@Icewings: OMG, I didn't know this story! I've never had such a thing so I can't completly understand the story but it could be interesting to talk about it some day.

@Arian Totalis: I agree with what you say, and the example was perfect to make understand your point

I've never met someone who is mentally healthy. Sure, some people are more twisted than others.... actually, wait I change my mind. I think someone with perfect a mental condition, well theres something just wrong and weird about that isnt there?

I think the people that come across as the most sane or 'normal' are the ones you need to look out for.

I have a grandmother who is schizophrenic and I'm pretty sure a line exists between sanity and insanity. She used to think people were in the house when they weren't, think satellites were taking over her mind and used to hang strange symbols on the wall, symbols that she claimed were religious, but not part of any religion we'd seen or heard of.

We can all say, "Well I'm a bit mental me, I think being normals worse," which is true to an extent, nobody in the world is "normal", and we all perceive outside stimuli in certain ways. This is why people believe different religions, have different political beliefs and have different tastes in music. But its when we perceive outside stimuli in a way that is dangerous or outright delusional, for example, seeing things that nobody else can see, I think that is insanity.

I mean some of us might see a toaster and think, "Oh I can put bread in there to make toast," or "God, this toaster really is getting old, we need a new one." And these are different but neither of them class as insanity. But when you see that toaster and start thinking its a secret message deliverer from the Government, the burn marks on your toast are part of a secret code and when you decipher it it says "kill your parents". Thats insanity to me.

Granted I think there I've only really described various forms of schizophrenia. I think other mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder etc. are a different thing altogether, and most of these other illnesses are, in my opinion, brought on by the way modern society is set out.

I'm fed up of typing now. I'll probably come back to this topic later. lol

the way i see it, you're "insane" when your beliefs and logic contradicts most of the other people's mentalities, with bad consequences. but then again, it's also about how the people around you think. obviously, if you're a hermit and start going insane, you'd still think you're logical and stuff, but that's because no-one's there to compare yourself with, to see if you're mad.

and so, if you were on september 12th 2001 in new york and start handing islamic propaganda papers, people would think you're insane and you'd probably get lynched, but if you did that a few months earlier, no one would have bothered.

so yes, there is a clear line between being sane and insane

Any behavior which interferes with the health and harmlessly consequential satisfaction of whomever; I consider that madness. If you're not aware of the consequences of your actions even though you've witnessed the result numerous times; I consider that madness.

I'm too sleep-deprived to explain my opinion any better than that, and perhaps that is also madness.

One of my best friends has a very serious case of bi-polar. She is constantly going on shopping sprees and doing crazy things like dancing naked in the street. I think it is pretty much all genetics in her case. Her grandmother had a similar case of bi-polar and she was cured in the 1950s with Toxic Shock Treatment. When my friend turned 18 she had the choice to continue to take her meds or not. She stopped taking them and it has been a downward spiral since. She was going to an Ivy League school and got kicked out. I dont even know if I should call it madness or not..I can that she has no control and is not rational.