Anders Behring Breivik -Aspie?

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http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/25/world ... eivik.html


OSLO — When Anders Behring Breivik was not plotting mass murder and fine-tuning the bomb he detonated here last week, he was busy playing video games and blogging, listening to Euro pop and watching episodes of “True Blood” — except on Sunday nights, when he usually dined with his mother.


It was a parallel life he maintained meticulously in recent years. Former classmates and colleagues described him as unremarkable and easy to forget, qualities, perhaps inborn, that he cultivated — consciously, he would say — to mask his dedication to what he called his “martyrdom operation.”

For years, Mr. Breivik, who is 32, participated in debates in Internet forums on the dangers of Islam and immigration. It is not clear at what point he decided that violence was the solution to the ills he believed were tearing European civilization asunder. Before the attacks that he has admitted mounting on government buildings and a children’s summer camp on Friday, he was careful never to telegraph his intentions.

“He didn’t say anything you could remember,” said Stig Fjellskaalnes, who knew Mr. Breivik when he was a member of Norway’s conservative Progress Party in the early 2000s. “He’s one of the crowd, if you know what I mean. You forget him.”

Yet it was about a decade ago that Mr. Breivik started to change. Once a schoolboy who was fond of hip-hop and had a Muslim best friend, in his 20s he began to view the immigrants who flowed freely into Norway and elsewhere in Europe as enemies, and those who sought to accommodate them as traitors, worthy only of execution.

“Around year 2000 I realized that the democratic struggle against the Islamization of Europe, European multiculturalism, was lost,” he wrote in a manifesto that he published on the Web shortly before the attacks. “I decided to explore alternative forms of opposition. Protesting is saying that you disagree. Resistance is saying you will put a stop to this. I decided I wanted to join the resistance movement.”

With the 1,500-page manifesto, which he said took three years to complete, Mr. Breivik endeavored to find common cause with xenophobic right-wing groups around the world, particularly in the United States. He quoted extensively from the anti-Islam writings of American bloggers, and cut and pasted a whole section of the manifesto written by Theodore J. Kaczynski, known as the Unabomber, into his own, replacing “leftism” with “multiculturalism” as the object of aspersion.

“He has an apocalyptic view,” said Magnus Ranstorp, research director of the Center for Asymmetric Threat and Terrorism Studies at the Swedish National Defense College. “He thinks it will take 70 to 80 years to reverse the ‘Arabization’ of Europe. He sees himself as a part of history.”

Early in life, Mr. Breivik, far from being a radical, appeared to be on a track to join Norway’s political establishment. He grew up in Skoyen, a middle-class district of western Oslo. His father, a civil servant, and mother, a nurse, divorced when he was 1. Beyond that, his childhood seems to have been uneventful; Mr. Breivik said in his manifesto that it was happy.

He attended the elite high school where the country’s current king, Harald V, and his son once studied. Former classmates remembered him as quiet but intelligent, with a small rebellious streak: he was a prolific graffiti artist.

Toward the end of high school, he joined the youth wing of the Progress Party, drawn to its anti-immigrant platform and market capitalist bent. But those who knew him from those days said that he failed to leave much of a mark.

He began to struggle with life, those who knew him said. He became estranged from his father, who moved to France. Then his sister, Elisabeth, on whom he seemed to rely in his father’s absence, moved to the United States and married an American.

“Elisabeth was his only rock in life,” said a former childhood friend, who would not give his name for fear of reprisals because he is not an ethnic Norwegian. “When Elisabeth left, it really affected him. I think that’s when Anders began to spiral.”

It was a time when, according to his manifesto, his political views began to transmute. He began to perceive what he said was the hostility of Muslim youth. He latched on to reports of attacks against ethnic Norwegian men and rapes of ethnic Norwegian women by immigrant gangs.

Dagbladet, a national newspaper, quoted an unnamed fellow student from Mr. Breivik’s high school days as saying that Mr. Breivik started showing an interest in far-right and neo-Nazi movements around the age of 18, in the late 1990s, and that he was rumored to have worked as a doorman or bouncer at neo-Nazi events. He would later become critical of neo-Nazi groups.

