Jul 30, 2023·edited Jul 30, 2023Liked by Bill Quick
On the part about psychopaths being hard to determine ("no way to spot them"). In large communities I suppose that might be the case. One odd fish in a whole bunch of ordinary fish, as it were. But small communities are different.
In my life I have known, for sure, 3 true psychopaths (all males) and they were easy to spot if you paid attention. One committed a murder and got away with it, but ended up in prison later for lesser atrocities. One apparently committed suicide at age 17 (fresh from a lengthy stay in juvie) by hitting a railroad crossing concrete bollard at high speed with another young man and two young women in the car with him. All four died.
The third managed to physically damage many people (all women, youngish children, or the very elderly) for at least two decades. (I only knew him the last 15 years of his life.) He also seriously threatened many people with physical harm, and scared many others. He was killed from ambush early one morning as he stepped out on his back porch. His killer was never found. Personally, I don't think anyone wanted to find 'him', other than maybe to give him a medal. When asked about suspects, the local County Sheriff in charge of the investigation (county of some 15,000 people) told a nearby urban newspaper, "I suspect everybody who ever met that rotten son-of-a-bitch." A feeling shared by all who knew him.
Look. All three of them were obviously vicious, no conscience or shame bad people the whole time I knew them. They had no "stop point" other than true physical force (or the credible threat thereof).
I knew the youngest from the time he was 2. As a 2-year-old he was a rotten, mean, vicious child. And it got worse as he got older. In all three cases it appeared not to be a question of will they kill, but when will they kill, and how many? Just about everyone who knew them seemed to me to share that feeling. (Along with, "If I just stay away from him, maybe I'll be safe.")
What do you do with such individuals *before* they cross the line to murder? And after they murder is life imprisonment the correct response? I don't think so.
Those who are the human equivalent of rabid dogs must be at the very least separated from the rest of humanity BEFORE they kill, if we can, but certainly "put down" after killing. No exceptions.
Great read, with one exception. According to my information, the Commandment is "Thou shalt not commit murder."
On the part about psychopaths being hard to determine ("no way to spot them"). In large communities I suppose that might be the case. One odd fish in a whole bunch of ordinary fish, as it were. But small communities are different.
In my life I have known, for sure, 3 true psychopaths (all males) and they were easy to spot if you paid attention. One committed a murder and got away with it, but ended up in prison later for lesser atrocities. One apparently committed suicide at age 17 (fresh from a lengthy stay in juvie) by hitting a railroad crossing concrete bollard at high speed with another young man and two young women in the car with him. All four died.
The third managed to physically damage many people (all women, youngish children, or the very elderly) for at least two decades. (I only knew him the last 15 years of his life.) He also seriously threatened many people with physical harm, and scared many others. He was killed from ambush early one morning as he stepped out on his back porch. His killer was never found. Personally, I don't think anyone wanted to find 'him', other than maybe to give him a medal. When asked about suspects, the local County Sheriff in charge of the investigation (county of some 15,000 people) told a nearby urban newspaper, "I suspect everybody who ever met that rotten son-of-a-bitch." A feeling shared by all who knew him.
Look. All three of them were obviously vicious, no conscience or shame bad people the whole time I knew them. They had no "stop point" other than true physical force (or the credible threat thereof).
I knew the youngest from the time he was 2. As a 2-year-old he was a rotten, mean, vicious child. And it got worse as he got older. In all three cases it appeared not to be a question of will they kill, but when will they kill, and how many? Just about everyone who knew them seemed to me to share that feeling. (Along with, "If I just stay away from him, maybe I'll be safe.")
What do you do with such individuals *before* they cross the line to murder? And after they murder is life imprisonment the correct response? I don't think so.
Those who are the human equivalent of rabid dogs must be at the very least separated from the rest of humanity BEFORE they kill, if we can, but certainly "put down" after killing. No exceptions.
Great essay - with two of my favorite passages (Starship Troopers and Napier) no less!