poly: You'd be right in criminal cases. I know the Feds only use things like the PCL-R and VRAG to determine where within the guidelines to sentence a person already adjudged guilty.
The problem more lies in commitment, where the trial court must find, in a nutshell, 1) the target is mentally ill and 2) the target is dangerous. The PCL-R is evidence (I'll not comment on the weight I feel it should be attributed :D ) of both 1) and 2).
I hope not to bore anyone with the "dissertation" I am about to launch into. If you are easily bored, feel free to skip ahead. This is USA law oriented, therefore your mileage may vary.
I will use "psy" to refer to psychiatry and psychology.
While psychopathy may not be firmly entrenched in the thinking of academic and clinical psy, it, along with other instruments, plays an enormous role in forensic (testifying in court) psy. The main types of instruments used in forensic psy, from my experience, are actuarials used to determine the relative risk of recidivism/reconviction and diagnostic tools (like the PCL-R). These instruments primarily find application in sentencing, which uses the instruments to help determine the relative future threat a person poses, and thus how many years he should receive, and in civil commitment, in both diagnosis and determining the future dangerousness of the target.
In my mind, there are a couple of problems with the use of these instruments, the PCL-R included.
1) They tend to inspire fear in juries, as words like psychopath tend to suggest a cold-hearted predator, and thus a material risk to the safety of the community.
2) They tend to invade the "province of the jury." Instead of letting the jury make up its own mind, these sort of tools tend to suggest a person is empirically a threat.
3) The foundational science is in its infancy, and psy is shaped by policy, not just "science." Open up a DSM-III. Look in the paraphilias. You will find homosexuality listed as a psychiatric disorder.
4) They generally take no (or little account) of treatment, time, or personal change. Actuarials seem to doom a person based on acts which could have occurred decades ago.
5) Inter-rater reliability/scoring issues
6) Misuse. The PCL-R Hare is commonly abused, with scores under the magic threshold of 30 used to suggest "moderate" psychopathic features.
I'm too tired to manage much more. I find the practice of forensic psy to be wrought with problems, from its very foundation to its application, and I find it's used to more or less lock people away with the niceties of (perhaps incorrect application of ) statistical distribution.
With all the crazy shit going on in the Houston DA's office, you'd imagine they'd be clamoring to hire. But alas, I'm still an (as far as legal occupations are concerned) unemployed baby lawyer.
Le sigh.
Capt, I think he means 2girls1cup. This is a link to a song made by an avid fan.
http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/fdad05b8c7
Fark always seemed to me sort of like a place where old frat boys are put out to pasture.
The proof was proof of his age, which if I'm not mistaken is actually 14. This is important only because as a 13-14 year old, the kid should know better than to act this way on national news.
The point is that this (to me) an entertaining watch due to the obvious discomfort and awkwardness of the situation. You've got a woman lobbing questions softer than Bush's planted reporters and a kid who's bristling like a porcupine and arrogant to boot, and in my mind, the combination is funny. Sorry if you disagree.
This kid is at least 13 years old. Not 5 years old. Not an elementary school kid. He's a 13 year old kid who can't manage anything near typical social interaction.
proof
I respectfully disagree. The kid is rude, an egomaniac, and the reporter has to pry out information from him with a crowbar. She maintains her cool, keeps smiling, and tries to get on with her interview even though he's doing his best to avoid every question.
You know I'm usually embarrassed by my state of residence. But in this case, I'm ecstatic: I'm not living in the state who is paying this bozo's salary with my tax dollars.
What a colossal waste of time. IF it survives summary judgment? That's like saying IF pigs come flying out of my ass, two by two, in a marching band.
Sorry but I thought somebody might appreciate my posts. Nothing on the FAQ told me about post limit. There's no reward to racking up a post count. I'm just trying to participate, but if I've upset the interpol I'd be glad to crawl back into my lurker's hole.
I may be wrong, but as I see it, the common sense generalization seems to be smart "liberals" are intellectuals where as smart "conservatives" are capitalists. The core of why conservatives behave the way they do is because they wish to protect their families and their way of life, and while liberals may want the same things, their political focus seems to be bringing about positive social change and some greater measure of fairness in the world. It would seem an atypical decision for the smart liberal to pick the more lucrative but socially questionable corporate job, while the conservative would favor providing for his family over taking the more idealogical job.
