Dick Cheney is poster boy for Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Doesn't take an MD...the symptoms are glaringly obvious...

* grandiose self-importance

* preoccupation with fantasies of unlimited success

* intolerance of criticism

* disturbed self-centered interpersonal relations

* often referred to as being conceited. They

* act selfish interpersonally

* act with a sense of entitlement

Sure sounds like him, doesn't it? And if we want to get all official, then the DSM-IV Diagnostic Criteria for Narcissistic Personality Disorder are:

A pervasive pattern of grandiosity, need for admiration, lack of empathy, as indicated by at least five of:

1. a grandiose sense of self-importance

2. is preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love

3. believes that he or she is "special" and can only be understood by, or should associate with, other special or high-status people (or institutions)

4. requires excessive admiration

5. has a sense of entitlement, ie unreasonable expectations of especially favourable treatment or automatic compliance with his or her expectations

6. is interpersonally exploitative, ie takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own ends

7. lacks empathy and is unwilling to recognize or identify with the feelings and needs of others

8. is often envious of others or believes that others are envious of him or her

9. shows arrogant, haughty behaviours or attitudes

Need we say more about Dick Cheney?

Unfortunately, the prognosis is not good for Narcissistic Personality Disorder sufferers, because they often refuse to seek help...

And so, we ALL get to suffer instead...

Thanks, Salon. This blog entry was exactly the sort of thing you want from "Broadsheet," (still don't love the name, but do enjoy the content!)

I've never been to Nerve.com, but checked out some of the pieces, found it really well-done (loved Steve Almond's piece, and the one on 2nd trimester abortions), and have bookmarked what appears to be a great new place to read!!

How can one NOT love a place that gives out a Henry Miller award!!!

Keep the great tips on sites and articles coming!

Patrick,

Great article, as always.

And you win my undying approval and kudos for never once using the sentence...

"Today/the day before Thanksgiving is the biggest/heaviest/busiest travel day of the year."

It will be uttered hundreds and hundreds of times today by every junior tv news bimbo and himbo stuck reporting from their local airport or highway overpass, but you, in your inimitable class, refrained!!

Thank you!!!

I'd love to see Supernanny take on the cafes and restaurants of America (see related letters thread in Broadsheet...)

Imagine what she'd do to all those hellions running around whining, shrieking and terrorizing your local Starbucks or sushi joint?

Think "kids'll be kids" and they should be allowed to bother their fellow man in public?

Then it's off to the NAUGHTY MAT for you!!!! ;-)

Cary, usually you are on track, but you are so way way off track on this response that your wheels are spinning in the mud.

This woman is a BATTERER and an ABUSER. Today's slapping and kicking is going to be tomorrow's knife, and the day after's gun.

I don't care if she's an 80 pound 5 footer and he's 6'6" and 300 pounds. She can still kill him in a rage, and she might, eventually, if he follows your well-intentioned but totally wrong advice.

1. Casper Milque-toast has to put the wedding on hold, indefinitely. No wedding until at least a year or more of intensive therapy for his hot tempered honey.
2. Casper needs to enter into some serious therapy of his own to find out why he is even PONDERING staying with a woman who wants to beat the crap out of him occasionally -- even if she can't at present
3. If Casper is going to have sex with her, he needs to use serious birth control, because right now, he CANNOT RISK BRINGING A CHILD INTO THE WORLD WITH THIS WOMAN...

I realize that children are hypothetical at this point, but exactly WHAT sort of advice will you have for future offspring of this pairing, when their mother starts battering and bashing them the same way she does Daddy, because he sticks with her and makes excuses for her (aided by you and your well-intentioned but totally wrong advice) and she hasn't learned how not to beat the crap out of people when she's angry?

Cary, Cary, Cary....please revisit this one. Do you really want to say something, ANYTHING, that would encourage someone to STAY in an abusive relationship?

You've had more than enough shots at proving that you have some integrity, and you've failed, miserably and publicly, time and time again.

There is no such thing as a minor lapse of integrity...

You either have it, or you don't, and you, Newt, don't.