are you kidding me?

some 19-year-old kid in the UK has recently plead guilty to killing his parents before stealing their credit cards and going on a $30,000 shopping spree. he may receive a reduced sentence because psychiatrists are testifying that he has a condition called "narcissistic personality disorder." here are the symptoms of NPD.

- grandiose sense of self-importance
- preoccupied with fantasies
- believes self to be "special"
- requires excessive admiration
- has a sense of entitlement
- is interpersonally exploitative
- lacks empathy
- is often envious
- displays arrogant, haughty behavior

tom cruise recently ruffled some feathers on a televised interview with matt lauer in which he aggressively campaigned against psychiatry claiming it was nothing more than "pseudo-science." i can't say that i have a very passionate stance on this one way or another. i do think that our society is over-medicated and that mind-altering drugs probably ought to be used as a last resort in most cases. but i also believe that mental illness is a legitimate problem and that many people's lives are made better by medicines and psychiatric treatment. however, reading a story about some kid who might receive a lenient sentence on a murder charge because he has been given the official diagnosis of "a*#hole" by the mental health foundation makes me want to give tom cruise's opinions more than just a second thought.