> Virtue signalling is a real thing. You see it often with things like land acknowledgements[1][2], for example. Of course its a thing. It discredits you becau

> Virtue signalling is a real thing. You see it often with things like land acknowledgements[1][2], for example. Of course its a thing. It discredits you because its a term conservatives have been trained to use when they don't like a concept or don't want to think about a new concept. Your land acknowledgement example is actually great. It's intellectually weak to claim that everyone who does land acknowledgements is just virtue signaling. It implies that you have, or generally all conservatives have, insight into the motivations of hundreds of thousands of people. Here is the definition of 'virtue signaling' "the action or practice of publicly expressing opinions or sentiments intended to demonstrate one's good character or the moral correctness of one's position on a particular issue." The practice might not be particularly useful, or even an empty gesture, but that doesn't make it virtue signaling. Virtue signals are done for your own benefit. You can project onto folks doing land acknowledgements but you to write them all off as virtue signaling is really just sad. You should get to know some tribal members, because they do it too. I've been to many meetings where tribal members lead the land acknowledgement. Are they just virtue signaling too? > As far as whether people should be allowed to rot on the streets, stealing from local businesses to feed their drug addiction, and being sexually assaulted by their dealer - there are better alternatives. Behind bars is one option, Lanterman-Petris-Short conservatorship[3] (not the Britney Spears type) is another. As with all things, solutions to problems are easy to find when you aren't restricted by reality. The War on Drugs didn't work for the first 60 years, I don't know why you think it'd work now. I also think you are greatly over estimating how willing judges anywhere are to institutionalize people, especially when they are just drug addicts. The only real solution to the problem is to have single-payer health care and massively increasing spending on mental and behavioral health by the federal government. Unfortunately with the republican party more or less in control, I don't think we will see an increase in any spending that helps Americans any time soon.