Mr. Breivik wrote that the NATO bombing of Serbia in 1999 was a tipping point for him, describing the operation meant to halt a genocide as a betrayal of a fellow Christian people for the sake of Muslims.

He spent the next decade slowly working out his plan, though few people, it seems, had any inkling of it.

Four years ago, he joined the Norwegian Order of Freemasons. To gain admission, a man must be “known to have stability in his daily life,” said Ivar A. Skar, the group’s leader. “He has now been excluded — the exclusion immediately effective,” Mr. Skar added.

To earn money for the attacks, he wrote that he had started a company that earned him millions. Neighbors cast doubt on this claim, however, saying that they thought he had inherited some money from relatives.

As he went about gathering six tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer and turning aspirin powder into pure acetylsalicylic acid for his bomb, he led an active life online, railing against Muslims and Marxists in debate forums.

He once approached Hans Rustad, the editor of a popular conservative Website called Document.no, with a proposal to create a pan-European movement modeled on Tea Party groups in the United States.

When not surfing conservative blogs, Mr. Breivik was fighting virtual demons, ogres and other fantastical creatures in online role-playing games. He was a regular in talk forums for players of “World of Warcraft,” using a busty female as his avatar and the handle Conservatism.

Neighbors said that Mr. Breivik had been conspicuously absent from his family’s home in Oslo recently, raising suspicions because he had previously dropped by often to visit his mother for meals, Norwegian news outlets reported.

The police say he rented a farm in eastern Norway not far from the capital and holed up there over the last several months to prepare his bomb.

“The really dangerous guys hide their intentions,” Mr. Rustad said. “And that’s just what he did.”

Probably just a crazy guy.

I sincerely hope they do not try and apply the label to him. That might make life so much harder for us. The vast majority who cherish and respect life and want to love.


I think he is a sad person who got ignored at a political meeting, got a grudge against them ,and built everything around a dangerous fantasy that made him feel self important. Now there's a mass murder .

from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... rests.html


Norway shooting: Anders Behring Breivik describes his personal interests
In a section of his 1500-page 'war plan' setting out a massacre of nearly 100 people, Anders Behring Breivik answers in miniscule detail questions about his personality.


Q: Can you describe your strengths and flaws as an individual?

I consider myself to be a laid back type and quite tolerant on most issues. Due to the fact that I have been exposed to decades of multicultural indoctrination I feel a need to emphasise that I am not in fact a racist and never have been. My Godmother (being baptised when I was 15 years old), Amelia Jimenez and her husband, came to Norway as political refugees from Chile. In retrospect I understood that they were Marxist political activists but I didn’t comprehend these issues at the time.

Our two families have been very close throughout my childhood and youth. I’ve had several non-Norwegian and Muslim friends. I spent a lot of time with Onor, a Turk, Jonathan an Eritrean, Raol and Natalie from Chile, Arsalan Ahmad Sohail, Faizal and Wazim from Pakistan. I’ve had dozens of non-Norwegian friends during my younger years, Bashir from Somalia, Pablo from Chile, Odd Erling – adopted from Columbia, Lene – adopted from India have been good friends and a couple of them still are today.

Q: Can you describe your strengths and flaws as an individual

A: I’m an extremely patient and a very positively minded individual. I have obviously changed my ways over the years and am now driven by idealistic goals and work for the interests of my countrymen and all Europeans. Most people would not acknowledge the work yet (nor are they likely to appreciate it during my lifetime) but this is an irrelevant fact for me. With time they will understand what is going on around them and that what we are trying to accomplish will benefit not only them, but most importantly their children and grandchildren.
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As for current flaws in my personality I guess have many stereotypical flaws. F example; I sound quite self righteous at times and I don’t like admitting it when I’m wrong, although I usually do. I still have a relatively inflated ego, with a constant need to feed on an intellectual level.

