5) Is Preoccupied with Fantasies
of Unlimited Success, Power, or Brilliance.
Is Sutter Pathologically Narcissistic?
According to the American Psychiatric Association's DSM-IV, Narcissistic Personality Disorder is characterized by various degrees of controlling or blaming others, self-absorption, intolerance of others' views, unawareness of others' needs and of the effects of their own behavior on others, and an insistence that others see them as they wish to be seen. They may also withdraw socially and feign modesty or humility on occasion.
Jim Sutter seems to fit this description to a 'T'. However, Sutter is also on medication, which could suppress symptoms of a more serious disorder. Some who have known him have claimed that he is delusional when not properly medicated, which could mean that he is schizophrenic (to our knowledge, Sutter has not publicly disclosed his medications nor his reason for taking them). A person suffering schizophrenia is not at fault for this condition.
If Sutter is not schizophrenic, then it is suggested that he may at least have Narcissistic Personality Disorder, although it is possible for one person to be diagnosed with both conditions.
We are not psychiatrists and therefore not qualified to declare any disorders or impairments on the part of Jim Sutter. We don't know his mental history, nor his medications. We can only state our opinion based on our experiences with him and with his writings, particularly when it appears to fit the categorical symptoms of a particular pathology.
As the middle of three brothers growing up in a Midwestern family home in the 1950's for the first 10 years of his life, it is quite possible that Sutter felt disenfranchised from his parents, perceiving their attention to be more available for the oldest and youngest of his siblings (which is hardly unusual for a middle child). This can be a foundation for pathological narcissism which, psychologists tell us, is often enhanced by some form of abuse or trauma suffered in early development.
We do not know Sutter's family history well enough to state an opinion on this. To our knowledge, Sutter always speaks about his childhood in glowingly idyllic language, much like Martha Stewart has been known to do. In sharp contrast to his own failure in life, Sutter's older brother, Dennis, did become a respected businessman and entrepreneur before dying of a sudden heart attack four years ago. On the other hand, Sutter's youngest brother (by 10 years) died quite young at the age of 21.
Rather than speculate about what we don't know, let's demonstrate how Sutter appears to fit the technical diagnosis of Pathological Narcissism Disorder according to the APA's definition:
1) Has a Grandiose Sense of Self-Importance and Requires Excessive Admiration
This one is pretty easy. Sutter's own writings are replete with references to himself and his impressive impact on the world (as he perceives it).
In the left column of the main page of his blog, for example, he lists nearly 100 companies and universities that he claims use him as an "information resource." He also has more pages on the Internet devoted to various (and sometimes contradictory) "profiles" of himself than you will find in a roomful of forty people.
A July 13th posting on his site is fairly typical of his grandiose claims:
"Also in the past couple of weeks, I have received numerous compliments on this site, and have heard from (currently) 141 former hate mongers, followers of hate mongers, and former members of hate speech sites, including former Jihad Watch members. All have stated that this blog helped them become aware of the dangers of hate speech, the fallacies used by hate mongers, and the danger this presents to society. Several have offered to help in the battle against hatred."
(source)
While claiming to have been contacted by 142 individuals, presumably overpowered by the force of his reason and compassion, Sutter's site was actually averaging less that a dozen hits a day, and from the tiny handful of comments that were posted over the two months around this claim, only one visitor was even remotely complimentary. (Note, in May of 2008, Sutter claimed that he had been contacted by an additional 149 "ex-haters" in the year since, for a total of 291).
In the past, Sutter has not merely claimed fake disabilities, but has gone well beyond this to invent stories about his magnificent performance under such hardships. Consider these three posts, left weeks apart in the Fall of 1995:
"I myself am a PWD, fighting congestive heart failure, SVT episodes, chronic hypoxemia, diabetes, hearing impairment, unstable asthma, coronary artery disease, sleep apnea, an incomplete SCI at T-12, and neuromuscular disabilities.
"Despite all this, I strap on my wheelchair and portable respirator each day and go about my ministry work"(source)
"I have been told over and over to slow down, and just last week, my primary physician asked me how I can keep going, considering how serious my disabilities are. My reply is that I was blessed by God when he gave me all these disabilities so that I could understand what others are going through, and I really can empathize with them. God also allows me the grace to wake up each morning and to continue His work. When He finally calls me, I will, I hope, have offered some hope to others in similar situations. I also hope that I have been able to, in some small way, make a change for the better in this world."
