GOP = Group of Psychopaths

Lack of Empathy: The Definition of a Psychopath

by EmperorHadrian

What continues to come out of the right these days is frightening. Apparently republicans are attacking Obama's criteria of "empathy" when nominating someone to the Supreme Court. John Kyl threatened to block a nominee who showed either empathy or "emotions or feelings" towards groups such as the poor or disenfranchised when deciding cases. Contrast this with the suicide in 2003 of army interpreter Alyssa Peterson. It wasn't until 2005 that the army admitted it was a suicide, and it wasn't until 2007 that they released a report that showed that she had been forced to work with the torturers, and after having refused to do so and asking to be reassigned, she killed herself. Shortly before her death, she was reprimanded for "showing empathy" to the torture victims. What this all suggests is, as discussed on Open Left, is that the GOP is the Party of Psychopaths.

• EmperorHadrian's diary :: ::

First, let's explain what sociopathy is: it's not like any other form of mental disease...There is no surface disturbance in sociopathy. The sociopath appears perfectly sane in the moment. Rather, what is disturbed--even, one might say, missing--is the core

It is this-lack of an inner human core, what some call a conscience, that isn't just a universal trait in psychopaths: it is the definition of a psychopath. According to the definition of psychopathy, psychopaths lack in "conscience and empathy, they take what they want and do as they please, violating social norms and expectations without guilt or remorse." The term "psychopathy" is more of a legal or sociological one. A clinical psychopath is someone who suffers from a particular type of personality disorder, in particular dissocial personality disorder. According to the World Health Organization, the first criteria necessary for a diagnosis with this disorder is "callous unconcern for the feelings of others and lack of the capacity for empathy".

To understand the nature of a psychopaths, contrast them with sadists. Sadists, who to be sure do not have nice feelings, have feelings nonetheless. It is the same as the difference between people who are immoral and people who are amoral. The person who is immoral can be dangerous, but since he operates within a logical (if messed up) framework, he is predictable and understands that other people are real and have feelings. The person who is amoral operates within no logical framework, and thus is unpredictable and quite dangerous. Psychopaths, who lack the inner human core and thus a conscience, have no inner feelings such as empathy. We and our sufferings simply aren't real to the party of psychopaths. "The hard truths of other people's lives mean nothing: they are not real, they are merely insubstantial shadow people."

Update: I recommend reading the Open Left article on the Party of Psychopaths. Also, go see the Star Trek movie! Besides being awesome (in the future they don't use money!), you see the definite (and usual for Star Trek) progressive messages in the movie. And I am not just talking about all of the comparisons between Obama and the half human, half Vulcan Spock. For example, there is a definite reference to the evils of waterboarding and torture when Captain Pike is tortured by the villain in a shallow tank of water. And speaking of empathy, Captain Kirk later offers to rescue the villan before blowing him up.