Questions about Barb.

[RV 229]

I suspect that she doesn't move a whole lot and is beginning to see a cascade of physical problems because of it. The holes in her ass might be ulcers. I mean, she does live in what we can guess is a very unclean environment, eats terrible, has been hospitalized for issues and presumably doesn't move hardly at all. These all point to a number of issues that will begin to cascade in the coming years, and quickly.

I showed the CWCiki to my neighbor, who is a licensed Psychologist (and current). Her first reaction was to call Adult Protective Services. While obviously Burp and KaKa won't ever submit to anything resembling a mental health check, we can extrapolate enough from the wiki to give an idea of the issues. While Burp may still be fairly slim, all things considered, she's probably a mess in other areas and that includes mentally.

Let's face it, Chris is incapable to taking care of himself, barely his dogs and certainly not his mother. It's going to get worse. She very well may live another ten years or more and she will suffer from cascading physical and mental issues all the while. Have fun Chris.

Adult Protective Services? That doesn't sound like an organization capable of achieving anything. Most of the people who WOULD need help from something like that are the kinds of people who can't admit that they have a problem and won't consent to any help being offered to them. This will be especially true for Barb, although they may be able to do something for Chris if it was just him.

I never said Barb is healthy. I just don't think she's going to drop too soon. Have fun indeed.

 

[Pikonic]

I suspect that she doesn't move a whole lot and is beginning to see a cascade of physical problems because of it. The holes in her ass might be ulcers. I mean, she does live in what we can guess is a very unclean environment, eats terrible, has been hospitalized for issues and presumably doesn't move hardly at all. These all point to a number of issues that will begin to cascade in the coming years, and quickly.

I showed the CWCiki to my neighbor, who is a licensed Psychologist (and current). Her first reaction was to call Adult Protective Services. While obviously Burp and KaKa won't ever submit to anything resembling a mental health check, we can extrapolate enough from the wiki to give an idea of the issues. While Burp may still be fairly slim, all things considered, she's probably a mess in other areas and that includes mentally.

Let's face it, Chris is incapable to taking care of himself, barely his dogs and certainly not his mother. It's going to get worse. She very well may live another ten years or more and she will suffer from cascading physical and mental issues all the while. Have fun Chris.

Adult Protective Services? That doesn't sound like an organization capable of achieving anything. Most of the people who WOULD need help from something like that are the kinds of people who can't admit that they have a problem and won't consent to any help being offered to them. This will be especially true for Barb, although they may be able to do something for Chris if it was just him.

I never said Barb is healthy. I just don't think she's going to drop too soon. Have fun indeed.

Shes got at least a decade left, maybe fifteen.

 

[RP 520]

Let's face it, Chris is incapable to taking care of himself, barely his dogs and certainly not his mother. It's going to get worse. She very well may live another ten years or more and she will suffer from cascading physical and mental issues all the while. Have fun Chris.

My grandmother was in a similar situation as Barb physically. However my grandmother's reason for being confined to a chair was depression of my grandfather passing, osteoporosis, and bad lungs from smoking in her younger years. The big hitter though was the depression. Without going into detail basically from the time my grandfather died in 2002, it took her around 8 years before she passed in 2010.

It looks like Barb was at least, very very slightly active after Bob died, since she's in photos attending the Mythbusters tour with Chris and probably went shopping with him to make sure he got her q-sandwiches. I assume that Barb hasn't left the house since at least sometime in late 2012? Plus mental issues probably don't help her physical matters much. Unless the "holey buttocks" gets worse and she doesn't have any other major issues Chris hasn't revealed or is oblivious to then I give her at least 10 years, 15 at best.

 

[HG 400]

Adult Protective Services? That doesn't sound like an organization capable of achieving anything. Most of the people who WOULD need help from something like that are the kinds of people who can't admit that they have a problem and won't consent to any help being offered to them.

