It needs to be asked. Is Ben Carson self-medicating?

[Quixote1818]

This has been suggested several times inside threads and I think it needs its own thread. I was just listening to him in this video and he sounds high as a kite:

[olddots]

1. I need to self medicate to listen to him

He seems lethargic in his ineptitude as he plunges deeper into some other dimension .

[BlueJazz]

2. I know top Scientists are working on "smart Pills" I suspect he's taking the opposite.

Seriously, he reminds me of some of the spaced-out guys I've played with.
"Bob!..you're playing the wrong song" (really happened)

[DirkGently]

3. Our household notes that every time he speaks.

His inflection is so flat that he sounds on the verge of sleep.

Given that he's just announced he was prone to stabbing people in his youth, you can't help wondering if he's taking something to ensure he doesn't leap up screaming and tearing at his clothes.

Something is very, very wrong with Dr. Carson.

[olddots]

4. Ben is like a muscian that shows up for the gig without their instrument .

[Vinca]

5. Something's definitely not right with the man.

He sounds like an overmedicated patient on a psych ward.

[smirkymonkey]

10. Can you see this guy in a debate with Hillary?

She'll mop the floor with him.

[Vinca]

13. Well, first she'd have to wake him up. And keep him awake.

[CTyankee]

16. "Ben! Ben, did you hear me? Can you hear me now? Ben!"

She can't debate a man who is comatose...

[Paper Roses]

6. Funny you should mention this.

I wondered about the same thing! I can't stand to listen to him. At least Trump is interesting--one way or another. Carson seems to be half-awake and boring!

[truebluegreen]

7. Works for me!

...aaaaaaaaannnd it would be irresponsible not to speculate, when said person is running for Preznit!

[NightWatcher]

8. "And that will make no difference to his supporters". There's the kicker

The idiots voting for the idiot don't realize that he's an idiot (because of their aforementioned idiotness).

These idiots should not be allowed to vote.

[eShirl]

9. If it's not that, I'd like to know what else it could be. n/t

[murielm99]

11. Either that, or he has some sort of

debilitating illness. It is affecting him mentally and physically. I wonder if that is why he retired. Maybe he can't do surgery any more.

I have thought for a a long time, that something is wrong with him, both physically and mentally. Would that make him all that different from the other klowns in the kar?

[Runningdawg]

12. I did a little research after watching him speak the first time

I found this helpful

Imagine making a really important phone call in the middle of a crowded room. Would you study the faces of others around you while you spoke, or would you avert your eyes and turn your face toward the wall?
My guess is that you would do the later, so you could concentrate better.
Temple Grandin, the woman with Asbergers who explained to the world what it's like to be her, said that she avoids eye contact because the visual information is distracting. She can't concentrate on her response.
Of course, this strategy doesn't work well if you're having a meaningful conversation with the person in front of you.

[link:https://www.quora.com/Why-do-some-people-close-their-eyes-when-talking|

[nolabear]

14. Since I'm a shrink I won't really armchair diagnose, but

All kinds of bells go off when I see him. It would take actual info to know what those bells indicate but they're loud.

[CTyankee]

17. If he is self medicating, what do you think he would be taking?

I ask because I don't really know this type of personality. I do know there are some brilliant surgeons who self medicate but I never could understand what they would self medicate ON. Downers? Uppers?

[nolabear]

21. I don't know. There sometimes seem to be a sleepy disconnect, and sometimes not.

It's pure speculation. He seems to me least connected when he's under the most pressure, as in the debates or big speeches. When I see him in one on one conversations there seems to be much more actual eye contact and sense of emotional connection.

People do have strange psychological defenses though. And there's always something very odd about his presentation. That in itself shouldn't disqualify him legally but it should be noted and be a factor in whether people vote for him.

[Deadshot]

18. Something isn't right with him.

I don't understand how he could have been a successful brain surgeon when he can barely form a coherent sentence.

I wouldn't trust him to give me a hernia check, let alone operate on my brain.

[B Calm]

19. Barbiturates?

[Stinky The Clown]

20. He sounded like that 20 years ago.

His kook side was never public knowledge, but as a surgeon at Johns Hopkins he was often on local tv news. He's always sounded like that.

[randome]

22. Josh Marshall comes close to the same conclusion.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/does-the-gop-know-what-they-re-getting-into-with-carson

I've been a little mystified that no one seems to bring this up. But in the debates he frequently strikes me as half-lost or sedated. Gut check me here, am I really the only one who has this impression? Is it just me? Again, like Trump, I think he's judged by a different standard because people don't think he'll ever be the nominee. But he seems like he's not quite all there or thinking out loud in a way that is vaguely endearing but not at all what people look for in a head of state.

[hr][font color="blue"][center]"The whole world is a circus if you know how to look at it."
Tony Randall, 7 Faces of Dr. Lao (1964)[/center][/font][hr]

[backscatter712]

23. He does sound like he's completely stoned. nt

[Paladin]

24. I really think he is. Genuinely dangerous. (nt)