*REVISIT* Does Anyone Feel Sad for Casey? Or Family Members?

a couple of articles that have influenced the way i perceive casey, whom (as i have said before) i believe, is a sociopath.

http://askdrrobert.dr-robert.com/sociopath.html

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Discuss:How_can_you_help_a_sociopath
in particular,this comment:

(5) On July 21, 2007 at 07:22 am SabrinaSingularity [184] said:

*lore621* said:

That's because there was only one.

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My face beagn to hurt after watching her rub and rub the same half dry spot. ouch.

shoelace said:

i only joined this site because of the casey anthony case and my obsession with it. i have read every document dump, watched every video, read AND heard the transcripts from all involved, and I KNOW that kc is guilty of killing her child.

i, like 99% of you, have been condemning her. she's wrong.

but right now, even after the gj hearing, the picture of her in the unbuttoned blue shirt and white glasses, the flippancy at the press conference and the crocodile tear, i actually feel bad for her.

even though she killed her child, even though she stole, lied, and cheated friends and family... even though she failed her parents and dropped out of school and lied to her grandmother, and even though she was promiscuous and had a child without a husband... is she undeserving of our compassion? because of all these actions we can safely say that at some point she was a victim too. of something BAD.

you might all think that she is evil. but right now, i don't. i feel that she is incredibly lost and scared and ripped off... don't know by who, but someone affected her... right now i honestly feel very sad for her.

this does not mean in any way that i understand or support her actions. i just think that if anyone could get to the point that she did in her behavior, then that in itself, is very tragic. she is not okay with it... no way.

okay... it's late, i'll read this when i wake up, i had a long day. but i really feel this way right now. i'm probably just being insane.

peace in the middle east,
david.

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I feel really bad that she isn't a whole person. She's a shell of a human being, devoid of any real, meaningful connection to others

Being a mother.......well... I can't even describe the depth of love I have for my child. It's the most amazing and wonderful and all consuming feeling I've ever experienced. I get to live with that feeling every day.

It deeply saddens me when I hear of mothers that simply have never known that feeling.

I've been bashing Casey right along with everyone else and I've thought about this case a great deal. On a few occasions I have, as a lot of us have, felt brief, fleeting moments of compassion for Casey. But, when I think of Caylee those feelings quickly fade. Caylee was an innocent defenseless child and Casey was responsible for her well being. It's hard enough to understand how a mother can commit the ultimate act of betrayal and take the life of her own child but what makes this case even worse is Casey's continued barbaric behavior. She continues to prove that Caylee meant nothing to her by remaining silent and allowing Caylee to decompose in a cold, damp unmarked grave.
I think some of us would be willing to show Casey some compassion if only she would show us something first. She could start by showing that she has even a shred of human decency by telling authorities where she discarded Caylee so that she can be brought home for a proper burial. Until then, I will remain convinced that she's just an empty shell, un capable of even the most basic human emotions.

No, No I don't feel sorry for her at all.

Boston said:

I think some of us would be willing to show Casey some compassion if only she would show us something first. She could start by showing that she has even a shred of human decency by telling authorities where she discarded Caylee so that she can be brought home for a proper burial. Until then, I will remain convinced that she's just an empty shell, un capable of even the most basic human emotions.

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Respectfully snipped.

Perhaps that is what makes this so tough. The compassion I want to feel is for someone who doesn't exist. The Casey that could've been, the shadow-person who made a different decision on that fateful day/night and changed her life for the better. That is the person I feel sad for...and that person is nothing more than an invisible traveler moving along a path that never got to be explored, holding hands with Caylee.

I fell sorry for her. she had a beautiful daughter and could have had a wonderful life ahead for both of them. I don't understand why she threw it away. I fell very angry toward her and then I fell very sad. Sometime I even hate her. I think now she is scared...game over.

Misfit76 said:

"We bring them into the world. The least we can do is let them show it to us."

Debs, that is such a beautiful, meaningful quote, is it yours? I hope you dont mind if I borrow it sometime. When I think of my son, it really rings true, with him, its like seeing everything again for the first time. How any mother could not treasure that and appreciate every moment is beyond me.

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Misfit, my oldest daughter will be 24 on the 25th of this month. We had some friends over when Sarah was just learning to talk. She kept coming to me wanting me to see this thing or that. My friend got a little annoyed and wondered why I kept allowing Sarah to interrupt. That was what I told her. Through Sarah's eyes, the world looked a lot different.