It's my understanding that they mostly respond to reports of elderly and mentally incapable people being abused by their caregivers, and are responsible for putting them into state care if necessary.

 

[Marvin]

Adult Protective Services? That doesn't sound like an organization capable of achieving anything. Most of the people who WOULD need help from something like that are the kinds of people who can't admit that they have a problem and won't consent to any help being offered to them.

It's my understanding that they mostly respond to reports of elderly and mentally incapable people being abused by their caregivers, and are responsible for putting them into state care if necessary.

I think it might be tricky for the state to prove that Barb is mentally incapable.

 

[Christ-Chan]

I think it might be tricky for the state to prove that Barb is mentally incapable.

And even harder to prove Chris is abusing her because I really don't think he is.

 

[DangDirtyTrolls]

I think it might be tricky for the state to prove that Barb is mentally incapable.

And even harder to prove Chris is abusing her because I really don't think he is.

Could anyone actually imagine Chris abusing Barb? He couldn't even assert his independence to her without immediately meekly folding. The closest you'll get to abuse might be neglect, but good luck pinning that to a mentally retarded manchild.

 

[A-№1]

I think it might be tricky for the state to prove that Barb is mentally incapable.

And even harder to prove Chris is abusing her because I really don't think he is.

Agreed. Co-dependency and mutual neglect doesn't qualify as abuse.

I think the state would have an easier case proving Chris' incapacity as a caregiver (for which there is some evidence) than any abuse (for which there is no evidence so far as I know), but that would almost definitely lead right into the state having to declare Chris himself incapable of self support. The state does not want to go down that expensive path, because it would put two people dependent on the taxpayer for support instead of letting them quietly rot away in a corner. People like Chris and Barb "slip through the cracks" all the time because the state likes to keep those cracks nice and wide. It's cheaper that way.

 

[Breadbear]

I think it might be tricky for the state to prove that Barb is mentally incapable.

And even harder to prove Chris is abusing her because I really don't think he is.

Could anyone actually imagine Chris abusing Barb? He couldn't even assert his independence to her without immediately meekly folding. The closest you'll get to abuse might be neglect, but good luck pinning that to a mentally retarded manchild.

Elder abuse goes further than violence alone. Neglect is a bit tricky, but that argument could be made given the state of the hoard. Furthermore, one could argue that there's a sort of financial abuse, given that Chris sponges off his mother, and spends the little he has on vidya.
A lack of violence doesn't mean there isn't abuse, but just because there isn't abuse, that doesn't mean she's being taken care of properly. And, frankly, I'm not convinced that Chris is able -- physically or mentally -- to take care of an elderly woman.

 

[Lady Houligan]

Elder abuse goes further than violence alone. Neglect is a bit tricky, but that argument could be made given the state of the hoard. Furthermore, one could argue that there's a sort of financial abuse, given that Chris sponges off his mother, and spends the little he has on vidya.
A lack of violence doesn't mean there isn't abuse, but just because there isn't abuse, that doesn't mean she's being taken care of properly. And, frankly, I'm not convinced that Chris is able -- physically or mentally -- to take care of an elderly woman.

I'd agree with this. Hell, if the kitchen's still technically out of reach due to the hoard I believe that alone gives them a strong case for neglect against the residents of 14 BLC, since that means they have limited access to running water. God help them if the bathroom sinks are full of garbage if anyone from the state ever stops by.

 

[DangDirtyTrolls]

A lack of violence doesn't mean there isn't abuse, but just because there isn't abuse, that doesn't mean she's being taken care of properly. And, frankly, I'm not convinced that Chris is able -- physically or mentally -- to take care of an elderly woman.

That's my point. You might be able to say he's abusing Barb by way of neglect but Chris is obviously mentally disabled and it's doubtful he's fully capable of looking after himself, let alone someone else, so I doubt you'd ever be able to make such an accusation stick.

 

[Marvin]

And even harder to prove Chris is abusing her because I really don't think he is.

