Friends, it’s been a very long time indeed since we called upon the kind offices of our in-house psychiatric consultant, Dr. Reinhold Ott, professor at the esteemed Intsitut für Psychologie Schwabische at the University of Tubingen.
We here at FFFF were wondering just what sort of personality is behind the arrogance of carpetbagging, and worse, the theft of property in the manic pursuit of elected office. Of course we are talking about the egregious Paulette Marshall Chaffee, the Fullerton City Council candidate who cooked up a phony residence in District 5, and who was very recently busted on video stealing an opponent’s campaign signs.
And so we reached out to Dr. Ott to get his professional take on Mrs. Chaffee. Here is what the good doctor had to say:
Thank you for providing what appears to be an interesting case. As always, I must preface my comments with the disclaimer that I have not interviewed this subject personally. Even so the evident behavior of this individual provides sufficient information to outline a fairly reasonable psychological profile.
There is a species of profound megalomania that is, unfortunately, not uncommon. This personality disorder renders its possessor unable to realistically place himself or herself in a world with other sentient beings. Others merely serve as tools or objects that exist for the glorification of the subject. While almost everyone suffers from a mild ego-driven solipsistic outlook, the severe narcissist (for so we must describe our subject) has become conditioned to project this outlook into a permanent and malignant personality.
Examining the behavior of our subject, one quickly recognizes ultra narcissism in the blind self-absorption that renders one incapable of realistic analysis of the world about oneself. The individual in question has determined that the best public good is perfectly congruent with her own interest of political aggrandizement. The fraudulent creation of a domicile in an area in which she does not live is consonant with the personality type we have observed above.
The idea of self-entitlement that accompanies the severe narcissist explains this individual’s theft of property that publicly challenges her behavior and that, therefore, must be removed from public perusal. The problem of personality disorder is thus compounded by moral and civil dereliction that, ironically, accompanies the subject’s protestations of desiring the “public good.”
The resignation statement offered by our subject to her followers is not atypical of the megalomaniac. It drips with self-pity, righteousness, and of course paints the perpetrator of misdeeds herself as victim. The embarrassed withdrawal is described as a righteous sacrifice made for the public welfare of the community.
It is important to stress that the symptoms of narcissism may often be confused with mental debilitation caused by the onset of deleterious effects of various species of dementia. Often these effects are compounded by both physiological and psychological causes working in tandem.
In closing, I feel compelled to reiterate that the personality revealed by our subject is not rare. The political sphere is viewed as a particularly suitable stage by this type, since it often offers effusive public praise and generally requires no particular ability.
