Robertson And The DSM IV

It scares me that people in this country (lots of people apparently) still find Pat Robertson relevant. I seriously think the guy has a mental problem. Robertson claimed the other day that federal judges are a more serious threat to America than Al Qaeda and the Sept. 11 terroristst.

"Over 100 years, I think the gradual erosion of the consensus that’s held our country together is probably more serious than a few bearded terrorists who fly into buildings," Robertson said on ABC’s "This Week with George Stephanopoulos."

"I think we have controlled Al Qaeda," the 700 Club host said, but warned of "erosion at home" and said judges were creating a "tyranny of oligarchy."

Confronted by Stephanopoulos on his claims that an out-of-control liberal judiciary is the worst threat America has faced in 400 years – worse than Nazi Germany, Japan and the Civil War – Robertson didn’t back down. "Yes, I really believe that," he said. "I think they are destroying the fabric that holds our nation together."

Quick run-down here: Nazi Germany and Japan, in addition to the whole genocide thing, killed hundreds of thousands of Americans in a war. The Civil War ripped apart the nation, creating divisions that last until today, resulted in more than 600,000 deaths, and resulted in the assassination of a President. Al-Qaeda’s 9/11 attack not only killed 3000 people, but it undermined the way in which Americans relate to each other and the world. "Activist" judges might end up allowing gay people to get married. Seems like a fair comparison, no?

But, in case you doubt Robertson’s word, well, there’s higher authorities that will put the smite down on your disbelief. Stephanopolopolopoulos played a clip from earlier in the year where Robertson told 700 Club viewers (known here in Real World Central as "fucking idiots") what God told him was going to happen: "What I heard was that Bush is now positioned to have victory after victory. He’ll have Social Security reform passed, that he’ll have tax reform passed, that he’ll have conservative judges on the courts."

Robertson said to Stephanopoulos that things were on the path for God’s words to come true, and that, while God doesn’t change the laws of nature (because, you know, he invented them), he is listening: "In terms of human affairs I do think he answers prayer and I think there have been literally millions of people praying for a change in the Supreme Court. The people of faith in this country feel they’re on a tyranny and they see their liberties taken away from them and they’ve been beseeching God, fasting and praying for years, so I think he hears and answers their prayers."

Two problems here: 1) How out of your mind do you have to be to "fast" so God will listen to your "prayers" over the Supreme Court? 2) And, really, is God’s ToDo list so short that he’s got the time to worry about whether the next Supreme Court nominee is a really, really insane right wing nutcase or just plain ol’ insane right wing? ‘Cause, see, if I were were an all-powerful deity, I might wanna change some hearts in Darfur or, say, North Korea.

The truth is, in clinical terms, Pat Robertson is, well, about as mentally unbalanced as they come. Whatcha wanna go with? Delusional Disorder, Grandiose Type? Where one can be a functioning person, just having stuff like voices in your head, and delusions of "inflated worth, power, knowledge, identity, or special relationship to a deity." Paranoid Personality Disorder? Marked by a sense that "disaster is on the horizon," that "the world is full of enemies," that "accidents are doubtful; negative events are initiated by others with hostile intent," that "all events relate to self," that the individual is "never to blame or guilty (others are)," and that the individual is "different from the rest of humanity, often with pretensions of having unique awareness or insight."

Take your pick, but I’d say Robertson qualifies for either or both.