Thursday, October 12. 2017

Today's schedule is D-C-B-A

D Block Criminology 12 - We'll continue our discussion on the divisions of murder in Canada (1st and 2nd degree and manslaughter), the extent of murder in Canada, and murderous relations (acquaintance and stranger homicide).

After, we'll try to make sense of mass and serial murder. As you know, most murder transactions are done by someone you know (acquaintances not strangers) and the bulk of murder cases are cleared (a suspect identified and a charge laid by Crown Counsel). If that is the case for the majority of homicides then what of multiple murders?

In Canada we have had both mass murderers (Marc Andre Lepine, killing 14 women and injuring 14 others at l'École Polytechnique in Montreal, 1989, and Alexandre Bissonnette, killing 6 and injuring 18 others at a mosque in Quebec City, 2017) and serial killers (Robert William Pickton, convicted of 6 counts of second-degree murder here in BC, Clifford Olson pleading guilty to 11 counts of first-degree murder here in BC and most recently Elizabeth Wettlaufer convicted of 8 counts of first-degree murder, 4 counts of attempted murder and 2 counts of aggravated assault). Are they Psychopaths?

Psychopathology focuses on Anti-Social Personality Disorders (DSM-V) along with sociopathy and psychopathy (hot-headed vs. cold-hearted)  Anti-Social Personality Disorder is diagnosed as:

A. There is a pervasive pattern of disregard for and violation of the rights of others occurring since age 15 years, as indicated by three (or more) of the following:
1. failure to conform to social norms with respect to lawful behaviors as indicated by repeatedly performing acts that are grounds for arrest
 2. deceitfulness, as indicated by repeated lying, use of aliases, or conning others for personal profit or pleasure
 3. impulsivity or failure to plan ahead
 4. irritability and aggressiveness, as indicated by repeated physical fights or assaults
 5. reckless disregard for safety of self or others
 6. consistent irresponsibility, as indicated by repeated failure to sustain consistent work behavior or honor financial obligations
 7. lack of remorse, as indicated by being indifferent to or rationalizing having hurt, mistreated, or stolen from another.

 B. The individual is at least age 18 years.
 C. There is evidence of conduct disorder with onset before age 15 years.
 D. The occurrence of antisocial behavior is not exclusively during the course of schizophrenia or a manic episode.

While both psychopathy and sociopathy are extreme forms of antisocial personality disorders, sociopathy is caused by social or environmental factors whereas psychopathic traits are more innate. From the Atlantic magazine...

In his landmark book on psychopathy, The Mask of Sanity, researcher Hervey Cleckley theorized that some people with the core attributes of psychopathy -- egocentricity, lack of remorse, superficial charm -- could be found in nearly every walk of life and at every level, including politics. Robert Hare, perhaps the leading expert on the disorder and the person who developed the most commonly used test for diagnosing psychopathy, has noted that psychopaths generally have a heightened need for power and prestige -- exactly the type of urges that make politics an attractive calling. In any event, the idea that a psychopath could reach the heights of power is nothing new.

So are all mass murderers and serial killers psychopaths? We'll take some more time to understand what a "psychopath" is...specifically a Charismatic Psychopath: charming, attractive liars; gifted at some talent, using it to their advantage in manipulating others; verbally facile fast-talkers who easily persuade others out of everything they own, even their lives


C Block Human Geography 11 - Today we are back in the library for our last day of work on your immigrant/migration project. Remember, you will imagine yourself in the role of a refugee/migrant who has relocated from one part of the world to another. Your job is to research in detail the many factors that are involved in a migration. You will need to produce a thorough written summary of your personal migration (A.K.A. Diary or Reflection journal or Newspaper article) or an audio podcast, a news video, an online blog, or whatever format you feel best tells your story. Good luck.

B Block Physical Geography 12 - I have the library reserved for the class so that you may finish work on your Orting College development project. I'll have some previous examples of student work for you to look at and need to remind you that this assignment is due next Wednesday; it is crucial that you hand it in to me as we will be at the end of our unit. We will have time on Friday morning's class to work on a topographic map of Koko Head (Hawai'i Kai) Hawai'i. This map activity can be found on pages 145 through 148 of the Canadian Landscape topographic map book.