Trump’s behavioral meltdown and the disintegration his presidential campaign has led many of us to wonder: What (besides the obvious) is wrong with Donald Trump? Several theories have emerged in just the past two days to account for the cluster of behaviors he exhibits and what mental impairment they might add up to (besides, of course, the clusterf**k).
Here are five prominent hypotheses:
Sociopath Traits
Via Kossack philosophyoftruthfulness
Various hallmark sociopath traits are listed below. It is important to note that not all traits will be present in all the "sociopaths". According to ICD-10 criteria, presence of 3 or more of the following qualifies for the diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder (~sociopathy):
1. Callous unconcern for the feelings of others.
2. Gross and persistent attitude of irresponsibility and disregard for social norms, and obligations.
3. Incapacity to maintain enduring relationships, though having no difficulty in establishing them.
4. Very low tolerance to frustration, a low threshold for discharge of aggression, including violence.
5. Incapacity to experience guilt or to profit from experience, particularly punishment.
6. Markedly prone to blame others or to offer plausible rationalization for the behavior that has brought the person into conflict with society.
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Via Kossack Liberaldad2
DSM-5 criteria for narcissistic personality disorder include these features:
- Having an exaggerated sense of self-importance
- Expecting to be recognized as superior even without achievements that warrant it
- Exaggerating your achievements and talents
- Being preoccupied with fantasies about success, power, brilliance, beauty or the perfect mate
- Believing that you are superior and can only be understood by or associate with equally special people
- Requiring constant admiration
- Having a sense of entitlement
- Expecting special favors and unquestioning compliance with your expectations
- Taking advantage of others to get what you want
- Having an inability or unwillingness to recognize the needs and feelings of others
- Being envious of others and believing others envy you
- Behaving in an arrogant or haughty manner
Early-Stage Dementia
Via Kossack Windtalker
- Memory loss — “I never said that. I never did that.” How many times has Trump said this, with total conviction? How often does he switch his positions, within minutes sometimes? And he says these things like he really believes them. An act or not?
- Repetitive speech patterns — People with early dementia don’t forget everything. Some things they remember quite well and keep repeating over and over and over again, like memories of past experiences. Think “Build a wall!” and “Crooked Hillary!”
- Belligerence — Anyone who has ever tried to argue with someone with dementia knows all about this! You will be shouted down, yelled at, contradicted, accused of all sorts of wrongdoing. Whatever is happening, it is all someone else’s fault — or the media’s.
- Paranoia — “Mexicans are stealing our jobs.” “He (Kahn) viciously attacked me.”
- Poor judgment — Just refused to endorse McCain and Ryan a week before their primary races
- Impulsive behavior — Lack of self-control causes impulsive actions in a number of situations. They become totally focused on whatever it is they need (or think they need) right now. “Get that baby out of here.”
- Lack of empathy — Consider all the hateful things Trump has said about people without having a clue as to how inappropriate the statements are.
Bat-shit Crazy
Via Mark Cuban, no specific criteria, except “went off the reservation”:
“Donald, initially, I really hoped he would be something different, that as a businessperson, I thought there was an opportunity there,” he told CNN at the rally on Saturday. “But then, he went off the reservation and went batshit crazy.”
He didn’t specify what this was in reference to but in just the last few days, Trump lied about the NFL contacting him to change the general election debate schedule, he criticized a fire marshal who helped him get out of a stalled elevator and went after Ghazala Khan, the mother of a 27-year-old Muslim war hero who was too emotional to speak during her husband’s speech at the DNC this week.
[…]
“I think she will be a strong president and that Trump would be a disaster as a president,” he said.
In Pittsburgh, Cuban seemed to have cribbed from the central ideas of the speeches throughout the Democratic National Convention this week; emphasizing optimism over negativity and characterizing the country as a place that was already great.
Just Plain Crazy
Eugene Robinson
During the primary season, as Donald Trump’s bizarre outbursts helped him crush the competition, I thought he was being crazy like a fox. Now I am increasingly convinced that he’s just plain crazy.
I’m serious about that. Leave aside for the moment Trump’s policies, which in my opinion range from the unconstitutional to the un-American to the potentially catastrophic. At this point, it would be irresponsible to ignore the fact that Trump’s grasp on reality appears to be tenuous at best.
Begin with the fact that he lies the way other people breathe. Telling a self-serving lie — no matter how transparent, no matter how easily disproved — seems to be a reflex for him. Look at the things he has said in just the past week.