadly it followed me in adulthood. Yes, now I can speak about it but during my more formative years getting over Sidney and what he caused was definitely debilitating and coping was difficult.
Those days of bullying never really go away.
Now, hopefully, there are more remedies than I had...but then who knows?
I'm in your peer group. And yes, today there are more remedies within an enlightened school but there is also the lawlessness of social media where bullying takes its toll with a ferocity we didn't see in our day.
Thank you, Evan. Every year at this time my mind turns to those who I've loved and lost, prominent among them my brother, who began showing signs of serious mental illness (in his case at least partially inherited from his ancestors) in his late teens. This was disguised by drug use--in those days of yore, mostly marijuana--and the more or less out of control behavior shown by many young males when they go off to college. Later, it became apparent that something was seriously wrong, but we never let go and never stopped trying to help in ways large and small. We sat with him in psych wards after he'd been arrested for something like wandering out into freeway traffic or disrobing in public, we saw that he got psychiatric care, although he eschewed 'talk' therapy. We included him in family vacations even as his behavior escalated from the merely bizarre to the truly alarming. We paid for semi-supervised housing as properly structured housing was never available. We called the cops whenever he attacked one of us physically. His brain was 'chemically unbalanced'--on fire, if you will. A person with a serious psychiatric disease is disabled, and yes, crazy, often if not always, tormented by inner voices that sometimes tell him to hurt others or himself. It's a tragedy that's often hidden from public view, and the fact that Trump could never in his wildest dreams find it within himself to show understanding or empathy tells us a lot about why he should not be president, or even dogcatcher.
I am still gutted by the deaths of Rob and Michele Reiner. I hate that their children have to now go through life without them. I find it incredibly sad that their son stands accused, and is quite likely guilty, of their murders.
Having said that, I agree that the way we deal with mental health issues in this country leaves too many people vulnerable. I also agree that men tend not to address their mental health issues effectively, even given an opportunity, a lot because of society's expectations. It has improved, but not enough. It's definitely something we need to keep working on. My wish for Nick Reiner is that he gets the help he needs in prison. And that his siblings can forgive him, and he can forgive himself.
This is incredibly powerful. Thank you for offering such a sensitive and insightful reflection about the complexity of mental health struggles.
As a psychotherapist, I am frustrated by the ways in which society denigrates young men, rather than nurturing and encouraging them. They are struggling, and our anger and judgment will not magically transform them into outstanding human beings. What are we doing to help them navigate life?
As a baby boomer, I perpetually remind myself that my coming of age process was so much simpler. Our interactions were face-to-face, not online. We hesitated to say things that are all too easy to say when you don’t have to look someone in the eyes. If we were being bullied by our peers, we could retreat to the safety of our homes, out of the reach of their meanness. We had fire drills, not active shooter drills. There were behavioral norms that most of us dared not cross. We had national leaders who were civil; who seemed to genuinely care about the wellbeing of our nation. And so on. Much has changed. If we don’t understand this, we can’t address it.
thank you for this, expresses just how I feel. seeing the hatred and demonization of the very sick man who allegedly did this heinous thing, I agree that no matter how shocking and terrible, Nick Reiner's profound illness cannot be excluded from the conversation. we may never really understand what happened that night. but something happened in this family they couldn't understand or protect themselves from. we need much better ways to help families and provide much better modes of treatment than an endless cycle of rehab and relapse, a permanent limbo.
Cheeto More Evil Than Satan
The last episode for the 2025 year of the popular South Park series ended with what everyone has known of Cheeto through observations over his first year of his second term
Without giving much away Satan through the series has been pregnant with Cheeto's baby and is preparing to deliver his "butt baby" during the holiday season while Cheeto is conspiring with Just Dance Vance to somehow terminate the pregnancy
So the ending is surprising and a must see over at Comedy Central But the conclusion by the writers and probably a consensus by the electorate is that Cheeto turns out to be even MORE evil that Satan who represents the EVIL force in the universe The closing message was that Cheeto's sick nacississtic mind is a terrible influence on the nation and even worse than Satanic universal influence
Definitely a well written article! Thank you Evan my friend. I am a baby boomer. There are moments I look at the picture of parents who raised me from the greatest generation. I ask silently what would you do mom and dad! If they were alive now mom would break the television remote! That is not what we stood for ! Daddy fought against the Nazi’s as did my own biological father! He went into fight in WW2at the age of 15. Oh how I miss them. They woul all tell to continue to fight for democracy that is what they stood for as I did. This an every day battle to us we must continue to see that are brothers and sisters who are veterans and others receive mental healthcare!
The story of mental illness, bullying, lack of mental health treatment and the broad strokes "plight of young men today" is one that must be addressed certainly but this exposition conflates too many issues.
Rob Reiner's son was obviously mentally ill from an early age. He went to rehab at 15, which indicates he was self-treating his mental illness much earlier. His mental illness likely caused his drug addiction, not vice versa. Coming from a Jewish, Hollywood family of means, it is also likely that he had the benefit of a wide variety of therapies over the years and support in every way imaginable. His problems were not neglected, yet he didn't get better.