I think we liberals need to separate the cause from the effect in the conservative mind: they are (generally) good people with admirable intentions, but the impact of trying to maintain and even revert the status quo can be incredibly harmful in the long run, best example being pollution.
I love vicemag in all its pretentious hipster glory.
Vice Records:
Great acts like Justice
Vice TV:
Great shows like Heavy Metal In Baghdad
Vice Fashion:
And of course...
I beat it on hard, trick was using all of one type of tower. Fully upgraded squirters FTW. Maze so your fully upgraded squirters can nail a couple of creep passes, and are all in the center of the board.
Ah, touche. Well I played Xeno Tactic first, and for some reason thought it was the original. Pardon for any misdirection/trolling. Although I still really like the Vector TD a lot :D
This game actually aggravates me a bit, as it's a carbon copy of this clever game from 2005. If you check the statistics, the damage, range, cost, towers, etc are all lifted from Xeno Tactic.
Xeno Tactic
As a young-ish upcoming lawyer (currently studying for the bar) who uses myspace, I don't really think myspace is what you are looking for. It's really meant to be a cheap, easy alternative to hosting/designing your own website. Myspace is a great promotional tool for the entertainment industry, but really isn't geared to be a business tool. In my experience most people use myspace to promote a known product, i.e. myspace is for looking for more information on a band you've heard of and you most likely know their name and got the myspace page through google.
If you are hoping to expand your presence on the web, maybe participating in local forums give some free minor legal advice (with all the typical CYA disclaimers) would help promote you. Maybe even participating in national forums on legal issues might help. Nothing works better than old fashioned word of mouth.
But hey, you could prove me wrong and be the one to start a wild new trend, a lawyer - internet - celebrity with a huge friend list and maybe some audio of closing arguments?
And I thought lawyers had terrible jargon...
posted by DumberThanPaint 15 years ago
In "Studying psychopaths"
poly: You'd be right in criminal cases. I know the Feds only use things like the PCL-R and VRAG to determine where within the guidelines to sentence a person already adjudged guilty. The problem more lies in commitment, where the trial court must find, in a nutshell, 1) the target is mentally ill and 2) the target is dangerous. The PCL-R is evidence (I'll not comment on the weight I feel it should be attributed :D ) of both 1) and 2).
posted by DumberThanPaint 15 years ago
I hope not to bore anyone with the "dissertation" I am about to launch into. If you are easily bored, feel free to skip ahead. This is USA law oriented, therefore your mileage may vary. I will use "psy" to refer to psychiatry and psychology. While psychopathy may not be firmly entrenched in the thinking of academic and clinical psy, it, along with other instruments, plays an enormous role in forensic (testifying in court) psy. The main types of instruments used in forensic psy, from my experience, are actuarials used to determine the relative risk of recidivism/reconviction and diagnostic tools (like the PCL-R). These instruments primarily find application in sentencing, which uses the instruments to help determine the relative future threat a person poses, and thus how many years he should receive, and in civil commitment, in both diagnosis and determining the future dangerousness of the target. In my mind, there are a couple of problems with the use of these instruments, the PCL-R included. 1) They tend to inspire fear in juries, as words like psychopath tend to suggest a cold-hearted predator, and thus a material risk to the safety of the community. 2) They tend to invade the "province of the jury." Instead of letting the jury make up its own mind, these sort of tools tend to suggest a person is empirically a threat. 3) The foundational science is in its infancy, and psy is shaped by policy, not just "science." Open up a DSM-III. Look in the paraphilias. You will find homosexuality listed as a psychiatric disorder. 4) They generally take no (or little account) of treatment, time, or personal change. Actuarials seem to doom a person based on acts which could have occurred decades ago. 5) Inter-rater reliability/scoring issues 6) Misuse. The PCL-R Hare is commonly abused, with scores under the magic threshold of 30 used to suggest "moderate" psychopathic features. I'm too tired to manage much more. I find the practice of forensic psy to be wrought with problems, from its very foundation to its application, and I find it's used to more or less lock people away with the niceties of (perhaps incorrect application of ) statistical distribution.
posted by DumberThanPaint 15 years ago
In "Is "Canadian" the new racial slur in the American South?"
