Overheard at a family wedding

Future in-laws during a toast: "And we'd like to thank the _______ family, who has completely seduced us."

Cousin: "Not surprising, from a family that reads how-to books on seduction."

Outting Myself?

M.E.: I'm planning on outing myself as a sociopath in my next book club meeting for East of Eden. What do you think? Good idea or bad idea?
Friend: Hm. People don't really understand what you mean by that. They just think you are being facetious, and East of Eden is not the venue for facetiousness
M.E.: Well, it has the one character who is a sociopath, right? People always say she is this caricature of evil when really she is just like a textbook sociopath.
Friend: I dunno buddy. Why out yourself?
M.E.: Maybe I don’t want to be ashamed of it. I feel like it is the topic of the day for me, so to speak.
Friend: are you ashamed?
M.E.: No, but why would i need to lie about it?
Friend: No one is asking you if you are one. Don’t ask don’t tell. :)
M.E.: I seriously feel like these are my people and we are constantly being maligned.
Friend: Buddy... I think the only sociopaths that are maligned are the ones that hurt people. You don’t hurt people.
M.E.: Don’t I?
Friend: Well, maybe the approach should be like--hey, I have problems, don’t understand social norms, but I adapt and learn... blah blah blah. And that's not entirely true... I think people are really coming around about people with autism and Aspergers. Sociopath implies serial killer.
M.E.: I know! Oppression!
Friend: Well, considering the other popular -path is psychopath...

House, MD: Sociopaths Making Friends

Dr. House, of the TV show House, MD, is a sociopath. House, like Dexter, is sympathetically portrayed--perhaps even more so than Dexter. But recently his fictional best friend Wilson has been hating on him. House sort of kills his best friend's girlfriend Amber, and then tries to apologize:

"I'm sorry. I know I didn't try to kill her. I know I didn't want to hurt. I know it was a freak accident. But I feel like crap and she's dead because of me."
"I don't blame you. I wanted to. I tried to. I must have reviewed Amber's case file a hundred times to find a way— but it wasn't your fault."
"Then we're okay? I mean I know you aren't but— Maybe I can help."
Wilson finally responds, with lots of pauses while in spite of all his habits to spare House, Wilson tells him what he's really feeling. "We're not okay. Amber was never the reason I was leaving. I didn't want to tell you because— because I was trying like I always do to protect you, which is the problem. You spread misery because you can't feel anything else. You manipulate people because you can't handle any kind of real relationship. And I've enabled it. For years. The games. The binges. The middle-of-the-night phone calls. I should have been the one on the bus not—" Wilson catches himself doing what he has always done. "You should have been alone on the bus. If I've learned anything from Amber it's that I have to take care of myself." Wilson picks up the last of his belongings before walking out with these parting words. "We're not friends any more, House. I'm not sure we ever were."

House doesn't know whether Wilson is serious or not, so gives him a long leash. After giving him space for a while, he tests the water again, knocks on the door to Wilson's house and tells him:

"I need an epiphany. What are you billing out at? Three Hundred an hour? Here's four."
"There are other oncologists."
"Better oncologists. But I need you. Let me describe the symptoms, problems, issues, you say whatever you feel like saying until something triggers an idea in my head."
"That's not the way it works."
"You have a way of thinking about things.It's sloopy, it's undisciplined, it's not very linear. It compliments mine. It drives me down avenues that I wouldn't otherwise—"
"House, please go away."
House tries to continue discussing the case until Wilson tries to shut the door on him. Then he stops the door from closing and asks, "How are you?"
"Don't do this. Please. Please, don't do this. I'm trying to move on."
House isn't willing to give up and after asking some more, admits, "I paid a private investigator to spy on you."
"You didn't."
"If you want to move on from me, you've got to deal with me, talk to me."
"You have no right."
"We're not friends anymore. There's no trust to be breached. I can have you followed, I can call you names, tell your secrets..."
"I have the right to walk away from you, House. There's a world beyond you. You need to realize that and even if you don't I'm moving on. The next time you knock, I'm not answering."

Now of course I side with House. Is there any reason I could be wrong?

Interview with a sociopath part III

M.E.: So I think your yahoo group is pretty unusual, if only because the conventional wisdom seems to be that sociopaths are disassociative. Like redheads, sociopaths supposedly don't like associating with other sociopaths. Has there ever been a problem? Do you think that sociopaths are disassociative?

V: No. "Sociopaths" as I think of them are not dissociative. This is why they are not normal. Read the last section of Wilhelm Reich's CHARACTER ANALYSIS. What he says about the "emotional plague" of mankind. "Normal" people are captivated by their rationalizations and delusions, which function to protect them from reality. It is the rare and unique individual who can face reality, the possibility of human freedom and rise above.

M.E.: Any common misconceptions about sociopaths you want to debunk?

V: Why bother? "Sociopaths" already know the truth, from the inside. Are you asking me whether I want to "reason" with irrational people? Sounds like a waste of time to me.
I don't feel the need to justify my personal integrity to assholes.

M.E.: Yeah, okay. Thanks.

Interview with a sociopath part II

M.E.: So you have a yahoo group, elite_sociopath, which i enjoy reading.

V: Glad you enjoy it.

M.E.: How did it get started?

V: The Yahoo Group started by myself and a few others recruiting all the smartest people from every good discussion forum we knew. We all had the same problem. Getting kicked off of groups and forii for being smarter than the moderator and showing the moderator up. The literature group, various Nietzsche groups, Heidegger, Reich and other groups are where most of the original people came from. Nowadays we also get people from occult forums and stuff.

M.E.: Whoa, occult forums? Nice. Is there a greater proportion of sociopaths on those type of forums? Or do sociopaths rise to the surface like cream in milk in yahoo group forums?

V: No, not everyone is a sociopath, necessarily.

M.E.: So what's with the name?

V: Well the sociopath discussion forum is FOR people like "us." Not that you have to be elite to join, anyone can join.

M.E.: But the empaths are all socio-friendly? How do those dynamics work out?

V: Often people find out that they can't take it, so they quit.

M.E.: Yeah, I've had people quit on me too, after they realized they couldn't take it. It's kind of a drag. I wish I could take it as well as you seem to.