Feel free to use it liberally

No one here would be taken a'back to know that I feel bad for her. I feel bad for her whole family and especially Caylee. I think if Casey is guilty, it was an accident of negligence. That does not make it okay, nor does it validfy her stealing and lying. But, from the beginning, I felt she was a very lost person... with great need to be loved by a man. She seemed so hungry for that attention, that she forgot the one person whom loved her the most. I believe her tears were real. And I do not believe she is sane, if she killed her daughter. Something in her snapped. I feel horrible for her parents... the way her father must be feeling -having to testify against her. It is oh so very very sad. Any situation like this is sad. I cried when I saw the news. I knew it was going to happen that way. Yet, I was still shocked.

Empathy and forgiveness are good qualities. I hope the true story of what happened to Caylee is revealed by the people responsible. Guilty or not. It is the only anyone else can learn from this tragedy.

shoelace said:

i only joined this site because of the casey anthony case and my obsession with it. i have read every document dump, watched every video, read AND heard the transcripts from all involved, and I KNOW that kc is guilty of killing her child.

i, like 99% of you, have been condemning her. she's wrong.

but right now, even after the gj hearing, the picture of her in the unbuttoned blue shirt and white glasses, the flippancy at the press conference and the crocodile tear, i actually feel bad for her.

even though she killed her child, even though she stole, lied, and cheated friends and family... even though she failed her parents and dropped out of school and lied to her grandmother, and even though she was promiscuous and had a child without a husband... is she undeserving of our compassion? because of all these actions we can safely say that at some point she was a victim too. of something BAD.

you might all think that she is evil. but right now, i don't. i feel that she is incredibly lost and scared and ripped off... don't know by who, but someone affected her... right now i honestly feel very sad for her.

this does not mean in any way that i understand or support her actions. i just think that if anyone could get to the point that she did in her behavior, then that in itself, is very tragic. she is not okay with it... no way.

okay... it's late, i'll read this when i wake up, i had a long day. but i really feel this way right now. i'm probably just being insane.

peace in the middle east,
david.

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for renewing my faith in humanity. Feeling empathy and compassion for others is what makes us whole human beings. As human beings, our brains are hardwired to feel empathy and compassion - that is why we've survived and even flourished as a species. When the neuron pathways are blocked, when the pheromone/chemical doesn't connect with neurons, if mirror neurons don't form, then we are broken human beings. We don't know yet why this chemical is blocked or not released by the brain and we may never know, because we're a sum of all our experiences - it isn't nature or nurture, it's nature and nurture and the two can't be separated.

As we mature we go through stages of empathy and compassion development. we learn that others may have different responses, thoughts and feelings about similar situations. We learn that those thoughts etc., are as valid as our own even if they are different from ours. No matter how wrong we believe that other person's thoughts and responses are we still understand that the other person is experiencing those thoughts and responses. As babies we begin by imitating those responses and by the time we are adults we have formed a theory of mind - we can not only imitate others' emotions, we can understand, feel empathy and compassion and recognize those emotions in others without the belief of the superiority of our own emotions or that our emotions supercede the need of others.

How this development breaks down in some human beings is unknown fully at this point in time. We do know that humans are reactive and adaptive, that hardwiring in the brain develops quickly in some humans, slowly in others and not at all for some or develops contrarily in a few. We know that for those who are chronically depressed that neurons may not function as those who are not depressed or that neuronal pathways are blocked for some reason. Why some people exhibit extreme behavioral abnormalities which are described as sociopathy or personality disorders is still unknown. Behavior is mostly learned but it is experienced in the brain as a chemical reaction - human beings are basically big bags of chemicals - so more and more scientists are coming to the understanding that we are a sum of all our parts, nature, nurture and environment.

That you feel compassion and empathy and pity for this woman and her family isn't weird, it's normal human behavior. Feeling compassion and sorrow for Casey and Caylee aren't mutually exclusive, they are mutually inclusive - it is a recognition on your part that these are real human beings who are a part of ourselves as a species and society and any destruction of the potential of the human spirit is diminishing to our humanity.