With all the crazy shit going on in the Houston DA's office, you'd imagine they'd be clamoring to hire. But alas, I'm still an (as far as legal occupations are concerned) unemployed baby lawyer. Le sigh.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "NSFW™"
Capt, I think he means 2girls1cup. This is a link to a song made by an avid fan. http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/fdad05b8c7 Fark always seemed to me sort of like a place where old frat boys are put out to pasture.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "Cops Writing Cops"
Cop shoot cop I believe I believe that I have been reborn Cop shoot cop I haven't got the time no more ?
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "The Spelling bee champ"
The proof was proof of his age, which if I'm not mistaken is actually 14. This is important only because as a 13-14 year old, the kid should know better than to act this way on national news. The point is that this (to me) an entertaining watch due to the obvious discomfort and awkwardness of the situation. You've got a woman lobbing questions softer than Bush's planted reporters and a kid who's bristling like a porcupine and arrogant to boot, and in my mind, the combination is funny. Sorry if you disagree.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
This kid is at least 13 years old. Not 5 years old. Not an elementary school kid. He's a 13 year old kid who can't manage anything near typical social interaction. proof
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
I respectfully disagree. The kid is rude, an egomaniac, and the reporter has to pry out information from him with a crowbar. She maintains her cool, keeps smiling, and tries to get on with her interview even though he's doing his best to avoid every question.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "Ernie Chambers is Suing God"
You know I'm usually embarrassed by my state of residence. But in this case, I'm ecstatic: I'm not living in the state who is paying this bozo's salary with my tax dollars. What a colossal waste of time. IF it survives summary judgment? That's like saying IF pigs come flying out of my ass, two by two, in a marching band.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "Fried coke"
Sorry but I thought somebody might appreciate my posts. Nothing on the FAQ told me about post limit. There's no reward to racking up a post count. I'm just trying to participate, but if I've upset the interpol I'd be glad to crawl back into my lurker's hole.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "I want epaulettes on my liberal uniform!"
I may be wrong, but as I see it, the common sense generalization seems to be smart "liberals" are intellectuals where as smart "conservatives" are capitalists. The core of why conservatives behave the way they do is because they wish to protect their families and their way of life, and while liberals may want the same things, their political focus seems to be bringing about positive social change and some greater measure of fairness in the world. It would seem an atypical decision for the smart liberal to pick the more lucrative but socially questionable corporate job, while the conservative would favor providing for his family over taking the more idealogical job. I think we liberals need to separate the cause from the effect in the conservative mind: they are (generally) good people with admirable intentions, but the impact of trying to maintain and even revert the status quo can be incredibly harmful in the long run, best example being pollution.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "Marry Our Daughter"
I figured as much, but it was too entertaining not to share.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "And you think your bed is uncomfortable?"
I love vicemag in all its pretentious hipster glory. Vice Records: Great acts like Justice Vice TV: Great shows like Heavy Metal In Baghdad Vice Fashion: And of course...
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "New Yorker Monkeys Caption Contest"
Congressional aides finish drafting legislation which will heal America's health care woes.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "Desktop Tower Defense!"
I beat it on hard, trick was using all of one type of tower. Fully upgraded squirters FTW. Maze so your fully upgraded squirters can nail a couple of creep passes, and are all in the center of the board.
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
Ah, touche. Well I played Xeno Tactic first, and for some reason thought it was the original. Pardon for any misdirection/trolling. Although I still really like the Vector TD a lot :D
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
This is my favorite flash TD
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
This game actually aggravates me a bit, as it's a carbon copy of this clever game from 2005. If you check the statistics, the damage, range, cost, towers, etc are all lifted from Xeno Tactic. Xeno Tactic
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
In "Curious George: myspace judicata"
As a young-ish upcoming lawyer (currently studying for the bar) who uses myspace, I don't really think myspace is what you are looking for. It's really meant to be a cheap, easy alternative to hosting/designing your own website. Myspace is a great promotional tool for the entertainment industry, but really isn't geared to be a business tool. In my experience most people use myspace to promote a known product, i.e. myspace is for looking for more information on a band you've heard of and you most likely know their name and got the myspace page through google. If you are hoping to expand your presence on the web, maybe participating in local forums give some free minor legal advice (with all the typical CYA disclaimers) would help promote you. Maybe even participating in national forums on legal issues might help. Nothing works better than old fashioned word of mouth. But hey, you could prove me wrong and be the one to start a wild new trend, a lawyer - internet - celebrity with a huge friend list and maybe some audio of closing arguments?
posted by DumberThanPaint 16 years ago
(limited to the most recent 20 comments)