This is a quite common flaw and I try to suppress it although know I fail as most people do. Also, over the years I’ve generally been perceived as quite arrogant (even downright unpleasant at times, the last few years). This is likely due to the fact that I do not care as much as I did for creating or preserving social relationships due to my life choice. I guess it is also due the way I choose my rhetorical approaches, which is to a certain degree only an indirect defensive mechanism.

I, as most people, like to think I have a superb self confidence. But people who show signs of arrogance usually often use deliberate defensive manifestation to camouflage intellectual or social insecurity or perhaps they just don’t care. I guess the root to a majority of human flaws is linked to mans fundamentally flawed nature. We want acknowledgement, appreciation and/or love so we strive to be as perfect as we can be.

These human instincts often undermine the need for a pragmatical mindset. As for social skills or skills facilitating interaction and communication with oterhs; I know I mastered them a lot better before I started my self-engulfing studies several years ago. Social skills is an art form that requires continuous practice, and many of the people I know are masters at it. I know I could be as well but it would require a different lifestyle.

I do not accept or acknowledge many of the established “social rules” as I view it as irrelevant noise which takes us away from what is needed of us at this point in time. In any case; a majority of devout intellectuals have significant social flaws due to the fact that their choice of life (theoretical analysis) usually results in a scenario where they are “unplugged” from the “game” for too long.

At which point they would need at least a year or two studying/updating the fundaments of social rhetorical engagement). In depth analysis and theoretical studies doesn’t exactly go hand in hand with advancing your social skills which is more related to the skills of interaction and communication; sales, entertainment and manipulation. Unfortunately, many of my friends who are masters at it are apolitical and usually end up wasting their superb social skills on manipulating women into one night stands. If I were to focus on the social aspects of the conservative revolution (instead of the intellectual) I would rather use these abilities for something useful; for political consolidation/recruitment purposes.

However, it is very hard to be a master at theoretical analysis and master social skills as it is in many ways the anti-thesis of each other. I wouldn’t necessarily call it a flaw but the area of social skills I have neglected the most is; “Game” interaction - PC small talk, entertaining skills/PC humour. I simply do not want to waste my limited time on BS or irrelevant social noise.

He might be an Aspie. He might also like wearing jeans, listening to Edvard Grieg, eating meat, not eating meat, riding bikes, walking and any of the other things that contribute to a person's personality in some way or another that nonetheless do not cause spree killing.

He is by definition now, after the mass murder, a psychopath. His writings show a disregard for social norms (despite being acutely aware of them), an ability to emotionally manipulate others, impulsiveness and instability, a disregard for rules and an ability to rationalize all his own failings as the fault of others.

It is rare to take such individuals into custody alive after such a crime. I imagine that there are behavioural analysts queuing up to study him.

It appears his interactions with others to be minimal, mostly an online life. Admits to an intellectual/academic rather than social bent.

No girlfriends it appears. Fundamentalist rigidity and righteousness, unable to handle criticism.

Doesn't appear to have been manipulative, or able to coerce socially, comments from others who knew him hint at ineffectual and unseen.

he is absolutely 100% intractably insane.

they should study his brain after he dies.

My best guess would be some sort of severe personality disorder. People with certain disorders can blend into society well for many years while holding extreme views as this guy did. He was unlikely to have been suffering psychosis at the time of the shootings due to the fact that everything seemed to have been well arranged and that he can completely recall doing the shootings. However he still justifies them.

As for the part about him being an Aspie I think that's not right. I hold what some people might think are extreme views about some things, but I would never be able to delude myself that I am so right that I can justify killing innocent people. I can't stand hunting but I wouldn't go and shoot a hunter just because I disagree with it (although that would be the ultimate irony...). I don't believe he had AS or any kind of ASD, he has some kind of mental health/personality disorder.

_________________
I have HFA, ADHD, OCD & Tourette syndrome. I love animals, especially my bunnies and hamster. I skate in a roller derby team (but I'll try not to bite )

If I had to take a guess I would suspect a schizophrenia spectrum disorder...probably some form of schizophrenia itself because this man is completely delusional in thinking that he could shoot up a bunch of Norwegian kids and Norwegians would love him for it. His logic is completely twisted and any group he's been associated with seems to realize that and have tried to distance themselves from him no matter how radical they are. He has only managed to alienate himself from supporters of just about every ideology as far as I can tell.

