Is MAGA cruelty actually a psychological disorder?

Posted on by Opher

Fortunately I’m not American so I am a little removed from the mayhem and hatred. That maybe provides me with a little objectivity.

I am astounded by a number of things that the MAGA republicans are doing that seem remarkably cruel and callous to me:

Cutting off aid to the extremely needy people in the Third World. A decision that will not save a lot of money but which will cause immense suffering, starvation and death.

The cutting off of medicare for the poor. Throwing the poorest under the bus unable to get vaccinations or even basic medical care.

The reducing of welfare for the poorest people (while giving huge tax relief to the wealthy).

The deportation of people who have lived their entire life in America to countries they have never known, to violence, torture and death.

MAGA mentality is extreme and seems entirely lacking in compassion and empathy. They heartlessly blame the poor for being poor and treat immigrants with disgust. They don’t care what happens to these people. It’s as if they are vermin and should be eradicated. They are no longer real people. Their suffering is of no consequence!

Put America first! Nobody else matters!

There does seem to be a strong racist element to it. The ‘We Shall Not Be Replaced’ white supremacy movement is big in the thinking.

There are obvious fascist parallels with Nazi Germany – scapegoating immigrants, Muslims and Jews.

We are all familiar with the psychological profile of Trump who seems to be very much a stereotype of a narcissistic sociopath with psychopathic tendencies.

(Sociopathy – Some people may use the term sociopath to describe what a mental health professional would diagnose as antisocial personality disorder. Symptoms may include disregard for others, a lack of empathy, and dishonest behaviour.)

(Psychopathy, or psychopathic personality,[1] is a personality construct[2][3] characterized by impaired empathy and remorse, along with bold, disinhibited, and egocentric traits. These traits are often masked by superficial charm and immunity to stress,[4] which create an outward appearance of apparent normalcy)

(Narcissism – selfishness, involving a sense of entitlement, a lack of empathy, and a need for admiration, as characterizing a personality type.)

The key word in this is empathy – a human trait leading to compassion, a basic human trait that is the basis of most positive relationships and civilisation.

It appears to be a key factor missing from most MAGA individuals. Musk is another who fits the profile. Vance is another.

They simply do not seem to care at all about anybody – particularly people who oppose them. Indeed, they actively seem to enjoy inflicting pain on these people. That’s Psychopathy!

The weird thing is that the evangelical movement have got right behind this heartlessness. They selectively use scripture to support their own support for policies that seem completely at odds with the teachings of Jesus. But they justify it. It’s a weird double-think.

The other weird thing is that the MAGA policies of giving to the rich and taking from the poor hit the very people who avidly support them. By stoking up the fear of immigrants they have successfully distracted from what is actually going on. Far from draining swamps they are supporting a confederacy of billionaires!

The psychology of this phenomena is interesting. Is there a mass psychology at work? Does Sociopathy breed sociopathy? Can psychopathy breed psychopathy?

Themes that pervade my Sci-Fi novels.

Posted on by Opher

All my writing has purpose. I like to base my work on sound science, social and environmental reality, human psychology and philosophy.

I am intrigued by the concept of infinity, by quantum theory, string theory, black holes and quasars.

As a biologist I studied genetics and have kept up with the developments in genetic engineering. I am intrigued with the idea of how this could impact on human development and that of all other living creatures and plants. We now have the power to change, improve or create both ourselves and the plants and animals we share this planet with. We can create different human beings, different species and a different world.

I studied psychology as part of my degree and found this incredibly useful in education. I also apply it to my writing. It is useful to build characters around psychological traits and personality types.

Living through the twentieth century has provided me with a great perspective on social change. I doubt any other century has seen such a degree of transformation. Science propelled a social revolution that changed the world. That is a useful element to draw into my writing. What changes are going to shape our progress? What will a future world look like?

As a biologist I have been greatly distressed by the impact mankind has been having on the environment. Extinction rates have soared as humans destroy habitat and pollute ecosystems. Our sheer numbers are swamping nature. Once the world was considered infinite and nature something to be exploited without thought. We now realize this is not the case. Even our primitive hunter/gatherer ancestors greatly impacted on the environment. Now we have the capacity to destroy it to a far greater extent. If our numbers and activities are not regulated we may well ruin the very life-support system that sustains us. It is a theme that occurs in most of my work.

