Fox News' crackpot psychiatrist has some new psychological insights to lay on us over President Obama and his proposed gun regulations. Once again, Ablow didn't let a little thing like not having examined Obama hold him back from a diagnosis: Obama's abandonment issues have led him to disempower the individual in order to empower the collective – with himself at the center of it.
Ablow, appearing on Fox Business' Lou Dobbs Tonight on January 22, understandably argued for a better system of dealing with mental illness as a way of reducing with gun violence. But instead of leaving it there, he went on to malign Obama in the guise of psychoanalysis. Which was actually a rehash of some of Ablow's previous diagnoses. First, he accused Obama of having “hijacked” gun massacre tragedies “in order to advance his desire for gun control.” Ablow “explained:”
The common element in these horrors is untreated, or poorly treated mental illness. We deconstructed our entire mental healtcare system, it is in shambles. And the president’s reticence to make that [gun control] the issue that should be front and center, is a defining moment that defines him as unwilling to do the right thing - to fix what’s broken.
...His solution runs, psychologically, in the direction of disempowering the individual every single time.
Dobbs eagerly received Ablow's remarks. In fact, he prodded for more: “Why would that be? ...Is he truly that Machiavellian, that driven by his own ideological purpose?"
Ablow happily provided:
I’m certain that’s true. Number one, the autonomy of others did him no favors as a kid- When he was abandoned, again and again, by people who were quote unquote “responsible and supposed to do the right thing,” like parents. So his belief: You know what? What good is individual autonomy and decision making- what good did it do me? The collective is what needs to be empowered, and all the better if I’m the center of that collective, and the most powerful person in it. So, listen, we know historically, like if you have someone being beaten in a crowd… that’s a bad place to be, because nobody in the crowd may step forward. People in groups do poorly; people alone do better. They take the initiative to do the right thing. This is, though - for him- a vile concept.
Not only did Dobbs accept all of Ablow's suspect comments without challenge, he concluded by saying, “Dr. Keith Ablow, great to have you here.”
Say, Dr. Ablowme,
Exactly who was it who “abandoned” the President? If you’re referring to his father, he divorced his mother. If you’re referring to his mother, he left him in the care of his grandparents while she was in Indonesia.
I’ve read his autobiography; he does not mention any time he was living on the street by himself
Why would that be? …Is he truly that Machiavellian, that driven by his own ideological purpose?"
Hey, Lou-ser: there’s also the possibility that President Obama’s motives in gun control don’t stem from a desire to exercise Machiavellian instincts, but A SIMPLE WISH NOT TO SEE ANY MORE SIX- AND SEVEN-YEAR-OLDS GUNNED DOWN AT THEIR SCHOOL, YOU DUMBA$$ SCHIT . . .
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I don’t think it’s possible to take Ablow out of context. He doesn’t stop talking until how he means it is crystal clear.
You should read his Op-Eds on foxnews.com; the only way he could be more blatant on that is if he colour coded his mistruths according to whether other doctors or law enforcement discredits him faster.
This doctor can indeed say something about the deplorable mental health situation in the US but he knows nothing about Barack Obama’s mental health so he should keep his mouth shut about that issue.
