Apparently my position on Oswald?s mental state isn?t very clear so allow me to simplify.
BRAIN AND BEHAVIOUR
It?s apparently escaped notice that neurobiological events give rise to psychological phenomena, and that brain damage results in perceptual, behavioural, affective and cognitive deficits.
The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is the most recently evolved part of the brain, biggest in humans. It does impulse control, emotion regulation, cognitive control and almost all ?higher mental processes,? including abstract thought, logic, planning, etc.
The amygdala is an ancient structure which is invoked in aggression, fear, anxiety and other emotional responses, and is often called the brain?s risk detector (even activating when people are given lousy offers in economic simulations).
The PFC and amygdala fight like cat and dog?the latter responds to some injustice and the PFC inhibits it?s function. That?s emotional control. You get angry at somebody in public (amygdala activates), but you don?t shout or fight them for social or legal reasons, or because it?s morally wrong (PFC inhibits). Of course contest alters whether the PFC cares enough (for instance, it stops you from lying except when you tell the SS officers there?s no Jews in your attic, in which case, the PFC is what makes you do a good job of it: remember to look at the eyes, adjust tone, etc).
NOTE: Damage or something which makes the PFC less active results in violent criminal behaviour, as all neuroimaging studies have shown.
PFC showing blood flow in psychopathic individual (a neurological/personality disorder associated with lack of empathic processes and egocentric traits; usually with reference to diagnostic criterion of antisocial personality disorder).
NEUROLOGY AND ADVERSITY
Stress is a brain phenomena (this will come as a shock to some posters) and is related to the secreation of glucocorticoids (stress hormones) which modulate neural circuits by suppressing some, mainly prefrontal ones. This, longitudinally, results in neurodegeneration (neuron death). It makes the amygdala bigger, however, and more active and more resistant to neurodegeneration.
So stress, for most of us, can make us more impulsive, selfish with some working (short-term) and long-term memory errors, even days after the stressor. Of course, before a brain region fully develops it, and it suffers things like this, it will take longer and be impaired.
But imagine what would happen if your PFC was subject to chronic stress from the earlier days of your life?
Rats deprived play exhibit PFC developmental deficits whose behavioural manifestations are akin to symptoms of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (both in humans and animal models). That?s just lack of play. It should be obvious that studies have found correlated between more extreme developmental hardship and more extreme deficits.
Collecting a large sample of people who had been the unfortunate victim of childhood adversity (any abuse or neglect), clinicians used structural and functional neuroimaging to see what happens to the brain.
Propionate to the degree and severity and longevity of the abuse or neglect were structural and functional deficits accross the brain, but to the PFC in particular. Usage of standardised psychological tests sensitive to PFC function disclosed disturbance to most of its functions, namely response inhibition and emotional processing and discrimination.* Moreover, studies concur that such childhood abuse or neglect is associated with trait neuroticism as an adult.^
OSWALD AND PATHOLOGY
So Oswald?s horrible childhood (which conspiracy author Jim Marrs repugnantly lied about in
Crossfire) involving neglect by his mother, abuse by babysitters, and constant travelling where no attachments could be formed. He admitted to a psychiatrist that he would be angry at his mother if she didn?t come home with food, and would sometimes hit her. The doctor also found Oswald to be anxious, awkwardly and otherwise neurotic with passive aggressive and misanthropic tendencies. An examination lead to the diagnosis of the epigentic disease schizoid personality disorder, now known to be a precursor to schizophrenia. A developmental psychologist also gave him a standardised test (one included drawing human figures) which demonstrated the typical sociocogntive results of neglect.
Atop this lot, Oswald pulled a knife on his brother at age 8, and a disputed incident at age 13 (per John I). He also presented with various psychosocial impairemnts, just as we should expect, namely his schizoid traits. I?ve discussed his aggressive behaviour elsewhere, though some of it has been disputed and I won?t go into it here. Oswald made a suicide attempt in Russia (disputed only by complete kooks) which, surprise-surprise, is another symptom PFC (& hippocampul) degradation, especially that which comes from early life harship. He also apparently beat his wife (which we apparently just don?t talk about).
In Mexico City he was reported to be markedly emotionally unstable. The only reasons to doubt he was there are the usual scatterbrained CT nonproof. Trying to shoot General Walker was warning sign if I do say so myself.
CONCLUSION TO THE CONFUSION
Hi everybody who skipped the important bits! My conclusion is that Oswald?s brain was impaired as a result of his upbringing which caused him to be more prone to certain types of aggression (namely reactive) and neurotic psychology. Logical brain areas down, he was less than totally rational (hence the communism). He was neurotic, but not apparent to outside observers (as I?ve been reminded 19 or 20 thousand times today alone).
This, and everything else mentioned, would have predisposed him to the sort of aggression that either a lone-nut or manipulated conspirator would have. Though his traits would suggest he would not work with anyone, neuronal oddities could be exploited by people he trusted (if such persons ever existed).One must state it plainly: his neuropsychological state was such that a motive would not be necessary for either being a lone-assassin or joining a conspiracy.
I?m really stabbing both CTs and LNers in the back by taking away their arguments.Papers mentioned (Rob Caprio will likely deny the existence of these publications)
*
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3307045/pdf/fnhum-06-00052.pdf^
https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.researchgate.net/publication/11013988_Childhood_trauma_and_neuroticism_as_an_adult_Possible_implications_for_the_development_of_the_common_psychiatric_disorders_and_suicidal_behavior/amp
