And another thing that bothers me ... like some many aspects of this ... the loss of rights already, and the theoretical potential to lose more.

In my state, there a couple of "rights" or perhaps "priveleges under the law", not really sure of exactly where these things stand - that I lost AUTOMATICALLY under my state's statutes. Because I have "a diagnosed mental illness".

I worry about hypotheticals, and I have a strong sense of "justice and fairness and equality of opportunity" being core values of mine, and vital to our society.

I don't want to elaborate on the specific rights/priveleges, because ... they actually aren't relevant to the concept, and when I have discussed this before on other forums, it turns into a debate about the specifics, not a discussion about the underlying principle.

And, that is the IMPORTANT part of my post/inquiry. The principle that my status of "having a diagnosed mental illness" is sufficient under the law to deny me opporunities open to other citizens "in good standing" (in other words, NOT people like convicted felons). And, all without any due process or any individual consideration of my condition/my state of mind/my overall level of responsibility and functionality. Just AUTOMATIC.

That is what hurts. The average Joe Citizen has the legal right to do X. But, because I have a "diagnosed mental illness" I no longer have that right. And, if I lie about my mental illness, I am in trouble with the law, too.

So, that really hurts me. It is discrimination which is upheld by the courts under the "rational basis" test. But it is painting with a very broad brush -- there are so many "mental illnesses" - what under the law is justified to deny people X. A paranoid schizophrenic with a history of serious violence? Probably reasonable. A college freshman who goes to the school clinic for treatment of social anxiety and walks away with a prescription for generic Paxil? Probably not reasonable. But, the totality of the circumstances were not considered, no case-by-case basis for the reasonableness of denying X, a and there was no due process.

Then, there is the LIST of people who are denied X. Mentally ill people are only one of MANY people on the list. Others include convicted felons, pedophiles, sex offenders, dishoranably discharged veterans, etc. Doesn't that imply that we, as people with mental illness, are considered on the same level, legally, socially, morally, as sex offenders and convicts? I find that REALLY offensive - my own government is stigmatizing me. But hey, par for the course - did you know the official and proper term for someone mentally ill in the United States Code is "mental defective"? Nice, huh, I'm "defective" - like the toys on the Isle of Misfit Toys in Rudolph. All of that makes me feel SO GOOD ABOUT MYSELF at a time when I'm already at the lowest point in my life. Yeah, let's just kick people when they're already down. Let's just tell them "it's a medical condition, don't be ashamed" and then shame them under the law.

THAT is what offends and outrages me. And, it really bothers me because it tells me that the State looks down upon me as "unreliable" and "untrustworthy" and in my doomsday worst case scenario catastrophizing quasi-paranoid mind, it makes me wonder if I am "an enemy of the State"?

If you read all of this, thank you. These rants do help me to "get it out", so it serves at least that purpose.