What is the purpose of life? It is a question most of us ask at some point and it is one that has a basis in my writing. Whether it be spirituality or creativity, accruing material wealth or power, or seeking truth, wisdom, happiness or fulfilment, it is one of the factors that drives human beings. It is a theme worth developing. It brings people into conflict.

Whether setting the action in the future, in a different dimension or an alien world, these are themes that I tend to enjoy exploring.

Who Are We??

Posted on by Opher

Who are we?

 

This was basically a question asked by Stephen Hunter (a writer on WriterBeat) with a nod to Pete Townsend. He advised us to peer deeply into a mirror, put ego to one side and ask ourselves what was the essence of our selves.

We all, I am sure, have a deep sense of identity. We view ourselves as individuals who can exert will. We can make choices about what we believe, what we like, what we associate with. Free will is at the center of our concept of self. It is the basis of our laws as well as our identity.

Religious people might believe our essence is spiritual in nature.

Political people might think that they chose a political stance out of some conviction held by their inner self.

Law enforcers will insist that we exercised free will in carrying out criminal acts and can be persuaded not to do so.

Yet do we really have any free will?

Some psychologists think not. They say our ‘inner self’ is no more than a construct of our upbringing, culture and experience. They also believe that that ‘inner self’ changes with time and experience – that those changes are usually slow so we do not notice. Wouldn’t it be interesting to go back and inhabit the mind of our younger self? I’m sure we’d be shocked. We assume that our views, which we see as naïve, might have changed but our inner self will be constant. But is it?

What seems to be true is that if we had been brought up in a different culture we’d believe in different things. We’d have a different religion and cultural values, different tastes and even feelings. But would our inner self be different?

You know – I think it would. Despite my strongly held views and robust sense of identity I suspect we are all products of our time and place. There is no inner self at all. It’s an illusion.

What we need is a new, positive zeitgeist!

Posted on by Opher

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Every age has a prevailing zeitgeist. I believe it is created by the conglomerate mindset of the people and we all swim in its flood.
The sixties was a time of deep distrust of the establishment and its war machine. The counter culture set about leaving the breadheads to one side and producing a more spiritual community based on sharing, harmony and love. It was a time of great optimism, fun and happiness. It was great for a while until everyone woke up to find they were merely being ripped off and exploited in a different way and that the war machine and environmental destroying machine were still churning away.
This present zeitgeist has been born out of despair at austerity, runaway capitalism, inequality, hopelessness, joblessness, terrorism, mass migration, low wages, frustration, fear and helplessness. People have lost all faith in the establishment but are turning to extreme politics to vent their frustrations. They see that we are definitely not all in it together and the politicians are not making a jot of difference; they are pawns in the game. The right-wing and fascists, with their black and white rhetoric, easy answers, fear induction, racism and xenophobia, offer up easy solutions. What everyone wants is to believe in easy solutions.
I think the zeitgeist is one of fear, despair and a need to change. It’s the mass psychology of the age. The right-wing are exploiting it. It is what they feed off. In many wayus there are analogies to be drawn with the 1930s.
Hence we have the rise of right-wing politics, the Tea Party, UKIP, Trump and Brexit. On the continent the ultra-right parties are gaining ground big time.
I believe this needs opposing in every way possible. There are no easy answers. Belligerence and war do not solve problems. Isolationism is in nobody’s interest. Racism and xenophobia create problems.
The future is global cooperation, global laws, global rights, global enforcement of laws. The imperative is the protection of the planet.
We need to jettison the mad capitalist system with its mantra of growth and profit, which is destroying the planet and creating mass inequality and war. Greed is not the answer. Selfishness is not a solution. Compassion, empathy and love are much better.
There are better ways for us to live on this planet. For the sake of nature and our great grandchildren we need to create a different zeitgeist.

People are very fragile.

Posted on by Opher

brain

Human beings have very powerful minds and emotions. I used to believe that we are incredibly resilient. I no longer believe that.

I believe we are all incredibly fragile and easily damaged.

My long experience of working with children and observing adults have made me extremely aware that many of us are broken and our response is often aggression, hatred and violence.

I used to say to the teaching staff at my school that there was no such thing as a bad kid. Their bad behaviour was the result of having been damaged by their experiences; our job was to mend them.

I have seen close up the effects of bereavement, bullying, racism, divorce and abuse. The victims often either withdraw or become aggressive.

