Dr. Storms and Jed, it is not painful for me to discuss this. Knowing the
enemy is half the battle. This condition becomes somewhat dangerous when
the person does not recognize what they are doing and have moved into a
position of power. It seems this chrismatic "skill" lends itself to the
political arena. I suspect many politicians have this condition in various
degrees. Believing in what you say is a very powerful communications tool,
and is very difficult to fake unless you are an actor or possess this ADD
"confabulating" mechanism.
We are the type of people that are "most" productive when kept behind a
locked door and tossed a pizza every now and then. We most definitely think
outside the box, in part due to the memory linkage errors, and can be
extremely creative ... but not predictable. Our type definitely has a place
in society just not in a position of power or authority. If asked how we
arrive at "C" we cannot outline the steps A and B because for the most part
our behavior is intuitive (which can be dangerous). I have seen this
behavior pattern in President Bush's arguments many times. Another one of
the flags for this condition is the simple child like humor that President
Bush exhibits on many occasions. I also possess this hard to suppress drive
to make somewhat crude jokes at another person's expense. This is just part
of the ADD package.
Anyone on this list who would like deeper insights into the ADD mindset;
feel free to ask me (off list, if desired), this is one subject I am an
expert at.
One last comment, most ADD personalities can be "handled" easily by people
who know what they are doing. We do not want this type of person as
president or vice president. However; they are extremely effective at
bringing in the votes. This is our "oxymoron" for the day.
-DonW-
----- Original Message -----
From: Jed Rothwell
To: vortex-L@eskimo.com
Sent: Monday, October 06, 2008 11:56 AM
Subject: Re: [Vo]:The Off Topic Threads
DonW wrote:
"Several former rivals have pointed to her
uncanny ability to make emotional connections with voters, even when
she can't answer a question."
Both of the above are major *FLAGS* for ADHD. I should know .. I have this
condition. . . .
These people can be very chrismatic, are experts at circular logic and
usually pathological liars.
When they are unscripted, they have major issues with memory LINKAGE. They
have the memories but have delayed access to them, usually minutes - hours -
days after needed. This results in a subconscious effort to fill in the
memory holes; hence the pathological lies.
Wow. Thanks for discussion what must be a painful thing to deal with.
The process of filling in "memory holes" -- as you call them -- is observed
in other conditions, such as long term memory loss. An extreme example was
described by Oliver Sacks for a patient with Korsakov's syndrome
(amnesic-confabulatory syndrome). It is not lying because the person
momentarily believes the statements are true. It is "confabulating." Sacks
also describes holes:
[The patient] remembered nothing for more than a few seconds. He was
continually disoriented. Abysses of amnesia continually open beneath him,
but he would bridge them, nimbly, by fluid confabulations and fictions all
kinds. For him they were not fictions, but how he suddenly saw, or
interpreted, the world. . . . So far as he was concerned, there was nothing
the matter . . .
- "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for Hat," p. 109
Since they believe in what they are saying (at the moment), and the "memory
fills" are tailored to the event/person in front of them, they can be
chrismatic.
Yes. That's what Sacks and others say.
- Jed
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