DL Open Thread: Saturday, May 31, 2025
Yes, He’s A Psychopath. Not even a borderline psychopath:
Let me start by observing that Trump certainly is a unique character — flamboyant, politically incorrect, and enthralling to his supporters. He is the central protagonist in our current political crisis. Strikingly, he is unmoved by the wrath directed at him by his political opponents. This defiance, coupled with his ability to ‘troll the libs,’ is a central part of his appeal. Supporters and detractors would agree that he is riveting and seems to operate in a realm of his own making.
However, as I will argue, he is anything but unique. He is a garden-variety example of a particular and precisely delineated psychiatric condition. He is, sadly for him and dangerously for the rest of us, a prisoner of his psychopathology, a puppet on the strings of a set of destructive personality traits that dictate his behavior. He is at the mercy of those traits, and, by extension, so are we.
As mental health professionals, we have an ethical duty to not only inform but to warn: even with all he has done and all he has threatened to do, because of his condition, we are on solid scientific grounds to warn you that we are underestimating the danger he poses. We hope that this disturbing message can raise awareness of the threat that Trump, saddled with this condition, represents and mobilize us to do whatever we can to defeat him at the ballot box.
It’s a lengthy article grounded in science. I recommend that you read it. Yet another reason for Trump to hate science.
Musk, His Drugs, And His Sperm:
Mr. Musk’s drug consumption went well beyond occasional use. He told people he was taking so much ketamine, a powerful anesthetic, that it was affecting his bladder, a known effect of chronic use. He took Ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms. And he traveled with a daily medication box that held about 20 pills, including ones with the markings of the stimulant Adderall, according to a photo of the box and people who have seen it.
It is unclear whether Mr. Musk, 53, was taking drugs when he became a fixture at the White House this year and was handed the power to slash the federal bureaucracy. But he has exhibited erratic behavior, insulting cabinet members, gesturing like a Nazi and garbling his answers in a staged interview.
At the same time, Mr. Musk’s family life has grown increasingly tumultuous as he has negotiated overlapping romantic relationships and private legal battles involving his growing brood of children, according to documents and interviews.
As a large government contractor, Mr. Musk’s aerospace firm, SpaceX, must maintain a drug-free work force and administers random drug tests to its employees. But Mr. Musk has received advance warning of the tests, according to people close to the process. SpaceX did not respond to questions about those warnings.
But last year, as he jumped into the political arena, some people who knew him worried about his frequent drug use, mood swings and fixation on having more children.
It’s a great wallow. So, wallow.
My Kind Of Circular Firefight–Trump Vs. Leonard Leo:
President Donald Trump late Thursday bizarrely tore into a prominent figure of the conservative legal movement, Leonard Leo, and blamed him for a federal court ruling that briefly blocked most of his tariffs.
Trump leaned heavily on Leo, a former leader of the conservative Federalist Society, in his first term in office for picking people for lifetime federal judgeships. Trump essentially farmed out his judicial selection process to Leo, who handpicked most of the president’s appeals court and Supreme Court nominees.
“I was new to Washington, and it was suggested that I use The Federalist Society as a recommending source on Judges,” Trump said in a rambling post on social media. “I did so, openly and freely, but then realized that they were under the thumb of a real ‘sleazebag’ named Leonard Leo, a bad person who, in his own way, probably hates America, and obviously has his own separate ambitions.”
The president said Leo “openly brags how he controls Judges, and even Justices of the United States Supreme Court.”
Kids, when Trump does something ‘bizarre’, go back and read that story about his psychopathic behavior. Bottom line: He just can’t help himself.
TACO Cat Promises Tariffs On Steel He Can’t Legally Impose. Hey, he was talking to steelworkers, what’d you expect?:
Donald Trump said he was doubling tariffs on imported steel to 50% at a rally celebrating a “partnership” deal between US Steel and Japan-based Nippon Steel on Friday.
Speaking in front of an audience of steelworkers, the US president said: “We are going to be imposing a 25% increase. We’re going to bring it from 25% to 50%, the tariffs on steel into the United States of America, which will even further secure the steel industry in the United States.”
The surprise announcement, which contained no further detail, was cheered by the crowd at a US Steel plant in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania. Trump added: “Nobody is going to get around that.”
He spoke after US markets closed for the weekend. But the increase, set to take effect next week, is likely to create fresh economic turmoil. (I dunno. Investors are starting to price in the fleeting nature of his threats/promises. As in, they’re not happening.)
Christiana Care Successfully Rope-A-Dope’s On Hospital Care Review Board. While spending something like $50 mill to acquire assets from Chester-Crozer:
A lawsuit filed by ChristianaCare seeking to strike down a marquee effort by Delaware legislators to rein in health care costs will continue, according to a May 30 ruling.
Last year, ChristianaCare, the state’s largest non-government employer and largest health care provider, asked the Delaware Chancery Court to strike down the Diamond State Hospital Cost Review Board, a state-appointed body empowered to review and approve hospital budgets in an effort to tamp down health care costs.
On May 30, a judge dismissed most of the legal claims made by the hospital system, but allowed some to proceed into further litigation.
Remember, kids, Sen. Ray Seigfried is fighting on behalf of Christiana Care in the Delaware General Assembly. You, uh, might want to consider a donation to Shay Frisby, who is primarying him in 2026. I have, and I’ve just started knocking doors for her.
What do you want to talk about?
Here’s Trump’s Psychopath Score:
““Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (HCL-R) (Over 30 is a Psychopath)
1. Glibness/superficial charm — 2
2.Egocentricity/grandiose sense of self-worth — 2
3.Proneness to boredom/need for stimulation — 2
4. Pathological lying and deception/gaslighting — 2
5. Conning/lack of sincerity — 2
6. Lack of remorse or guilt — 2
7. Shallow affect — 2
8. Callous/lack of empathy — 2
9. Parasitic lifestyle — 0
10. Poor behavioral controls — 2
11. Promiscuous sexual behavior — 2
12. Early behavior problems — 2
13. Lack of realistic long-term goals — 1
14. Impulsivity — 2
15. Irresponsibility — 2
16. Failure to accept responsibility for own actions — 2
17. Many short-term marital relationships — 1
18. Juvenile delinquency — 1
19. Revocation of parole — 0
20. Criminal versatility — 2
Total = 33
To give you some perspective, the average violent criminal checks in at 22.
Zzzzzzzzzz…. get Trump’s nuts out of your mouth. This shit is so old and played out.
I’m a Dem and this is lazy and boring. The far left is losing and has no direction. Do better.
Sure thing, sport. You first.