Steve Becker raised the issue of psychopaths in movies a few months ago – I’d like to raise it again. I’ve been watching the second series of the TV show ‘Dexter‘. For those who don’t know it, Dexter is a serial killer who operates according to a code taught to him by his father. Dad, a cop, realised that Dexter was different (socially inept, blood lust, etc.) and so instilled in him the principle that he was not to hurt people in general, but to work at getting along with them. Dexter is permitted to kill only those who deserve it, e.g. killers who’s escaped justice.
Commentators automatically call Dexter psychopathic. That’s what these words seem to mean in the general public: psychopath = serial killer = psychopath.
Hannibal Lector seems to be the association. Either him or a character like Chigurh in ‘No country for old men’. In fact he’s portrayed like a schizoid automaton – where’s the famous psychopathic charm? Only in the scene where he verbally torments the old store-owner get a whiff of psychopathy. It’s not helpful; it’s just one of the reasons regular folks can’t/won’t understand what psychopathy is really like. (For starters, psychopaths aren’t by any means all killers.)
This despite the fact the Dexter himself feels most understood at a program for addicts. (To my mind he’s a pervert.) His girlfriend Lila, though, does seem to me to be a psychopath, though with a definite female bent. A clue, Dexter is wholly likeable whereas Lila is terrifying. A bit like Sante Kimes as depicted in ‘A little thing called murder’.
This public confusion occured around ‘The Sopranos’ too. Donna Andersen has argued that Tony is not a psychopath (she prefers the term sociopath). I agree. (My diagnosis: narcissist – not that it would matter if he had you in his sights.) To me his buddy Paulie ‘Walnuts’ is the true psychopath.
Lovefraud readers have earned the right the hard way to know what is and what isn’t a believably psychopathic. Which movies/shows/books do you think get the essential quality?
quest: Interesting. I never thought about the concepts of my death … I do understand my mortality. I almost died already, as a teenager. Would have been a really stupid death … so I’m glad it didn’t happen the way it was playing out. I was very lucky. And, I prayed to God at that minute, “not now, not like this” … and then it was over.
I do believe in God and I’ve had a lot of proof in my life over the years that he does exist. If you research the history of religion, you will understand the complexity of the different religious groups. I find reading Bibles very interesting and very eye opening as far as what man kind is all about. Anything that could happen with man, is already written in the Bible. Even all the anti-social personalities are written about through out the pages in the Bible.
I agree with you that the psychopaths got to the top of these corporations and the banking industry. Let’s bring some folks from the ranks that are real … let the rest go to retirement (too young to retire? Too bad, you were in the wrong place at the wrong time during the collapse of our economy as we once new it) and let’s call it a day with choosing big ego idiots to get to the top, because they believe they need to be at the top. That’s a big RED flag for everyone … and we need to ensure the checks and balances are back in place for promoting people through the ranks again (government and private industry). That promotions are for doing a good job and comprehending how and why you did this job, before a promotion. Not this nonsense of networking of one psychopath hiring another psychopath taking everything for them, having party time on the American publics’ back along with their company’s back. As we can see from this blog, anti-social personalities give every lip service. There is no substance to any of them except their greed and what’s in it for them.
I think Obama is a no nonsense individual. I see a lot of compassion in him. I’m glad he won. I think he’ll prove to be the best president that has happened to this country in a long, long time. Since he was a mover and a shaker at the lower levels … levels where the average person wouldn’t bother to work in, never mind care enough to resolve issues … I think he’ll bring that strategy on to the world stage. He does need to weed out the psycho personalities in Government as well. I’m watching the folks he’s choosing this week, it’s pretty interesting … and all of them seem conscientious and level headed to me. That’s a good sign. I think with a dedicated, real team of people, this man can turn what these psychos did to our country and get us up and running again. Everyone needs to understand that they need to tighten in their belt.
Your comment about there is nothing left by the time he takes office. He already knows there is nothing left … so he’s got to make lemonade out of the lemons.
