Narcissists are the biggest cause of death and suffering on earth?

[nigel]

I've read that Narcisissts cause more death and suffering than natural disasters such as earthquakes and tsunami's etc, do you think this is a fact?

[Terpe]

nigel,

No. I don't believe that.
Do you??

Unless you consider what happened under the rule of dictators such as:-

Mao Ze-Dong
Jozef Stalin
Adolf Hitler
Pol Pot

and others of the same ilk.

But then, were they narcissists ?

Maybe the statement should read:-

Communist dictators are the biggest cause of death and suffering on earth.

[nigel]

But to this day there are still many people dying and suffering because of war, does it boil down to narcissism?

My understanding of narcissism is it's a severe mental health problem where they are obsessed with exercising power over others...isn't that what war is?

Are todays leaders, tomorrows Hitlers?

[Arthur Little]

I've read that Narcisissts cause more death and suffering than natural disasters such as earthquakes and tsunami's etc, do you think this is a fact?

No ... not really, Nigel. Narciss - according to Greek Mythology - was a youth who pined away for love of his own image ... as opposed to any desire for warmongering ... and was transformed into a flower ... hardly an emblem of conflict - unless taken within the context of the White Rose of York vs the Red Rose of Lancaster during mediaeval times.

Hence ... a 'narcissus complex' can be either part of a normal stage of development ... or a pathalogical condition in which one becomes overly concerned with sensual gratification found in one's own body.

[Doc Alan]

Every year there are nearly as many deaths worldwide as there were in World War II (around 60 million). Chairman Mao, Stalin, Hitler and Pol Pot may have been responsible at most for a total of 90 million deaths, and they were not narcissists.
Natural disasters such as the Haiti earthquake, the Indian Ocean tsunami, and Typhoon Ondoy have between them killed less than a million.
A third of deaths worldwide are due to heart / circulatory disease. A quarter are due to infections. An eighth are due to cancers. Smoking causes over 5 million deaths / year. Other lifestyle factors like poor nutrition or obesity are important. In the UK and the Philippines circulatory disease and cancer are the top two killers.

[JimOttley]

Terpe narcissism can be part of other more complex disorders.

I quote wiki a lot and it's not always accurate but in this case I think the last one mentioned below can apply

unprincipled narcissist - including antisocial features. A charlatan - is a fraudulent, exploitative, deceptive and unscrupulous individual.
amorous narcissist - including histrionic features. The Don Juan of our times - is erotic, exhibitionist.
compensatory narcissist - including negativistic (passive-aggressive), avoidant features.
elitist narcissist - variant of pure pattern. Corresponds to Wilhelm Reich's "phallic narcissistic" personality type.
fanatic type - including paranoid features. A severely narcissistically wounded individual, usually with major paranoid tendencies who holds onto an illusion of omnipotence.

It is not unreasonable to suppose that the major dictators of our recent history have been self obsessed paranoid fanatics.

Arthur some people who rise to power manage to do so because their acting skills are incredibly comprehensive, Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot and many many others, it's not beyond reason to question the psychology of individuals like them, I would not be surprised if narcissism was part of their psychological make-up.

Doc, yes I agree, the vast majority of us have no clue as to the real numbers and real causes of human misery, pain and self inflicted suffering, our self inflicted problems probably dwarf anything imposed on us from outside.

You have a partially valid point Nigel, people cause more pain and suffering than the natural world at least at this point in time that might change in future decades but that is another argument.

[somebody]

Leaders concerned with their own vanity and image have in all areas of the world and periods of History been the cause of much suffering to the masses

[Arthur Little]

I quote wiki a lot and it's not always accurate but in this case I think the last one mentioned below can apply



It is not unreasonable to suppose that the major dictators of our recent history have been self obsessed paranoid fanatics.

Arthur some people who rise to power manage to do so because their acting skills are incredibly comprehensive, Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot and many many others, it's not beyond reason to question the psychology of individuals like them, I would not be surprised if narcissism was part of their psychological make-up.

Yes, I see what you mean, Jim ... I have to confess that my particular defintion had also been quoted; on this particular occasion, from the *Chambers Twentieth Century Dictionary [minus the choice of emoticon which was mine] So, perhaps *it's slightly wide of the mark when applied to Nigel's interpretation in the present context.

[nigel]

It seems the term 'Narcisissist' is perplexing within itself, people have different ideas as to what it might mean, and psychologists say there are different types of Narcisissist!

I found this video VERY interesting, the body language and poses of the Narcisissist! The 'Joan Of Arc' pose is VERY interesting, many a famous celebrity have been photographed doing that pose. I always thought it meant "I feel such bliss! I am so happy!" I've learnt the true meaning of that pose is quite shocking and extraordinary!

[bornatbirth]

humans = narcissism

[Arthur Little]

I found this video VERY interesting, the body language and poses of the Narcisissist! The 'Joan Of Arc' pose is VERY interesting, many a famous celebrity have been photographed doing that pose. I always thought it meant "I feel such bliss! I am so happy!" I've learnt the true meaning of that pose is quite shocking and extraordinary!

So did I find it interesting, actually! But, Nigel ... what is it about that 'Joan of Arc' pose that's so ... ... ??

[nigel]

So did I find it interesting, actually! But, Nigel ... what is it about that 'Joan of Arc' pose that's so ... ... ??

I was shocked by a lot of it to be honest! The Joan Of Arc pose I always thought just meant "Oh bliss! I'm so happy!" but I was completely wrong to hold that belief! If you witness someone doing that Joan Of Arc pose (I think I could probably mention a dozen famous celebrities that do that!) what they are thinking is "Heaven knows that I am the most glorious creature!" So it has nothing to do with "I'm so happy..I feel such joy!" I COMPLETELY misunderstood it! I'm shocked to learn that there are people in our lives that truly do believe that they are everything we ever dreamed of! They can't be that blinkered surely?
And it seems that they so firmly believe it, that they expect entire nations to worship them...give them the nations riches...and die in wars for them...do they REALLY consider themselves to be this important? Well the shocking truth is that yes, they absolutely do!

Can the worlds wars and atrocities be blamed on Narcisissists? Well it seems they probably do blame to me.

[Doc Alan]

Your thread asked if narcissists are the biggest cause of death and suffering on earth.
We certainly now understand more about narcissism.
Buried in the subsequent posts are the facts:-
In both our countries, and increasingly the rest of the world, heart / circulatory disease and cancer are by far the main causes.
The modifiable risk factors for heart disease are smoking, blood lipid levels (statins can work wonders), diabetes, obesity, and exercise level.
Environmental factors account for MOST cancers - smoking and diet being the most important.
Infections such as malaria and tuberculosis cause 3 million deaths / year worldwide, yet treatment is available at a cost.
Personality traits such as narcissism and aggression may play a role at an individual level in susceptibility to disease. They certainly affect the politics and economics of public health in the UK, Philippines, and the rest of the world.