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2014-06-14 -Land of the Free

This Week in Guns, June 14th, 2014

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Posted by badanov 2014-06-14 00:00|| || Front Page|| [1 views ] Top

#1 There was a headline on the front page of our local newspaper this a.m. entitled: "Sheriff: Hawkins [Co.] boys had big plans." The article goes on to say that several boys in Hawkins Co. had plans, which were well underway, to surpass Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold in 1999. The article said the Hawkins Co. boys studied the mistakes of the Columbine psychos to try to build to increase the anticipated body count. The article said: the boys were not discipline problems, had not been bullied , were not bad students; they really didn't stand out in any way, good or bad according to authorities. That is the crux of their problem, they did not stand out and they wanted to become famous by becoming the most notorious mass murderers of all time. This plot was halted by one of the parents who came upon the plot, took their son to a mental health center, and a mental health worker tipped off the cops. They had guns and explosives according to the police.

Fortunately, these juvenile wannabees were caught. The newspaper article did not also go nuts by wringing their hands and calling for widespread gun-grabbing which would have solved absolutely nothing. It was already illegal for these kids to have firearms and explosives.

Posted by JohnQC 2014-06-14 08:24|| 2014-06-14 08:24|| Front Page Top

#2 I've a friend who made a bit of a study of the subject. Being as she is quite knowledgeable and insightful about patterns in human personality, I share them herewith, along with my own conclusions.

Sociopaths -- which includes what used to be called psychopaths not so long ago -- are often very likable people, without visible kinks when they were young, in many cases. Later in life a pattern can be discovered of a sense of entitlement, a willingness to acquire whatever is desired by charm, manipulation, and lies, a consistent need for self-aggrandizement, no sense that risky behaviour is risky for him, as it naturally is for others...

That lad in Catch Me If You Can who was able to fake the key identification signs for mastery of his chosen claimed employment of the moment, in order to enjoy the perks thereof, seems a perfect example.

Only a few turn to crime in general, or murder in particular, though a great many are cuttingly cruel to those who love and/or work for them.

It is not that they are particularly clever about manipulating those around them, as is generally claimed. Rather, they use the Saleman's Technique: keep trying, and eventually a susceptible will reveal him- or herself. And as they only learn from success, failure being a sign merely to try even more people...

But it seems the home environment is key to the life outcome of sociopaths. They have the usual range of intelligence and talents, but if they are reared in a loving and structured environment, they learn to choose to accept society's rules as being one of the tools for accomplishing what they want. This came out when an eminent brain doctor -- whose name and recently published book escape me at the moment -- compared his brain scan to those of a number of known criminal sociopaths in the course of a consultation, and was shocked to discover that his contained the same features. An examination of his family history revealed a number of egregiously nasty criminals, and discussions with friends and family revealed behaviour patterns of which he had been completely unaware. Based on what he discovered, he began acting more thoughtfully to his loving and patient wife of many years, and began being less entirely the "fun" father to his children and "that fun guy, OMG you wouldn't believe what he talked me into doing last weekend" with his friends. I have only read the kindle sample of the book, so don't know if he drew conclusions about what differed in his upbringing to make him a domesticated sociopath, if you will, rather than a feral one like JohnQC's lot.

Brain scans may become a standard part of the repertoire of future criminal proceeding, removing the therapeutic end of psychiatry from the question of competence. Sociopaths are competent, but as they don't learn from failure, will not stop killing merely because they are tried, convicted, and imprisoned. Only the death penalty will do. And those with mental illnesses, such as schizophrenics and those with bipolar disorder severe enough to lead them to kill -- whether only within the household as happened to my girlfriend, or a mass killing at a school or elsewhere -- need to be locked up in an insane asylum and medicated under supervision, for such people unfortunately cannot be allowed to live among us, where they become legally allowed to refuse treatment at about the same age that their psychosis blooms. Having thus removed the incorrigible from prison populations, perhaps they will become what they were hoped to be, way stations in which those who had done wrong learn how to become productive members of society. It does happen, after all, but given the number of failed sociopaths and the clinically insane behind bar these days, the environment that exists could not possibly be conducive to developing a different philosophy of life.

Posted by trailing wife 2014-06-14 09:57|| 2014-06-14 09:57|| Front Page Top

#3 The Psychopath Inside by James Fallon

Posted by trailing wife 2014-06-14 10:19|| 2014-06-14 10:19|| Front Page Top

#4 Sociopaths -- which includes what used to be called psychopaths not so long ago -- are often very likable people, without visible kinks when they were young, in many cases. Later in life a pattern can be discovered of a sense of entitlement, a willingness to acquire whatever is desired by charm, manipulation, and lies, a consistent need for self-aggrandizement, no sense that risky behaviour is risky for him, as it naturally is for others..

Do they party with celebrities and golf a lot as well? Serial liars with narcissistic tendencies? Hmmmmm

Posted by Frank G 2014-06-14 10:23|| 2014-06-14 10:23|| Front Page Top

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