Could anyone actually imagine Chris abusing Barb? He couldn't even assert his independence to her without immediately meekly folding. The closest you'll get to abuse might be neglect, but good luck pinning that to a mentally retarded manchild.

Elder abuse goes further than violence alone. Neglect is a bit tricky, but that argument could be made given the state of the hoard. Furthermore, one could argue that there's a sort of financial abuse, given that Chris sponges off his mother, and spends the little he has on vidya.

I don't know about that. In the United States, or in my experience, at least, I think state governments are usually pretty loose with adult hoarders. They generally take the attitude that if someone wants to live in a godawful hoard, that's their choice. And Chris isn't sponging off Barb financially. I think they're mostly just pooling their funds. They have to pay legal fees and Snyder's medical bills and I think they handle that together.

 

[A-№1]

Neglect is a bit tricky, but that argument could be made given the state of the hoard.

But who is neglecting who there?

We have to remember that from a legal standpoint, Chris is neither Barb's caregiver, nor her dependent. They are voluntarily living together, but the state will consider that by choice until one or the both of them actually applies for some form of state provided assistance to get out. And if someone chooses to live in filth and squalor, the state sees no reason to spend taxpayer money stopping them. As bad as the hoard is there are others in Virginia who are much worse off. Seeing how little the state does for the actual homeless, how much time and effort and money and concern is the state going to waste on Chris and Barb? None.

 

[Breadbear]

Neglect is a bit tricky, but that argument could be made given the state of the hoard.

But who is neglecting who there?

We have to remember that from a legal standpoint, Chris is neither Barb's caregiver, nor her dependent. They are voluntarily living together, but the state will consider that by choice until one or the both of them actually applies for some form of state provided assistance to get out. And if someone chooses to live in filth and squalor, the state sees no reason to spend taxpayer money stopping them. As bad as the hoard is there are others in Virginia who are much worse off. Seeing how little the state does for the actual homeless, how much time and effort and money and concern is the state going to waste on Chris and Barb? None.

True. Moreover, I don't think they're at a point where they'd consider applying for anything. And even if, I doubt anyone would step foot in that place before Charb takes a shovel to it. Personally, I can't say I've seen worse, but I have colleagues who have.
Is it just? Is it fair? Of course not, and of course there are people who have a more genuine need who aren't getting it. I guess I have a soft spot for the elderly, but I know they've brought this upon themselves. However, I still think that the case for neglect, at the very least, still stands -- inadvertently, perhaps, but it's still there. There's 2 people living together (even if by choice) who are incapable of/unwilling to take care of eachother and their activities of daily living.

 

[SodomyRocket]

^ I'll be honest what the Chandlers are dealing with seems pretty damn fair to me. The majority of problems are results of their actions.They have the opportunity to change their situation and they don't. If you get dealt a pretty fair hand and you spit in the dealers face that's on you.

 

[Kosher Dill]

We have to remember that from a legal standpoint, Chris is neither Barb's caregiver, nor her dependent.

As soon as the hoard achieves sentience, Chris and Barb will legally be its parents, and they can be arrested for child neglect for letting it live in those conditions.

 

[Johnny Bravo]

Between this and the suicide thread, I've had a sudden realization about Chris and Barb.

I don't find the idea of Chris being suicidal funny. I don't think that he is but if he was I would not be smiling. He may be a failure at this point in time, but at 30, he still has time to turn his life around. He'll never achieve the success he wanted to with Sonichu - I think we all know that - and he'll never land a high paying job, but he could still live a fulfilling life if he learned to lower his standards and focus on his strengths rather than his weaknesses.

But Barb? I really, really hope she dies soon. She's a horrible human being, way worse than Chris could ever be, and probably one of the least fit people on the planet to raise a special needs child. I don't know if this counts as A-logging, I just needed to get it off my chest. I hope Barb dies.

/rant

 

[drmccoy]

Between this and the suicide thread, I've had a sudden realization about Chris and Barb.