To get away with something so horrible, one must FIRST become a crazy dictator. It doesn't work the other way around.

i would guess that he has NPD, but i haven't read much about him. Just that he prepared some things to become public after his murder. Though he gives the impression of some radical right, he probably just wants the attention of all this.

thanks,
anton

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcissist ... y_disorder

Narcissistic personality disorder
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
See also: Narcissism and Malignant narcissism
Narcissistic personality disorder
Classification and external resources

Personality
disorders
Cluster A (odd)
Paranoid · Schizoid
Schizotypal
Cluster B (dramatic)
Antisocial · Borderline
Histrionic · Narcissistic
Cluster C (anxious)
Avoidant · Dependent
Obsessive-compulsive
Not specified
Depressive
Passive–aggressive
Sadistic · Self-defeating


The narcissist is described as being excessively preoccupied with issues of personal adequacy, power, prestige and vanity.[2] Narcissistic personality disorder is closely linked to self-centeredness.
Contents
[hide]

1 Causes
1.1 Theories
1.2 Splitting
1.3 Relationship to shame
2 Diagnosis
2.1 DSM-IV-TR 301.81
2.1.1 Proposed removal from DSM-5
2.2 ICD-10
2.3 Millon's subtypes
3 Treatment
4 Epidemiology
5 History
6 Cultural depictions
7 See also
8 References
9 Further reading
10 External links

[edit] Causes

The cause of this disorder is unknown, according to Groopman and Cooper. However, they list the following factors identified by various researchers as possibilities.[3]

An oversensitive temperament at birth is the main symptomatic chronic form
Being praised for perceived exceptional looks or talents by adults
Excessive admiration that is never balanced with realistic feedback
Excessive praise for good behaviors or excessive criticism for poor behaviors in childhood
Overindulgence and overvaluation by parents
Severe emotional abuse in childhood
Unpredictable or unreliable caregiving from parents
Valued by parents as a means to regulate their own self-esteem

Some narcissistic traits are common and a normal developmental phase. When these traits are compounded by a failure of the interpersonal environment and continue into adulthood, they may intensify to the point where NPD is diagnosed.[4] Some psychotherapists believe that the etiology of the disorder is, in Freudian terms, the result of fixation to early childhood development.[5] If a child does not receive sufficient recognition for their talents during about ages 3–7 they will never mature and continue to be in the narcissistic early development stage.[6][dubious – discuss]

A 1994 study by Gabbard and Twemlow[7] reports that histories of incest, especially mother-son incest, are associated with NPD in some male patients.
[edit] Theories

Pathological narcissism occurs in a spectrum of severity. In its more extreme forms, it is narcissistic personality disorder (NPD). NPD is considered to result from a person's belief that they are flawed in a way that makes them fundamentally unacceptable to others.[8] This belief is held below the person's conscious awareness; such a person would, if questioned, typically deny thinking such a thing. In order to protect themselves against the intolerably painful rejection and isolation that (they imagine) would follow if others recognised their (perceived) defective nature, such people make strong attempts to control others’ views of them and behavior towards them.

Pathological narcissism can develop from an impairment in the quality of the person's relationship with their primary caregivers, usually their parents, in that the parents were unable to form a healthy and empathic attachment to them.[citation needed] This results in the child's perception of himself/herself as unimportant and unconnected to others. The child typically comes to believe they have some personality defect that makes them unvalued and unwanted.[9]

Narcissistic personality disorder is isolating, disenfranchising, painful, and formidable for those living with it and often those who are in a relationship with them. Distinctions need to be made among those who have NPD because not every person with NPD is the same. Even with similar core issues, the way in which one's individual narcissism manifests itself in his or her relationships varies.[citation needed]

