Are Heartless People Simply Born That Way?

[whathehell]

34. Thanks so much for your story your insights, CoffeeCat..

You are correct: The "Mean factor" has definitely increased in the last couple of decades, and I think you're right in conflating it, at least in great part, with a country that has gone so far to the Right -- Even many of our so-called Democrats now look like Republicans compared to the Dems of the Post War Years up to the Nineteen Eighties.

As a Boomer, when I look at society today, I'm honestly shocked -- I'm not saying it was all hunky dory back in those years, and surely some of that relative "innocence" going on back then reflects a lack of coverage and reporting, but DAMN, in my day, the country as a whole was much more liberal and seemed FAR less plagued by some of our current social problems -- Teen suicide, Random Mass Shootings, etc....I know there's other societal developments which no doubt share some blame, but both houses of congress back were controlled by Democrats and even NIXON looked like a liberal compared to someone like Dubya, not to mention the current crop of Extremists like Cruz, Paul and Bachmann, to name a few.

I'm SO sorry for the abuse you and your siblings endured. The testament to your victory over it is your courage to NOT deny the* problems and seek help. Although I'm sure it was painful, it's clear that you're way ahead, in terms of psychological health, than the rest of your unfortunate, damaged family.:hug

* I'm quite familiar with the "scapegoat syndrome" you describe. The scapegoat is sometimes also called "The identified patient". They are the ones in the family, who, for some reason, usually unconscious, are chosen to "bear" the problems of the whole dysfunctional family, and frequently "get sick", in some way, often psychologically. One thing I was told about the syndrome is this -- When the "sick" person gets well, the formerly "well" people get sick. because those people were only able to "function" without visible sickness because people like YOU, in this case, were "sick" FOR them. I've seen it play out, and I must admit, It can feel a bit gratifying.