Trump: Sociopath or Idiot Savant?

[wiggs]

Maybe it doesn't really matter, but WHY does he show no interest in what most people would think are very important matters for anyone, let alone a presidential candidate?

He does not appear to care about policy, facts, complexity, history, fairness, morality, justice, progress, gray issues, truth, precedent, laws, empathy, constitution. Shows no interest or understanding of any of these.

Is he INCAPABLE of understanding or does he understand and CHOOSE not to behave as though he does? Does he have any awareness of his shortcomings at all? Is he masquerading as a brilliant marketer and businessman but in reality he is Rain Man, mentally handicapped but spectacularly good at one thing?

His reputation by insiders is not good with respect to being a human being. He has no attention span, doesn't read, is incurious. No one has said he is a deep thinker, right? However, the guy is brilliant at self-promotion and domination. Don't know anything else he's good at. Counting tweet letters, maybe.

He is spectacularly good at one thing and incomprehensively bad at most things. That's the definition of Idiot Savant.

A sociopathic, extremely warped, abnormal, shallow mind focused on self-preservation and self-aggrandizement to an almost superhuman extent? Out of control expression?

[tazkcmo]

1. How about

Just an idiot?

[Siwsan]

2. How about a sociopathic savant

Just a thought.....

[Jim__]

3. Narcissist.

I don't think he can conceive of a job that he can't do.

[TexasBushwhacker]

10. Psychopath with narcisstic tendencies n/t

[moonscape]

18. And I think he lives on bluster, and is one of the most

insecure people I've ever seen.

[BSdetect]

4. All that and more

He's a walking indictment of the American political party system.

[BootinUp]

5. Trump is scared entitled asshole. eom

[C_U_L8R]

6. Self absorbed ignoramus

[Adrahil]

7. Con Man.

He's a classic con man. He tells the marks exactly what they want to hear. He plays to their emotions, fears and fantasies. That emotional appeal essentially bypasses any rational analysis. And once invested, such marks strongly resist efforts to make them "see the light."

Just look at his entire business career. This is EXACTLY what he has done his whole career. He created his brand early, appearing on "lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," a show explicitly intended to stoke voyeuristic envy among working class viewers. He then builds a business model around that envy. His name is associated with luxury... gaudy, ostentatious luxury. The IMAGE is all that's important. He then SELLS that image, again playing on the idea that he represents success. So casinos, phony "institutes" and "universities," and over-priced hotels. All there selling the idea that Trump means success and that if you associate yourself with that name, you're successful too. He makes PT Barnum look like an amateur.

[unblock]

8. he's an idiot savant without the savant part.

self-promotion is not "savant" anything.

a talent, or a behavior, is not "savant" even if it meets with some measure of success. it really needs to be some form of mental supriority, such as memory or calculation.

trump's self-promotion doesn't appear to be genius. it's a simple combination of exaggeration, lies, and persistence. it just happens to meet with a certain amount of success because of weaknesses in others, such as the media, who are incapable of the simple act of denouncing or sidelining someone who fully deserves to be ignored.

[OhZone]

9. OHMY!

[Madam45for2923]

11. PIG

[GeorgeGist]

12. Idiot sociopath covers it.

[easttexaslefty]

13. Borderline personality disorder

And a narcissist.

[KewlKat]

14. Malignant Personality, 3rd person, narcissistic sociopath, take your pick....or all of the above

THE MALIGNANT PERSONALITY:

These people are mentally ill and extremely dangerous! The following precautions will help to protect you from the destructive acts of which they are capable. To recognize them, keep the following guidelines in mind:

(1) They are habitual liars. They seem incapable of either knowing or telling the truth about anything.

(2) They are egotistical to the point of narcissism. They really believe they are set apart from the rest of humanity by some special grace.

(3) They scapegoat; they are incapable of either having the insight or willingness to accept responsibility for anything they do. Whatever the problem, it is always someone else’s fault.

(4) They are remorselessly vindictive when thwarted or exposed.

