University of Virginia Library

Laing: No Danger
In Schizophrenics

By ROSS HETRICK

"To be human without
being crazy" is the most
critical problem that man faces
today said noted psychiatrist
Ronald D. Laing last Saturday
night at Cabell Hall
Auditorium.

After a laudatory
introduction by Kim Hopper,
an enthusiastic disciple, Dr.
Laing began "rapping" with
the capacity crowd by telling
them that he was "not
interested in pushing one or
another (schizophrenia or
normality). I am here to
describe it."

He explained that has ability
to understand schizophrenics
was due to being
. This suggest
the expen
business.

"My parents
other again after it was
been. Whether this was
due to me I did not know,"
rected Dr. Laing.

Schizophrenics Afraid

Contending that he found
little to fear from
schizophrenics, who are
terribly afraid of anything, he
found it frightening that
people of normal consciousness
considered schizophrenics
dangerous.

He also found it frightening
that so-called normal people
are living in such unnatural
ways.

Doping Our Food

Giving examples of how we
"dope" our food, Dr. Laing
said, "One thing about the
environment in North America
is that you can't get a glass of
water without chlorine in it or
you can't get milk that isn't
homogenized and pasteurized."

"Doped up" foods also
include artificially flavored

Dr. Laing.

What s the sa of min

Dr.
Laing.

unnatural practice
by Dr. Laing was that off
giving birth in a hospital. One
of main objections was that
he could see "no good reason
to shae off the pubc hirs"
before giving birth.

He believed that this
resulted from male doctors
seeking revenge because of
being unable to identify with
their mother during their
childhood.

He also attacked the practice
of turning babies upside down
and slapping them on the
bottom and then taking them
away to a baby room by
people in masks.

"If I had the chance of being
reincarnated, I would think
twice about being born like
that," said Dr. Laing.

Instead he would like to see
the baby given immediately to
the mother after birth. In that
way it could "experience
warmth and flesh," according
to Dr. Laing.