When I was a child at school a number of my teachers were ex-soldiers. They were not only violent aggressive bullies but they seemed to hate us.

I cannot begin to imagine the effect war has on the fragile human psyche. My father would not talk about it. My grandfather would not mention it. But I have met numerous highly confused and violent veterans; one of whom was a murderer.

Around the world at the moment we have millions of people traumatised by war. Some are victims and some are perpetrators. I cannot begin to imagine how some of them ever manage to sleep again. It is no wonder that some are either heartless fiends and others are traumatised wrecks. If you are going to saw someone’s head off at some point in the future that will haunt your waking moments and turn your sleep to nightmares. It catches up with you.

Human beings are fragile. The little things send us off the rails; the big things drive us into psychosis.

Your Unreliable Brain

Posted on by Opher

The unreliability of the brain is worrying. We reinvent our memories. Make up things that we think are real. Create Gods, It is most worrying in courts of law. Nobody is an impartial witness. We recreate our memories!!

Poetry – We were just kids – a poem about the idealism of youth.

Posted on by Opher

I often think back to the days of my youth when everything seemed so clear. I looked at the way the world was being governed and thought it was completely insane.

I’d met people from a range of cultures and discovered they were people just like me. We could laugh and love without hatred or prejudice. So where did all this fear, violence and paranoia come from?

It had to be the politicians, the media, and the institutions. The world was being run for people to exploit and make money, for power and wealth. It created nations, wars, inequality and led to distrust, paranoia and hatred.

I believed there was a better way. But I was just a kid. I thought it would be easy. All you had to do was explain it well enough and everyone would understand. It isn’t as easy as that. A small minority of people are vicious, deranged, damaged and indoctrinated. They need to feel good about themselves and they do that be placing themselves in positions of power. We are governed by sociopaths and psychopaths. They set the tone for everything that happens. Too many people are traumatised by abuse, war, bereavement, ill-treatment, bad upbringing or bad experiences. They need assistance.

I was young. I believed everyone had a core of humanity and was open to reason. I had faith that I could talk my way out of any bad situation.

I’m not so young any more. I think it isn’t quite so easy. But I still believe that most people are good and that those who aren’t are sick and damaged. That should be our priority; to heal the sad and traumatised. That’ll make things better.

I’m not so young anymore. I know it’s a big job.

 

We were just kids

 

We were playing revolution,

Making rules as we lived each day;

Throwing out the constitution

Laughing all the way.

We were just kids.

 

We knew we were immune

We had the bravado of youth.

We could write any tune

And sing it on the hoof.

 

Rejecting all the leader’s men

Institutions and the laws.

Throwing out the court’s pen

The rules and the scores.

We were just kids.

 

We knew we saw a better path

One without greed and power.

A way that was full of laughs

Making love by the hour,

 

Full of naïve innocence

That provided amazing clarity.

We were certain it all made sense

Armed with great hilarity.

We were just kids.

 

We were just kids.

 

Opher 1.8.2015

Human beings are very delicate.

Posted on by Opher

Munch-Le-Cri-1895

I used to think we were strong. People seem so resilient. But I have come to realise just how fragile we really are. We put on a front for the world to see. Behind that is a mess of fear, pain and anxiety.

I was extremely fortunate to have a life that has been free of trauma. I thought it was the norm. It is not.

In the course of my career I have witnessed students torn apart by deaths or break-up in their families. They cease to behave normally.

I have come to learn that the abused are so traumatised by what has happened to them that they become abusers. The same goes for the bullied.

It has made me look around the world with fresh eyes at the raped, the dispossessed, the brutalised and ousted. Those that live in terror, those who starve in the midst of plenty and those who have been tortured or forced to flee.

My father was a soldier in the Second World War. He saw his friends killed. He did not talk about it. Some of my teachers were ex-soldiers from that conflict. They were among the most violent, vicious and disturbed individuals I have ever met.

Around the world we have wars that are affecting tens of millions. We have bereavements as part of everyday life.

I think all those brutalised people, whether victims or perpetrators, carry on the viciousness of the times out of the mental disturbance they have suffered.

Their brains have rewired.

Fascism is probably the result of anxiety and fear culminating in paranoia.

The only way we are going to escape this cycle is to have a generation who are free of war, torture and abuse and to get proper psychological support for the bereaved and traumatised.

Let’s hope we can find a way.