He is not the poster boy for young men crying out for care in a world with scarce mental health resources. He had ample resources supplied. He is not the stereotypical acne-riddled incel playing video games in his parents' basement. As the son of a celebrity, he likely was never bullied, quite the opposite. His story does not comport with the societal reality of everyday young men living in a negative psychological space that is unaddressed.
No, the Reiner son is a tragic case of intractable, severe mental illness and illustrates that, no matter who your family is or what its resources, there is still no existing effective treatment or medical infrastructure to cope with it.
Thank you for this clear-eyed, unsentimental assessment. Nick Reiner's story is probably the story of how a human life can go terribly, and inexplicably, wrong.
We can say it’s “tragic” but the reality is that we, as a society, have failed these young men in ways that we don’t understand and it’s time to come to a reckoning with our neglect and ignorance.
I’m 75. I recall name calling among my brother and his buddies. Never seemed targeted or personal. We were military so when we moved to Montgomery I heard a whole new set of insults, most starting with the n word. I was horrified. It was targeted, personal, and derisive.
I'm 75 now but my mind still contains the memory of junior high school in NYC where my antagonist was Sidney [ deleting his last name], a nice Jewish boy who daily caused me fear. In those days there was no one to turn to, no bullying rules. Daily life at JHS was a living he'll. I am now over 60 years older but the response to his assaults turned me into a perpetual victim and sadly it followed me in adulthood. Yes, now I can speak about it but during my more formative years getting over Sidney and what he caused was definitely debilitating and coping was difficult.
Those days of bullying never really go away.
Now, hopefully, there are more remedies than I had...but then who knows?
I'm in your peer group. And yes, today there are more remedies within an enlightened school but there is also the lawlessness of social media where bullying takes its toll with a ferocity we didn't see in our day.
Thank you, Evan. Every year at this time my mind turns to those who I've loved and lost, prominent among them my brother, who began showing signs of serious mental illness (in his case at least partially inherited from his ancestors) in his late teens. This was disguised by drug use--in those days of yore, mostly marijuana--and the more or less out of control behavior shown by many young males when they go off to college. Later, it became apparent that something was seriously wrong, but we never let go and never stopped trying to help in ways large and small. We sat with him in psych wards after he'd been arrested for something like wandering out into freeway traffic or disrobing in public, we saw that he got psychiatric care, although he eschewed 'talk' therapy. We included him in family vacations even as his behavior escalated from the merely bizarre to the truly alarming. We paid for semi-supervised housing as properly structured housing was never available. We called the cops whenever he attacked one of us physically. His brain was 'chemically unbalanced'--on fire, if you will. A person with a serious psychiatric disease is disabled, and yes, crazy, often if not always, tormented by inner voices that sometimes tell him to hurt others or himself. It's a tragedy that's often hidden from public view, and the fact that Trump could never in his wildest dreams find it within himself to show understanding or empathy tells us a lot about why he should not be president, or even dogcatcher.
I am still gutted by the deaths of Rob and Michele Reiner. I hate that their children have to now go through life without them. I find it incredibly sad that their son stands accused, and is quite likely guilty, of their murders.
Having said that, I agree that the way we deal with mental health issues in this country leaves too many people vulnerable. I also agree that men tend not to address their mental health issues effectively, even given an opportunity, a lot because of society's expectations. It has improved, but not enough. It's definitely something we need to keep working on. My wish for Nick Reiner is that he gets the help he needs in prison. And that his siblings can forgive him, and he can forgive himself.
Powerful piece.
Thank you for your kind words, Deborah ❤️
This is incredibly powerful. Thank you for offering such a sensitive and insightful reflection about the complexity of mental health struggles.
As a psychotherapist, I am frustrated by the ways in which society denigrates young men, rather than nurturing and encouraging them. They are struggling, and our anger and judgment will not magically transform them into outstanding human beings. What are we doing to help them navigate life?
As a baby boomer, I perpetually remind myself that my coming of age process was so much simpler. Our interactions were face-to-face, not online. We hesitated to say things that are all too easy to say when you don’t have to look someone in the eyes. If we were being bullied by our peers, we could retreat to the safety of our homes, out of the reach of their meanness. We had fire drills, not active shooter drills. There were behavioral norms that most of us dared not cross. We had national leaders who were civil; who seemed to genuinely care about the wellbeing of our nation. And so on. Much has changed. If we don’t understand this, we can’t address it.
thank you for this, expresses just how I feel. seeing the hatred and demonization of the very sick man who allegedly did this heinous thing, I agree that no matter how shocking and terrible, Nick Reiner's profound illness cannot be excluded from the conversation. we may never really understand what happened that night. but something happened in this family they couldn't understand or protect themselves from. we need much better ways to help families and provide much better modes of treatment than an endless cycle of rehab and relapse, a permanent limbo.