Salon plays armchair psychologist for Trump, Biden
January 5, 2022
Donald Trump “has malignant psychopathology” and President Joe Biden has “ a decent, empathetic, competent and moral disposition.” This is according to two self-proclaimed experts in psychological examination via TV shows. This is less evidence than we might normally use to work out someone’s character, but it’s good enough for Salon.
The entire game here is in direct violation of the Goldwater Rule – “an American Psychiatric Association stipulation that mental health professionals should not comment on the psychological or psychiatric status of a person whom he or she has not directly assessed in a clinical setting. “ Our two stalwarts decide that they don’t need to be bound by this as it’s possible to read peoples’ tweets these days. So there.
The real background here is just another part of the near-constant campaign to who that D is everything nice, sugar and spice, while R is a fascistic puppy dogs’ tails that wants to steal democracy. Which really is how the rest of it goes. The QAnon caucus “are grossly unqualified repeat liars “ which is a strange thing to say about people who get elected. The only qualification for election in a democracy is that folks will vote for you in sufficient numbers to get elected. That’s what the system is. The Republican Party at large is “a twisted combination of limited intellectual ability “ with, in some cases, “sociopathic tendencies.” Which is a great way, when you come to think of it, of attracting the support of near half the country, to call them both stupid and mad.
Salon is ranked at No. 66 in media reporting upon government and attracts some 8 million visits a month. This really is how a significant part of the professional Left think Salon is reflecting their beliefs.
That some significant portion of the population is in a frenzy is one thing. But that parts of the media not just reflect but stoke it is another. A couple of politically partisan academics looking at TV tapes does not a mental diagnosis make. The mere idea is laughable but this is being reported as straight fact.
Was it really less than 20 years ago that the Left was unanimous in telling us that Terri Schiavo couldn’t be diagnosed from TV pictures?