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Psychopathy, Antisocial People & How to Protect Yourself

10/12/2023

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Most of us just want to be decent people, lead good lives and be happy. But there is an irreconcilable fact that antisocial and predatory people - psychopaths and sociopaths - walk among us. Robert Hare, PhD, argues that 1 percent of people are psychopaths, while the clinical psychologist Martha Stout puts the figure closer to 4 percent of the population. These individuals often have Cluster-B traits such as anti-social personality disorder.  

The presence of predatory and antisocial individuals in the general population is a major problem for several reasons. First, anti-social people inflict a lot of damage on other people and society at large. Second, psychopathy especially is studied far less than other clinical disorders. And finally, most people are not trained to identify individuals with psychopathy and other antisocial personality disorders, and some do not, or will not, even acknowledge its sinister presence in others at all.  

​None of us are completely immune from the manipulative or aggressive behavior of antisocial personality types. 
It turns out that good, regular people tend to have a lot of blind spots when it comes to evaluating the character of others, identifying antisocial behavior, assessing risk, and determining who to trust. Even if you pride yourself on being a good judge of character, crime statistics show that the majority of people are often wrong. I've come across a lot of helpful expert information on how to protect yourself that I'll share with you in this post. Here's how to be a better judge of character:


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New Video: The Ethics of Sex and Guns with Dan Demetriou

5/16/2023

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In this provocative discussion, I interview philosopher Dan Demetriou about his work on sexual ethics and self-defense.

We discuss societal trends which are leading to Dan's (Gen Y) students having less sex than prior generations and being more sexually unhappy on the whole. Dan discusses statistics indicating a that high percent of young men today are sexless, why people are dating or getting married less frequently, and the negative implications that this may have for Western civilization. Dan also discusses his work on "sexual creepiness," why people get called creepy, and when it might be fair or unfair to classify someone as "creepy."

We also discuss self-defense, pacifism, and how Dan's argument for dignity informs the gun rights debate from a position that both left and right might agree on.


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Solomon Kane: Must See Fantasy Flick About the Surprising Paradox of Nonviolence

2/19/2016

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While doing research for this post, I came across the unusual phrase "A lasting peace, through the judicious use of the spear." This phrase perfectly sums up the salient moral message in Solomon Kane, an independent Sword and Sorcery film about a Puritan vigilante sworn to fight evil in 16th Century England.
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Far from being another film full of gratuitous violence, Solomon Kane explores a rather profound ethical question: when does adherence to nonviolence trump the moral and personal obligation to protect your life, or the lives of your family, from immanent harm? 

Solomon Kane 
offers an unexpected axiom on the paradox of nonviolent philosophy. Pacifism is undoubtedly a philosophy arising from a selfless desire to not harm others. Pacifists view all violence as a moral failing. But paradoxically, the failure to protect others from immanent rape, murder, etc, when in a position to do so, leads to them being harmed. Under certain circumstances, nonviolence is actually a selfish philosophy, rather than a selfless philosophy.

In a world where evil people rape and murder, forceful opposition to violence is not only pragmatic, it necessary and moral. The most pragmatic and ethical position is nonaggression, rather than nonviolence.



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What Everyone Needs to Know About Violence and Self-Defense 

11/30/2013

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In my experience, many people do not have a well thought out position regarding interpersonal violence and self defense. The prevalent attitude seems to vary between two extremes; a naive type of pacifism on one hand, or a let's get em’ type of aggression on the other. Both positions are unreasonable in different ways.

This post provides a deeper examination of the ethics of violence and self defense. 
I explain why neither pro-aggression positions or naive pacifist positions on the ethics of violence are ideal, and I posit a third approach, non-aggression, which I argue is the most ethical. 
When properly understood, non-aggression and forceful self-defense are not morally incompatible.

A corollary is that Most Westerners who believe in extreme pacifism when it comes to individual self defense do so naively. Very few people, even some thinkers credited with advocating for extreme pacifism for political purposes, actually believe in it on an individual level. A careful study reveals that Thoreau, and Martin Luther King, and at least one Buddhist sect, advocate individual self-defensive force as moral, necessary and courageous. Even Ghandi, who is not typically a reasonable pacifist, has moments where he admits to the necessity of self defense for individuals, particularly for those who aren't spiritually committed to self-immolation as he is. 

This makes sense, of course, because the need for self defense will persist until everyone in the world non-aggressive. Therefore, the most pragmatic and ethical position is one of conscious non-initiation of violence, which at the same time does not preclude forceful self-defense if necessary. 


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Are Covert Manipulation Techniques Ethical?

9/24/2013

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Some forms of covert manipulation (propaganda for example), have likely been around for thousands of years. However, new and organized covert manipulation methods like neuro-linguistic programming and pick-up artist techniques, have risen to prominence within the last 15 years or so with the advent of the Internet. It is probable that more average people are now engaging in covert manipulation than ever before.

I might as well state the conclusion that I have drawn first before we examine some of these specific techniques in more detail below. All covert manipulation tactics are unethical and here is why: we may be tempted to employ covert persuasion techniques when it benefits us, but we don't like the thought that someone is secretly manipulating us without our knowledge. You should treat others how you would like to be treated.

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