Now we have this young woman who has left a swath of destruction that can never be repaired; Caylee has had her life snuffed out, her parents are emtionally devastated and guilt ridden which will never leave them, her brother has been the victim of the most cruel and vicious rumours and for what? So that she can experience a moment or two in life that is so fleeting, so meaningless, so unredemptive that most people don't even remember it as they grow older. For Casey, a party, a boyfriend, a nightclub, fashionable clothes were so important to her that she was willing to kill for them, destroy friendships and cause unimaginable grief to her family - and aren't those the saddest, most inconsequential reasons of all? Why shouldn't she be pitied for that? How much more broken can a human being be? She's as sick as someone who has cancer and what's worse is that she can never be cured - there's no treatment that's going to fix this or make it better, it's already killed her as sure as it's killed Caylee and those who loved them. We should pity them all.

I can not find the compassion to feel sorry for predators, sociopaths and people who usse their own children as pawns in a game to get the upper hand and the life they wanted.

All of that applies to Miss Casey. Caylee was never anything more then a meal ticket to Casey to get what she wanted and could steal from her family. When that ended because CA realized that her daughter was not a good mother and was making arrangements through counseling to get custody of Caylee..the jig was up. What good was Caylee to Casey anylonger...she had outlived her purpose.

Casey has no soul and no purpose in life other then doing what she wants, with whom she wants, when she wants............other people's needs and wants were never part of her reality.

This souless predator belongs behind bars and then the DP...she will not show remorse ..because she doesn't understand remorse. She will in a years time, after many motions are made and she is facing a trial, cop a plea for LWOP. What a waste..

I also feel bad for KC and have off and on throughout this whole ordeal. I feel bad and just cannot fathom the thought of her taking the life of such a beautiful child. It really bothers me how she has ruined her life at such a young age and that of her parents. I cannot even imagine the thoughts that were going through her head when she harmed that child. But I do wonder that if she did get away with this if she ever would have shown any remorse and I am not sure she has yet. I believe the tears are for her losing her freedom and that saddens me.

debs said:

Misfit, my oldest daughter will be 24 on the 25th of this month. We had some friends over when Sarah was just learning to talk. She kept coming to me wanting me to see this thing or that. My friend got a little annoyed and wondered why I kept allowing Sarah to interrupt. That was what I told her. Through Sarah's eyes, the world looked a lot different.

Feel free to use it liberally

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Aww thats precious, and thank you! I know what you mean, when my son talks (jibber jabbers mostly, he just turned 2 lol) I let him go on and on and answer him and encourage him, even if I dont know exactly what hes talking about, or even if Im doing something, whatever it is, its important and exciting to him so that makes it important to me.

Great quote, Debs. (;

debs said:

Misfit, my oldest daughter will be 24 on the 25th of this month. We had some friends over when Sarah was just learning to talk. She kept coming to me wanting me to see this thing or that. My friend got a little annoyed and wondered why I kept allowing Sarah to interrupt. That was what I told her. Through Sarah's eyes, the world looked a lot different.

Feel free to use it liberally

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Caylee is the one I feel compassion for. Her mother either caused her demise or didn't take steps to assure a propper burial after it occurred. Her own mother won't help find her and continues to lie, denying her justice. Her grandparents have abandoned her to, altough they SAY they never will, chosing to believe a fantasy that she's still alive, despite the evidence, and giving creedance to the lies of her mother when they, of all people, should know better, having chosen to stand behind the woman who caused or ignored her demise rather than standing for justice for Caylee. It's horrible that the people who say they loved this little girl, who she trusted and adored have chosen their own lives and their own fantasies above truly standing for what is right and just for Caylee. Poor, poor Caylee.

KC left a lot of carnage in her wake. I feel sorry for her family who, even now, she is bamboozeling, for her grandparents, people at the end of their lives, from whom she stole, no doubt far more than their money. I feel sorry for people who thought they had a friend in KC, or a girlfriend, who have been betrayed by her lies and cunning, who now have their association with her hanging about their necks like albatross as they tried to get a start in life, some of whom KC's family has even accused of the very crimes that KC committed. I feel sorry for people who didn't even know KC but who she dragged into this mess like ZG who has been tarred and damaged by it. I didn't see many tears from KC but the ones I did see seemed be for herself, not for the all the ones she's caused to suffer.

