I'm really, really proud of myself because for the first time in a long time I finished a book. Now, I have a ton of curiosity (always have) about everything under the sun from evolution, to politics, to social issues, to true crime, to psychology and so on but I almost never have the patience to sit down and a read a book from cover to cover.
But like many Americans I am captivated by a book called "Too Much and Never and Never Enough---How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man" by Mary Trump who is the niece of our President. And not for the salacious gossip about a powerful family dynasty but because it reaffirmed what I've always believed about the importance of understanding the pathology of people who serially harm others.
She talked in exruciating detail about why she believes her uncle Donald became the man he his and of course like most dysfunctional adults he had suffered in childhood. According to Mary, he at 2 1/2 years old had been abandoned in a sense when his mother had to be hospitalized for around a year due to complications from her pregnancy with her youngest child Robert and his father (her grandfather), whom she calls a naturally born sociopath,was incapable nor had any interest in taking care of his children in her absence. And his mother herself was incapable of loving and caring for the children in a selfless, loving and meaningful way. So the main title "too much and never enough" is referring to the emotional devastation that the five Trump siblings suffered as a result of an upbringing with immense material wealth yet one that was utterly devoid of love, affection and care. And in my view people develop empathy in early childhood from being nurtured and getting the opportunity to understand the breadth and depth of human emotions both in themselves and in others. Additionally we learned that he was being indoctrinated with the notion that being successful meant adopting a "killer" like personality where you have to be tough in the sense of disregarding others or basic morales and values to get what you want and that kindness and generosity = weakness.
It's also equally important to dissect the backgrounds of more every day bullies, adversaries and even violent criminals you may come across in life. Because like bullies virtually everyone who demonstrates harmful behavior (participation in gangs, the white power movement, becoming an abuser, etc.) have had experienced dysfunction in the home wether that may be parents with substance abuse issues, one or both parents incarcerated, poverty, illness,etc.
That is percisely why the FBI created the Behavioral Analysis Unit in the 1970s. This extension of the Federal Bureau of Investigation was instrumental in understanding and mainstreaming the pathology of violent criminals---serial killers in particular. Ted Bundy (one of the most famous serial killers of all time) helped them profoundly in his last years on death row by diving into the mind of a violent criminal and understanding their criminal pathology---motives, the types of victims they target and why, logistical things they do to get away with their crimes, etc. As sick as he was the knowledge he was offering law enforcement was transformative beyond belief.
So I want to let you all know a little dream of mine. Something I've come to rather recently, my dream post graduation is to interview street gang members and white supremacists and write about my findings. I am transfixed by both and I am aching to understand just how and why people become involved in these groups. I even came up with questionares that include questions about familial mental health backgrounds, socio-economic class, and much, much more. I want to look at people in the eyes who believe and have done unspeakable things with compassion and heart because I believe that that's the only way we as a society can get to the bottom of these issues.
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