I have a degree in psychology, but that does not mean that I agree with everything that has come from psychology. I seek to contend here with a number of diagnoses in psychology known as personality disorders.
According to the definition of the antisocial personality disorder – otherwise known as sociopaths or psychopaths – there is such a thing as a criminal personality. This means that people can be made criminal by virtue of their personality – namely, by virtue of how they think. With this is introduced the Orwellian concept of crimethink – that people can be made criminal by how they think. And with this is created a totalitarianism so absolute that people cannot be free from it even within the privacy of their minds. If people can be made criminal by how they think, then not even thought is private. Everything is under the control of the people who believe such a thing.
The claim made about sociopaths is that they are evil and can only be evil whatever they do, however hard they work and whatever work they do on themselves. This contradicts most basic reason. If people are responsible for their actions then anyone, including a sociopath, can act rightfully; and if some people can only be evil whatever they do then people are not responsible for their actions. This is a worthless mentality, useful only for conducting witch hunts. And this is exactly what we have seen from the believers in such things.
According to the definition of the narcissistic disorder, the world owes most of what it has to its narcissists. If it is narcissistic to seek great success or to have original ideas, then everyone who's had great success – and everyone who's had original ideas – is a narcissist. This would pathologize everything to which the world owes most of what it has, resulting in the world losing its best contributors, and the places that believe such a thing losing competitiveness.
According to the definition of the borderline disorder, some people are made bad by having been raised badly. This is a horrible idea. As if these people were not suffering enough. People are taught to steer clear of them and avoid relationships with them, when these are the people who need such a thing the most. A related claim is that there is something wrong with having strong feelings. That is something that one might expect from a prissy control freak, and that is hardly a viable concept of mental health.
According to the definition of the schizoid disorder, it is pathological to have spiritual experiences. This would pathologize the people from whom the world gets its moral instruction, including everyone formative to Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Taoism and Islam. It would also pathologize many others, especially the ones most spiritually developed. Most people believe in something spiritual, and usually for very good reasons. The people who believe in such a thing state, basically, that the bulk of humanity are loonies. I can think of no more arrogant or ignorant stance.
According to the definition of the histrionic disorder, the people who want attention are sick. This would pathologize most stars as well as any number of professors, businessmen and priests. I see absolutely nothing wrong with calling attention to oneself, especially if one has useful things to say.
When health – and sickness in the head – are defined wrongly, we will see all sorts of disastrous results. And of course we are seeing these all around us. We see witch hunts and extermination campaigns. We see abuses against humanity's most original minds. We see persecution of spirituality and wisdom.
It is time that more people stand up to people perpetrating this fraud on humanity and say that enough is enough.