I don't find the idea of Chris being suicidal funny. I don't think that he is but if he was I would not be smiling. He may be a failure at this point in time, but at 30, he still has time to turn his life around. He'll never achieve the success he wanted to with Sonichu - I think we all know that - and he'll never land a high paying job, but he could still live a fulfilling life if he learned to lower his standards and focus on his strengths rather than his weaknesses.

But Barb? I really, really hope she dies soon. She's a horrible human being, way worse than Chris could ever be, and probably one of the least fit people on the planet to raise a special needs child. I don't know if this counts as A-logging, I just needed to get it off my chest. I hope Barb dies.

/rant

Nah, don't say that. We don't like Burp on this forum but still, nobody deserves death. Will she die soon because of mistakes made? Possibly. But I personally wish her a long and happy life. Even though I know it will not in all likelihood be happy.

 

[Johnny Bravo]

Between this and the suicide thread, I've had a sudden realization about Chris and Barb.

I don't find the idea of Chris being suicidal funny. I don't think that he is but if he was I would not be smiling. He may be a failure at this point in time, but at 30, he still has time to turn his life around. He'll never achieve the success he wanted to with Sonichu - I think we all know that - and he'll never land a high paying job, but he could still live a fulfilling life if he learned to lower his standards and focus on his strengths rather than his weaknesses.

But Barb? I really, really hope she dies soon. She's a horrible human being, way worse than Chris could ever be, and probably one of the least fit people on the planet to raise a special needs child. I don't know if this counts as A-logging, I just needed to get it off my chest. I hope Barb dies.

/rant

Nah, don't say that. We don't like Burp on this forum but still, nobody deserves death. Will she die soon because of mistakes made? Possibly. But I personally wish her a long and happy life. Even though I know it will not in all likelihood be happy.

She may not necessarily deserve death. I just feel like, without her influence, Chris might finally be able to get the help he needs. Maybe that's a pipe dream, I don't know, but since joining this forum and reading about how much control she has over his life and realizing how similar her personality is to Chris I can't help but think that he would be better off without her.

And I know that's a horrible thing to say. Nobody deserves to lose their mom. But other than going to prom with Chris and supporting (tolerating?) Sonichu, I can't think of a single positive thing she's done for him. Some of the stuff she's done, like threatening to kill herself when Chris "came out" as a tomgirl, just makes me sick. We know she was being a drama queen, but do you think Chris did? I'm not proud of myself for feeling this way. I just hate this woman.

 

[Lady Houligan]

Between this and the suicide thread, I've had a sudden realization about Chris and Barb.

I don't find the idea of Chris being suicidal funny. I don't think that he is but if he was I would not be smiling. He may be a failure at this point in time, but at 30, he still has time to turn his life around. He'll never achieve the success he wanted to with Sonichu - I think we all know that - and he'll never land a high paying job, but he could still live a fulfilling life if he learned to lower his standards and focus on his strengths rather than his weaknesses.

But Barb? I really, really hope she dies soon. She's a horrible human being, way worse than Chris could ever be, and probably one of the least fit people on the planet to raise a special needs child. I don't know if this counts as A-logging, I just needed to get it off my chest. I hope Barb dies.

/rant

Nah, don't say that. We don't like Burp on this forum but still, nobody deserves death. Will she die soon because of mistakes made? Possibly. But I personally wish her a long and happy life. Even though I know it will not in all likelihood be happy.

Part of me thinks that Barb is happy, since she's always struck me as a manipulator to the core. She has a puppet who will go out for q-sands when she says "hop to", who will parrot back whatever drivel she's decided is gospel now, and most importantly is too inept to attempt to leave her behind. But another part of me thinks that she's miserable, and because SHE's miserable she's going to drag Chris right down to where she is so that she can climb on top of him in an attempt to be less miserable: sort of like someone drowning who starts trying to use a potential rescuer as a flotation device and doesn't recognize them as a person at all.