Psychopathy
Introduction
There is a powerful pandemic affecting millions of people throughout the world today and many people aren’t even aware of its existence, let alone its true form. One little known statistic is that 1 in 100 people are psychopaths. When most people hear the word psychopath they think ‘crazy person’ or ‘murderer’. Serial killers are indeed psychopathic but surprisingly, not all psychopaths are serial killers. Even more surprising is the fact that psychopathic entities don’t even have to be human.
PART 1
The Usual Suspects
Jeffrey Dahmer
Jeffrey Dahmer was convicted of the murders of 20 men between the years of 1978 and 1981. When the police entered Dhamer’s home they found several corpses stored in acid filled vats, severed heads stored in a refrigerator, and human skulls stored in a closet. They later discovered that he was also a necrophiliac and a cannibal.
Dahmer was charged with 15 counts for the murder and dismemberment of 15 young men and was sentenced to 15 life sentences totaling 937 years in prison. He was beaten to death in prison by a fellow inmate.
John Wayne Gacy Jr.
John Wayne Gacy Jr. was convicted of the rapes and murders of 33 young men between the years of 1972 and 1978. When police entered his home they found bodies of 26 of his victims stored in the crawl space, three buried in other places on the property, and four were supposedly dumped at a nearby river.
He was charged with one death sentence for each of the 33 murders. After spending 14 years on death row Gacy was executed by lethal injection.
Ted Bundy
The case of Ted Bundy is much more complicated because of his multiple criminal activities, prison break, and open cases in multiple states. Regarding the murders, he admitted to raping, torturing, and mutilating his victims prior to death and revisiting the bodies after dumping them to further abuse the remains of his victims.
In July of 1979 Bundy was convicted of two murders, three counts of attempted first degree murder, and two counts of burglary. He received the death sentence for each of the murders. In February of 1980 Bundy received the death penalty a third time for abduction and murder in a separate case. Bundy admitted responsibility for the murders of 30 or more women after he had already been sentenced to death. Bundy was executed by electric chair in January of 1989. The true number of victims remains unknown.
What is a Psychopath?
Not all psychopaths are like the prototypical serial killers that first come to mind when we hear the word. Many psychopaths function quite well in society and grow to become rather successful in highly desirable positions within business and politics.
There is no official definition of psychopathy, even among scholars. It is closely associated with sociopathy in many documents, is sometimes defined as a subtype of dissocial personality disorder, and sometimes as an equivalent. Some scholars say that the difference between a sociopath and a psychopath is that sociopaths are able to feel empathy and psychopaths are not but that is still debatable. There is also some debate regarding how much of a role ones social environment plays in the development of the disorders, with sociopathy being more closely related to environmental factors and psychopathy more closely related to neurological and genetic factors.
Psychopathy is a personality disorder related to damage in the prefrontal cortex and amygdale of the brain and is sometimes triggered by activation of the MAO-A or Warrior Gene. The most prominent trait of psychopathic people is that they are incapable of being empathic. Not due to intellectual incapacity but rather due to the simple incapability or incompetency of recognizing, sharing, and understanding the emotions of others. Because of their stunning lack of empathy and concern for others they see people more like objects or material belongings that can be owned, dominated, and abused freely.
Dr. Robert D. Hare is quoted as describing psychopathic people as “…predators who use charm, manipulation, intimidation, sex and violence to control others and satisfy their own selfish needs. Lacking in conscience and empathy, they take what they want and do as they please, violating social norms and expectations without guilt or remorse. What is missing, in other words, are the very qualities that allow a human being to live in social harmony.”
Psychopathic people are extremely egotistical, self centered, lacking in remorse, and are intentionally manipulative of others to meet their own ends although externally, psychopathic people are able to function perfectly well and blend naturally into society and work environments. Higher education and social interaction allow some of them to avoid the ‘downward spiral’ of drug and alcohol abuse that most psychopaths are prone to.
Functioning Psychopaths and
The Achievements of John Wayne Gacy Jr.
Psychopaths paint admirable portraits of themselves for the outside world. John Wayne Gacy had accomplished many respectable things during his life. He had worked as precinct captain for a local democratic politician, graduated from Northwestern Business College, was president of the Jaycees Springfield chapter, owned and operated a remodeling business and would hire inexperienced young men to help them learn the trade. He would also dress as Pogo the Clown and perform and community events and personal parties. He has even been photographed with First Lady Rosalynn Carter during the 1970’s when he was director of the annual Polish Constitution Day Parade in Chicago, Illinois. To the community Gacy had been a very respectable man since his youth and they were shocked by his conviction.
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