To the extent that people are pathologically narcissistic, they can be controlling, blaming, self-absorbed, intolerant of others’ views, unaware of others' needs and of the effects of their behavior on others, and insistent that others see them as they wish to be seen.[6]

People who are overly narcissistic commonly feel rejected, humiliated and threatened when criticised. To protect themselves from these dangers, they often react with disdain, rage, and/or defiance to any slight criticism, real or imagined.[10] To avoid such situations, some narcissistic people withdraw socially and may feign modesty or humility. In cases where the narcissistic personality-disordered individual feels a lack of admiration, adulation, attention and affirmation, he/she may also manifest wishes to be feared and to be notorious (narcissistic supply).

Although individuals with NPD are often ambitious and capable, the inability to tolerate setbacks, disagreements or criticism, along with lack of empathy, make it difficult for such individuals to work cooperatively with others or to maintain long-term professional achievements.[11] With narcissistic personality disorder, the individual's self-perceived fantastic grandiosity, often coupled with a hypomanic mood, is typically not commensurate with his or her real accomplishments.

The exploitativeness, sense of entitlement, lack of empathy, disregard for others, and constant need for attention inherent in NPD adversely affect interpersonal relationships.
[edit] Splitting
Main article: Splitting (psychology)

People who are diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder use splitting (black and white thinking) as a central defense mechanism. They do this to preserve their self-esteem, by seeing the self as purely good and the others as purely bad. The use of splitting also implies the use of other defense mechanisms, namely devaluation, idealization and denial.[12]
[edit] Relationship to shame

It has been suggested that narcissistic personality disorder may be related to defenses against shame.[13]

Psychiatrist Glen Gabbard suggested NPD could be broken down into two subtypes.[14] He saw the "oblivious" subtype as being grandiose, arrogant, and thick-skinned and the "hypervigilant" subtype as being easily hurt, oversensitive, and ashamed. In his view, the oblivious subtype presents for admiration, envy, and appreciation a powerful, grandiose self that is the antithesis of a weak internalized self, which hides in shame, while the hypervigilant subtype neutralizes devaluation by seeing others as unjust abusers.

Dr. Jeffrey Young, who coined the term "Schema Therapy", a technique originally developed by psychiatrist Aaron T. Beck (1979), also links NPD and shame. He sees the so-called Defectiveness Schema as a core schema of NPD, along with the Emotional Deprivation and Entitlement Schemas.[15]
[edit] Diagnosis
[edit] DSM-IV-TR 301.81

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders fourth edition, DSM IV-TR, a widely used manual for diagnosing mental disorders, defines narcissistic personality disorder (in Axis II Cluster B) as:[1]

A pervasive pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behavior), need for admiration, and lack of empathy, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by five (or more) of the following:

Has a grandiose sense of self-importance (e.g., exaggerates achievements and talents, expects to be recognized as superior without commensurate achievements)
Is preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love
Believes that he or she is "special" and unique and can only be understood by, or should associate with, other special or high-status people (or institutions)
Requires excessive admiration
Has a sense of entitlement, i.e., unreasonable expectations of especially favorable treatment or automatic compliance with his or her expectations
Is interpersonally exploitative, i.e., takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own ends
Lacks empathy: is unwilling to recognize or identify with the feelings and needs of others
Is often envious of others or believes others are envious of him or her
Shows arrogant, haughty behaviors or attitudes

It is also a requirement of DSM-IV that a diagnosis of any specific personality disorder also satisfies a set of general personality disorder criteria.
[edit] Proposed removal from DSM-5

The Personality and Personality Disorders Work Group has proposed[16] the elimination of NPD as a distinct disorder in DSM-5[17] as part of a major revamping of the diagnostic criteria for personality disorders, replacing a categorical with a dimensional approach based on the severity of dysfunctional personality trait domains, raising objections from some clinicians who characterize the new diagnostic system as an "unwieldy conglomeration of disparate models that cannot happily coexist" and may have limited usefulness in clinical practice.[18]

At this point, it really doesn't matter.
He's sick. Disgusting.