I don't want to go on record as a Reagan defender, but keep in mind that the "turn the homeless people onto the streets" concept was also strongly supported by advocates for the mentally ill. It was a bad idea all around, and one that is still troubling. How do you resolve the question of involuntary confinement of someone who is non-violent but mentally incompetent (as defined by the rest of society). If someone wants to sleep in the park and drink his social security money, who is to say that this is wrong?