Feel bad for her? WTH? Are you watching the same things I am? Casey could stop her mother and fathers suffering at any time by just telling the truth.. She doesnt care if they suffer forever. This is a monster dressed up to look innocent! If she were ugly it would be over by now! but because Casey is cute some doubt she could be a monster.. imo
P.S. dont drink the koolaid!

It is always sad when a young person with great potential and promise wastes their life and throws away their chances at redemption. BUT, in the majority of cases, every murderer has a mom and a dad who are left heartbroken, rapists may have a sibling or a spouse who is left empty and destroyed. Criminals have families and there are people who care about them that are left without their loved one, and who have been tormented by the actions of their loved one and by their crimes. I do not feel sorry for ANY murderer. I do not feel sorry for any rapist. And I do not feel sorry for Casey Anthony. Even if she did NOT kill her child, she has paved a trail of pain and sorrow that is long and broad with her lies and her behavior AFTER the fact of her child missing. She has hurt so many people in all of this, besides poor Caylee, that there is not one chance that I would feel sorry for her in the least, ever. She did this by her choices, and the natural law says we reap what we plant, every action has a reaction. She did harm to her child, her sweet child who trusted her to protect her, and that child is whom I feel all of my compassion and sympathy for. Casey is a cold blooded uncaring and unfeeling individual. The only one she does feel for is her own self. So I say let her enjoy her own company for the remainder of her days, and let her spend those days in a cage evermore.

maza said:

a couple of articles that have influenced the way i perceive casey, whom (as i have said before) i believe, is a sociopath.

http://askdrrobert.dr-robert.com/sociopath.html

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Discuss:How_can_you_help_a_sociopath
in particular,this comment:

(5) On July 21, 2007 at 07:22 am SabrinaSingularity [184] said:

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The writer states that some therapists opine that sociopathy is a normal personality variant. That's true. That's why some call sociopaths "throwbacks." That is, throwbacks to an earlier time when normal feelings got in the way of survival.

ski3166 said:

Feel bad for her? WTH? Are you watching the same things I am? Casey could stop her mother and fathers suffering at any time by just telling the truth.. She doesnt care if they suffer forever. This is a monster dressed up to look innocent! If she was ugly it would be over by now! imo

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EXACTLY. She is an attractive, pretty young woman, and THAT is the ONLY thing that has kept this on the front pages. If she was an unattractive person, it would never have gotten the exposure that it has. Ugly people don't seem to be as "newsworthy" as attractive ones for some reason...:furious:

I have some compassion because I acknowledge that we just don't know all the facts yet. I still hold onto this pathetic belief that Caylee is out there somewhere. I feel compassion in the sense that in the case of alleged infanticide women are always targeted prematurely, unfairly and the most harshly because women - mothers - are supposed to be the 'nurturer'. Of course in a lot of cases the condemnation of the mother as suspect is entirely justified, however Casey has not been found guilty (yet). I want to know more than I do - more than we all do. I generally believe that things are never as they seem - this case alone is testament to that as there have been so many inconsistencies, twists and turns. While most inconsistencies can be contributed to the As; not all of them were from them. As somebody studying law I absolutely believe in a fair trial, equality before the law and the presumption of innocence; perhaps this is to my detriment and has affected the way I see the 'reality' of this case. Just like Casey, Lindy Chamberlain also had an outrageous story that a Dingo stole her baby. She received a trial by media first, then an eventual trial (complete with biased jurors) and was found guilty. However Lindy was actually innocent and was later acquitted.

The fact this has been a case all over the media also makes me feel a lot of unease - particularly the rantings of Nancy Grace. The fact I have also seen a lot of unjustified speculation over this case ad museum annoys me to the point I feel compassion for the A Family as whole because their whole lives (or what people perceive to be their 'life') is basically being raped over by strangers. I guess that's the beauty of free speech and public opinion though.

My mixed feelings toward Casey don't discount my absolute heartbreak for Caylee though. As somebody so poignantly mentioned, this is a little girl who if dead, won't experience school, her first love, marriage, children, not even another birthday . If she was intentionally murdered by Casey, my heart absolutely breaks to even try and imagine what Caylee saw as she looked into her mothers eyes the last time.

Maybe a lot of people have lost family members to murders, are heavily emotionally invested in this case for personal reasons or just generally have a different personality than I do, but I just can't relate to, nor feel the venom and hate I see directed to Casey (at least, not yet). Like I said, perhaps this is to my detriment. Time will tell.