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Article 1.
Scientific American
Is Muammar Qadhafi Clinically
Psychotic?
John Matson

August 23, 2011 -- OUT OF TOUCH: The bizarre statements Col.
Muammar Qadhafi has made in the past several months may result
from a self-imposed insulation from reality, rather than a delusional
detachment from it. Six months after a civil uprising began in Libya,
Col. Muammar Qadhafi, the nation's longtime leader, finally seems to
have lost his grip on the country he ruled for more than 40 years. Did
he also, at some point, lose his grip on reality? As the conflict spread
across Libya, Qadhafi made a number of bizarre statements to
members of the media, denying that demonstrators were angry with
the government and even claiming that any conflict that might be
unfolding was the result of drinks spiked with hallucinogenic drugs.
More recently he has pledged to defend the capital, Tripoli, even as
rebel forces swept through the city with surprising swiftness. Was
Qadhafi deluded about the state of his nation or was he simply
unwilling to accept that his time had come? To get some insight on
the Libyan leader and other out-of-touch dictators, we spoke to
Jerrold Post, a professor of psychiatry, political psychology and
international affairs, and director of the Political Psychology Program
at George Washington University. Post is a CIA veteran who has
written psychological profiles of a number of world leaders.

What is it about leaders like Qadhafi that makes them unable to
see or accept their own impending downfall?

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