Reply #94

I'd concede sociopathy for Romney, but not psychopathy. Psychopathy usually involves a consistent manifestation of violence. A sociopath would have no trouble ordering others to hurt or even kill, but would not take pleasure in the act (they wouldn't be bothered with it either - it is simply a means towards an end). A psychopath, on the other hand, inflicts violence because it activates pleasure centers in their brain. They enjoy killing.

Psychopathy is relatively common. Sociopathic psychopathy is very rare. These are the quiet serial killers, people who are natural sociopaths but have learned to take pleasure in the hunt, and in the eluding of authorities. They are a staple of TV and movie dramas, because the combination of detective and sociopathic killer often makes for intricate, elaborate chess games with people as the pawns, but in reality they make up a very small proportion of all crime (or the population). I think it unlikely that Romney is one, though I have no trouble seeing him hire hitmen to take someone out.

I think a fair question to ask is whether Obama is a sociopath. He is clearly an introvert, intelligent and ambitious. He has charisma. However, he has demonstrated a fairly high degree of empathy, and there have been several times where his natural impulse towards empathy has had to be tempered with the realities of his office. He wants to make a difference. So, no, I don't think Obama is, but it points back to Romney's failings.

I have not yet seen anything in Romney's stance that indicates that he wants to make a difference - his platform is the same boilerplate rhetoric the Republicans have been using for years. At the same time, the few times that Romney has interacted in public in unscripted situations those have gone badly. You feel like he knows that he should be responding to others, but he really doesn't understand how and is impatient with having to go through the motions. In his mind, he is now President, and Obama is simply a pretender who can be disposed of down the road.