I understand that there are a lot of psycho’s out there … and I wished the younger generations would stop being idiots and stop emulating them. That’s a big waste of time, when feeling people throw their hands in the air and start acting like anti-social personalities … with the “who cares attitude … every one is doing it, why shouldn’t I”? We’re in big trouble because it’s hard to tell a real person from a psycho. Which the psychos love because it makes it harder to detect them. I feel it in my soul that the reign of the psychopaths finally collapsed and that is what we are witnessing now.
I have faith everything will work out for the better.
Peace.
Henry: You’re not alone with being pressured by religious control freaks. That’s what most people have felt over the last 40-50 years. I believe it was do to the anti-social personalities swarming over the flock and taking over. Church leaders didn’t know how … or want to … handle it … and that is what we saw played out in the public eye over the years. My adviser told me this the ultimate of the devil at work in full swing wanting people to leave their churches, not having guidance nor being involved with community. Leaving people in fear and confusion for not wanting to attend a structured environment.
It is however, everyone’s responsibility to read and gain wisdom from the Bible. To do so, on your own, at your pace, has absolutely nothing to do with having to be involved with a structured religion.
I do see a swing back to people attending their churches and feeling very comfortable in doing so today. There is nothing like feeling welcome by your fellow man.
Peace.
I think we have have had this discussion about religion being a great “cloak” for the psychopath to use to cover up their bad deeds. Plus, religious “leadership” is also a great “con job” for the unprincipled psychopath to gain control over the “flock” and lead them off down the “garden path” in order to victimize them financially etc.
Some scandal rag magazine did an expose of the homes lived in by some of the “great” tele-evangelists today who are always begging for donations from the little old ladies who watch. These are 10-20-30 MILLION DOLLAR HOMES set way back in 30-40 acre remote “estates” which were photographed by helicopter by the magazine. The homes are not ones that you can “drive by” and see.
It’s odd that Jesus didn’t own a home and his “ministers” have mansions while begging for donations from their “flock.” What is wrong with this picture?
In Jesus’ day the Jewish “religious leaders” had also sold out to the Romans and were binding rules on the people that didn’t apply to themselves, so this is nothing new, and not unique to Christianity by any means. Religion is just in some cases a way or a P to assume power and control over others, just as politics and money and social status can also be used for the same purposes.
Yes Oxy: I was trying to say, no matter what ego personalities in this world should do or have done to pit us against each other … we can have faith and seek wisdom on our own as well as knowing it’s OK to live a righteous life, the way our creator wants us to live.
To live in harmony with one another. Which is what the anti-social personalities have done to all of us, by pulling the rug out from under us, pushing us to the curb of life, climbing to the top of everything and playing their stupid games with all of humanity, not just us singularly, but everyone. We no longer have to wonder what’s going on in this crazy world. We know the answer that it’s lip service folks running this world into the ground and how none of them cared.
We no longer have to question ourselves and what did we do to deserve any of this. We did nothing wrong. They did wrong and now everyone around the world is witnessing how wrong they are. Now that we know we do matter to God, we can make a difference. How they live is nonsense. All fluff, no substance. Now the world is seeing there is no substance to any of them … giving everyone lip service … flying on corporate jets to ask for a handout!
It’s a big eye opener to the real people of the world, that we did it right, we care, we love and respect each other. We do make a difference in this world, not them. God has allowed the entire world to see on a grand scale what they are all about. No longer can they be the man behind the curtain pretending to everyone, giving everyone lip service, smiling to our faces and lying through their teeth.
Actually, I think their house of cards falling down all around them so the world can watch is fantastic. Everyone gets to see what a bunch of hot air they truly are.
Hey, it was all on God’s time … and he just showed us that if we had patience and waited, he would not forsake us.
Keep the faith … we are witnessing a miracle in it’s full Glory.
Big news in Rochester a couple of weeks ago was Aurthur Shawcross dying in jail at 63 (natural causes). He was Rochester’s very own serial killer, and I never realized how much hatred the city had for him until I heard the radio callers that day.
kat: I believe Shawcross was interviewed extensively. I forgot if it was his ego (with no child abuse against him in his childhood) that lead him to his crimes or he was abused as a child and that started his acting out.
Do you remember the specifics of the analysis on him?
Peace.
Is that Rochester NY?…..that’s where the S/P I was with came here from.