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A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

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Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not that it matters, but he really doesn't seem like a psychopath. Real psychopaths tend to be brave, extroverted, narcissistic, impervious to punishment, etc. He really didn't fit. (He's a little narcissistic, but limited it to talking about his being a "perfect gentleman" and things like that. Otherwise, he tended to condemn himself--his height, physical weakness, bad fortune, etc.) Of course, I'm basing that on hi…

He's a little narcissistic, but limited it to talking about his being a "perfect gentleman" and things like that. There is also this part: "I am Elliot Rodger...Magnificent, glorious, supreme, eminent, Divine! I am the closest thing there is to a living god."

And that is a delusion he maintains to protect himself from the pain of the feeling of inferiority he feels for himself.

Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#122

Personally, I think this is a long time coming. Like, Tom, I have nothing but respect for Maboo, but I think many, many people have raised the point that his, for lack of a better word, "antics" are holding the site back. I know a lot of people in the HN community have been sharply critical of him, and for good reason. Maybe that's the main driver here, and Maboo's absolutely inappropriate response is the catalyst.

I don't know much about RG's history, but I wonder if his antics are partly why the site was so successful initially? From the little I've seen of RG over the years it seems like they rely heavily on gimmicks and antics as a promotional tool (I guess that's sort of the MO for the music industry though).

Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#123
post #102
post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Behavior like that is not acceptable for someone in a position of authority at a company no matter what the context. Says who? It's not like the company is Disney. For some companies such antics are par for the course (e.g a gangsta rap record company).

Things that are "par for the course" aren't necessarily acceptable, as we all know.

Well, you have to define it then.

"Unaccetable" for running a company with profit, or "unaccptable" for your moral code? Because the former sure ain't the case.

Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#124

Personally, I think this is a long time coming. Like, Tom, I have nothing but respect for Maboo, but I think many, many people have raised the point that his, for lack of a better word, "antics" are holding the site back. I know a lot of people in the HN community have been sharply critical of him, and for good reason. Maybe that's the main driver here, and Maboo's absolutely inappropriate response is the catalyst.

I don't know much about RG's history, but I wonder if his antics are partly why the site was so successful initially? From the little I've seen of RG over the years it seems like they rely heavily on gimmicks and antics as a promotional tool (I guess that's sort of the MO for the music industry though).

I absolutely believe the site couldn't have gotten where it was today without Mahbod at its head. But I think that the way forward is, regrettably, without him for a while. I fully believe he can come back from this more mature and focused. But I think its going to require a bit of soul-searching.

Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

don't forget a majority of the victims were men. 3 stabbed in their apartment and 1 shot. :(

Because his planned attack on the sorority failed. The manifesto is gynocidal.

yeah. at first i kinda had a knee jerk reaction to mpt accept the "misogyny" script, because feminists do this about everything, but after reading about him calling women a virus and wanting to exterminate all of them, I have to agree.

Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#126
post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's actually not really defined at all in terms of an actual medical illness. It's mostly an invention of the criminal justice system. Sociopathy/Psycopathy is about as real as Drapetomania or hysteria. It's the modern day blasphemy, if you question the state or authority you are 'anti-social'

We understand enough about psychopathy that we can now fairly easily identify it by tests and brain scans. We can also fairly easily identify it in children at a very early age. The symptoms and behaviors are not particularly difficult to pick out. It's obviously very real. Unless you're suggesting child psychopaths have learned how to alter their own brains such that their brain scans look different than normal chil…

We have no objective tests for psychopathy, it's such a sketchy unsupported diagnosis that even the DSM which isn't exactly a pinnacle of science, won't touch it.

We have at best a debatable set of symptoms which are entirely subjective and which are provided by criminologists let alone psychologists.

It's easy to test for and show someone has a cold in a completely objective way, either your cells are infected with a virus with a given genetic pattern or they are not. There is no disease called psychopathy and there is no objective test for it.

So since you're the expert on psychopathy and we know so much about it, what is the underlying physical process for it? Is it an infection? Are the neurons misfiring? Is a certain protein misfolded? Oh wait, you can't answer any of those because it's made up pseudo-scientific bullshit. Labeling someone a psychopath is about as real as labeling them a witch, only symptoms, no cause, no mechanism, nothing.

PS. Here's the 'brain scan' evidence that homosexuality is a real 'mental disorder' LOL http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7456588.stm

Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#127
post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're probably not. But if the mere observation that some men do risky, strange, violent things as part of their drive for sex strikes you as a personal insult, then you are too sensitive.

I think he's offended that one crazy person's actions have turned into a generalization about men (yes, "some men" qualifies it, but since you can't tell "some men" from all the other men, any action that's meant to affect these "some men" affects all men, hence nullifying the qualifier. Furthermore, your grandparent didn't even use the "some"). A much fairer (and still true) statement would be "some people do risky,…

I'm not focusing on his actions here. His actions were the result of pent up, dangerous, toxic emotions. The same emotions that are felt (albeit to a lesser degree) by most men.

Most men just channel that into something else, like entrepreneurship (ie Zuckerberg), or drugs/alcohol/video games.

Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't know much about RG's history, but I wonder if his antics are partly why the site was so successful initially? From the little I've seen of RG over the years it seems like they rely heavily on gimmicks and antics as a promotional tool (I guess that's sort of the MO for the music industry though).

I absolutely believe the site couldn't have gotten where it was today without Mahbod at its head. But I think that the way forward is, regrettably, without him for a while. I fully believe he can come back from this more mature and focused. But I think its going to require a bit of soul-searching.

I'm sure he will land on his feet quite well with his connections (and equity no doubt). Everybody goofs and the permanent and public nature of the internet can be very unforgiving. I wish him nothing but the best in the future with his health and career.

Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#129
post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone who was on the forums when the decision was made, I can give you some of the background. Last February, News Genius transcribed and annotated the Dorner manifesto, and got a lot of positive press. You can see the page at http://news.rapgenius.com/Christopher-dorner-manifesto-annot... and the press from Forbes at http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2013/02/13/christoph... The thought was very similar in…

There was a lot of confused attention surrounding the Dorner incident, in which a disgruntled former LAPD officer rationalized his carefully-planned stalking and murder of the daughter of an LAPD captain who had been partially responsible for his termination. Part of that attention was due to a Rambo narrative that accompanied Dorner due to his military experience and the fashion in which he was (briefly) believed to…

Honestly, I equate the use of RG in this case to be no more different than how the media amplifies the actions of any shooting or tragedy. It's only going to merit attention for a wrongdoing, and this could desensitize people sharing the same mindset as Elliot Rodger had.

It would be a kindness to everyone if RG simply delisted the journal for the immediate time being, and then restored it in the future, possibly a year or so from now.

Re: A Statement About Mahbod’s Annotations on Elliot Rodger’s Manifesto

#130
post #75
post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW, > bizarre descriptions of a sexless utopia where all women are enslaved and forced to be artificially inseminated to procreate. ...is required reading for millions of schoolchildren http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/1984/study.html

Yes, but not in the form of an endorsement.

Well policymakers do seem to like treating 1984 as an instruction manual as opposed to a satire.
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