(source)
"I have fought this battle every day since early in 1992... Many times I was out in my wheelchair in pouring rain or 20 below zero weather, taking measurments or pictures of inaccessible areas. It takes much more than weather to stop me."(source)
(In the pouring rain with a respirator? How did he manage to fool this group for so long?)There are many more examples that could be used here. Sutter's writings nearly always reflect an epic sense of self-importance that skirts the comical edge for those who know otherwise.
2) Believes that He or She is "Special" and Unique and Can Only be Understood by Other Special People
Sutter is fond of trying to distinguish himself as truly unique in his writings. He is rigidly opinionated and enjoys trying to appear as if others simply cannot understand him because of his distinctiveness:
"I've been accused of being a liberal, a conservative, a Muslim, a Jew, a Christian Missionary, a space alien (really!), a robot, a government spy, a Communist, a terrorist, a homosexual, a bisexual, many things that I won't repeat"
"accusations that I am a communist, fascist, leftist, liberal, fundamentalist, homosexual, bisexual, trisexual, space alien, member of the Illuminati, a robot, a terrorist sympathizer, a terrorist, a missionary, a Jew, a Muslim, a right-wing war monger, a “fake” pastor? All of these have already been used"
(source)
(Interestingly, Sutter leaves out the most common accusations - that he is a "liar," narcissist," "malingerer," and "fraud").
3) Takes Advantage of Others to Achieve his Own Ends.
As we document elsewhere, a classic example of this is Sutter's participation in an Internet News group in 1995 dedicated to the Americans with Disabilities Act. In order to solicit the admiration of others, as well as letters of support for his legal campaign, Sutter described various severe ailments from which he falsely claimed to be suffering.
4) Lacks Empathy and Has a Strong Sense of Entitlement.
Continuing with the situation described above, when Sutter was exposed as a fraud by the others, he did not attempt to offer an apology. He had no empathy for how the others felt upon discovering that they had been taken advantage of. Instead, he complained about the hard feelings against him, played the victim, and continued to post messages and propagate further lies about himself.
Sutter feels that he is entitled to lie to others. When caught, he will simply move on, without the slightest acknowledgment of his moral failing. Depending on the situation, he may use words like "cyberstalker" or launch into his familiar (but meaningless) "ad hominem" spiel, but he always acts as if others are more at fault for finding him out than he is for exploiting unsuspecting people. He is very much like an immature child who truly feels that the world revolves around them.
In our dealings with him, and in what we have gleaned from his writings, Sutter has never apologized for hurting or lying to others. There seems to be no appreciation for the rights, needs or feelings of other people. He is remarkably arrogant and unsympathetic.
This also reflects in his current campaign to censor anti-Jihad sites from the Internet. Sutter lacks remorse or basic regard for the headaches and problems that he is unfairly causing others. His only motivation seems to be in making a name for himself at others' expense.
Why would a grown man claim over and over again to be what he is not? In so many places (documented on this site) Sutter has claimed to have high-standing academic degrees, religious titles and military glories that are all completely fictitious. Clearly, he is determined that others see him the way he wants to be seen, against the facade of fantasies that he generates concerning strength, character, integrity and intelligence.
Sutter, who claims to speak eleven languages, also says that "thousands of readers" are flocking to his site, even though he knows that whatever attention he is receiving is almost exclusively negative. He sees the daily hits on his blog increasing and chooses to interpret it as a symbol of power rather than unpopularity.
In March of 2006, Sutter told a Yahoo Group that he was a good friend of former CIA Director James Woolsey:
"Tell Jim that the "Jolly Green Giant" said hello, and that he still owes me twenty bucks from the poker game. Oh, and if you want to keep claiming that you have met the director, you may want to learn to spell his name correctly.(source, source)Rev. Jim Sutter (a/k/a Groandalf)
Cleveland, Ohio USA"
Will Sutter eventually notice the separation that others on his side of the fence begin to place between themselves and him? Will he figure it out when organizations that were initially quite enthusiastic no longer have an interest in him anymore?
We aren't sure, but we do feel safe in saying that whatever the future holds for the otherwise socially reclusive Jim Sutter, he will continue cranking out loud and lengthy blog postings, bragging of his importance and impact in the world to a dwindling band of gawkers.