(5) Genuine religious, moral, or other values play no part in their lives. They have no empathy for others and are capable of violence. Under older psychological terminology, they fall into the category of psychopath or sociopath, but unlike the typical psychopath, their behavior is masked by a superficial social facade.

=====================

Major Human Flaw: Some people refer to themselves in the third person.

Response No. 1, by Elsa Ronningstam, associate clinical professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School and author of Identifying and Understanding the Narcissistic Personality:

Referring to yourself in the third person creates distance between "I" and "he." So if you have an exaggerated view of how great you are, you could be using this distance to make yourself even bigger. Or, if you've achieved major success suddenly, using the third person could be a way to adjust to the bigger role that's been assigned to you. It's a way to enlarge yourself to fit that role.

===============================

What is a narcissistic sociopath?

- A narcissistic sociopath is someone with a combination of narcissistic personality disorder and definitive behavioral signs of sociopathy.

- People with narcissism are characterized by their excessive and persistent need for others’ admiration and positive reinforcement. They generally have grandiose opinions of themselves and believe they are superior to other people. Narcissists are also frequently convinced that they are above the normal responsibilities and obligations of everyday life, so they usually have significant difficulties maintaining employment or relationships as a result.

- The narcissistic sociopath has this type of personality along with a noticeable lack of regard for the rights of others and a tendency to regularly violate those rights.

- The narcissist with the sociopathy reacts strongly and sometimes even violently to negative feedback. True sociopaths generally do not respond to criticism or care what others may think of them.

- A narcissistic sociopath is unable to tolerate criticism and needs constant praise, as well as deference from other people. Many with this condition present themselves in the best light possible and are able to easily charm others to gain their trust.


================================

In short, he's a mess and should be studied by the medical community to help prevent another human transforming into this monster.

[wiggs]

19. These make sense to me....where did you get the definitions? nt

[Avalux]

15. Why are you asking us to choose between two things that aren't really equitable?

Trump is a sociopath, or a psychopath. He has no regard for the worth of others and pays no attention to societal rules, that's why he acts the way he does.

This is the actual definition of idiot savant:

"A person who is considered to be mentally handicapped but displays brilliance in a specific area, especially one involving memory."

That's not Trump.

[Persondem]

16. Neither. Trump is a trust fund baby run amok. nt

[politicaljunkie41910]

17. He's certainly not an Idiot Savant. An Idiot Savant is someone who might be developmentally disabled

but can sit at a piano and play Mozart having never had a lesson. Trump is just an everyday garden variety Idiot. He's also a sociopath as he can lie on a dime, and has no conscience. No remorse. Trump shouldn't be confused with an Idiot Savant as there's no genius behind the mask; just a fool trying to avoid responsibility for his actions.

[wiggs]

21. There's something wrong with him, fundamentally, seems to me. Developmentally, mentally

disabled in some way. Something missing.

But at the same time, he's found a niche, a skill, a talent.

I don't believe he's brilliant across the board, like a world class con man or thief might be. I don't believe he's a moron across the board because he's able to excel in a narrow field of marketing himself.

Phenomenally weird in a way that's not obvious.

[Dem2]

20. Spoiled rich kid who has no concept of how normal people live

He presents as a narcissist w/sociopathic tendencies.

[wiggs]

22. "Some kind of psychosis..."

In today's times, front page, is an article about Trump's unprecedented lies for a candidate. At the end, there's something similar to this thread discussion:

Marty Kaplan, a professor of entertainment, media and society at USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, has two theories on Trump’s falsehoods.

Perhaps he’s just putting on an act, like P.T. Barnum — a “marketer, con, snake-oil salesman who knows better, knows how to get the rubes into the tent.” Or maybe, Kaplan suggested, Trump is just “completely unconstrained by logic, rules, tradition, truth, law.”

“I’m confused,” he said, “whether the whole fact-free zone that he’s in is a strategic calculation or a kind of psychosis.”

http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-false-statements-20160925-snap-story.html