Source: Adobe photostock, licensed by Ravi Chandra On Saturday, August 3rd, 2019, a gunman opened fire at an El Paso, Texas, Walmart and killed 20 and wounded at least another 26.
The alleged gunman is suspected of posting a 2,300-word manifesto titled “The Inconvenient Truth” moments before the attack. The manifesto referenced the Christchurch massacres in New Zealand that killed 51. According to the New York Times, the Christchurch mass murderer referenced:
"a white supremacist theory called ‘the great replacement.” The theory has been promoted by a French writer named Renaud Camus, and argues that elites in Europe have been working to replace white Europeans with immigrants from the Middle East and North Africa.”
It’s obvious that this “theory” (it seems more like a paranoid delusion to me) is framed around stoking the fears of White Nationalists. But psychologically, what factors do those fears play on?
As I see it, narcissism/tribalism and its relationship to poor relatedness and, ultimately, to nihilism underpin the ideology of White Nationalism.
Narcissism/Tribalism
Clearly, a mass murderer has crossed into sociopathic/psychopathic territory in terms of an extreme lack of remorse and empathy, but the root of the problem can be found in narcissism.
Narcissism is, at its core, an overvaluation of self and a devaluation of others. Narcissism runs along a spectrum. There’s a great deal of overlap among the following categories, though, and unclear boundaries clinically speaking. And conditions can push us around on the spectrum. What’s absolutely true is that we know we’re with a narcissist by how they make us feel. (See figure.) (Definitions and quotes from Gabbard and Crisp, 2018.)
- Grandiose/Malignant/Oblivious: Grandiose narcissists have a dogged belief in their superiority. This makes the narcissist envious, competitive, and antagonistic to anyone who threatens their sense of superior self. They are routinely stuck in cycles of social comparison. They are likely to twist reality (gaslight) in pursuit of “power” over others, are manipulative, and feel privileged/entitled. They inherently feel that all relationships are competitive and "win-lose" instead of mutual or interdependent. They have a problematic view of relationships and can act on it by taking advantage of others.
- Vulnerable or Fragile: Vulnerable narcissists are insecure, thin-skinned, and likely to lash out if criticized. They have a turbulent inner life with powerful “undercurrents of inadequate feelings, negative affect states, and loneliness.” They can also feel that relationships are inherently competitive and antagonistic.
- Highly Functioning, Charming or Exhibitionistic: These narcissists also have an “exaggerated sense of self-importance, but these individuals were also outgoing, energetic, and articulate. They apparently had used their narcissism as strong motivation to succeed,” and were “interpersonally adept and achievement-oriented.” What’s not to like? Well, these narcissists can, like other narcissists, exhibit low empathy, and I believe can also view relationships as utilitarian.
- Healthy Narcissism: This person has a healthy sense of self-worth, combined with empathy and concern for others' feelings and well-being.
Source: From presentation by Ravi Chandra, words an extension of Gabbard and Crisp (2018) Narcissism leaves a wake of damaged relationships, because “narcissists are extraordinarily insecure about their capacity to love and be loved and are frantic in their search for others who will admire them, be impressed by them, empathize with their needs, validate their specialness, and/or serve as an idealized object who will never shame them or humiliate them.”
Fundamentally, narcissists do not really “get” the mutuality of relatedness, and this can lead to their “frantic search” and feeling like they can only be valued for their attributes. They may not believe they are acceptable as they are, in their basic humanity. Yes, narcissists suffer and cause suffering.
THE BASICSThe White Nationalist has, by definition, grandiosely overvalued themselves and devalued others in pursuit of power or security. They may also be overcompensating for feeling shamed or, as they might frame it, "losing their honor and privilege," or what others might call their "entitlement."
Seen this way, we can see the suffering inherent in this personality type/trait: the suffering of feeling threatened and even overwhelmed by change and a world that is beyond their control, and indeed beyond the control of any one of us.
Nihilism
The logical outcome of a deep-seated lack of relatedness and security in the relational world is nihilism. Existential nihilists argue that life is without objective meaning, purpose or value. Moral nihilists assert “there is no inherent morality” in life, and that “accepted moral values are contrived.”
Narcissism Essential Reads
16 Signs the Narcissist Is Going on the Attack 
Does Narcissism Fade With Age? Nihilism has proponents from well before the time of the Buddha and into the modern era. Some might say "all knowledge is metaphorical and thus 'not real,'" and are overtaken by a disconnected, abstract inner world lacking in compassion and relationship.
It’s understandable that during times of social change and upheaval, traditional meanings and concerns fall into doubt, and some go “into their heads” to deconstruct meaning. Without being grounded in relationships, nihilism (sometimes to the point of sociopathy) results. The nihilist ignores or abandons a hundred thousand years of human history, and millions of years of mammalian and primate evolution. Caring for each other is literally what we're best at. We're imperfect, but the caregiving/nurturing neural and social system is one thing we can be proud of.
Unfortunately, the internet is a profoundly disturbing catalyst for disconnecting from real world relatedness and the real world search for belonging, diverting some into a self-radicalizing spiral of hatred and ungrounded fear and hatred. Yoda might say of 8chan and the like "path to the dark side this is." (See "8chan, Megaphone for Gunmen, Has Gone Dark. ‘Shut the Site Down,’ Says Its Creator," by Kevin Roose, NYTimes August 4, 2019.)
Nihilism can be felt in profound emptiness and disconnection, and is expressed in unmoored sorrow and a pervasive sense of social defeat and meaninglessness; or paranoid ideation, a resort to power in defense of an insecure self, or an anarchic, snarky humor that is an attempt to get mental processes and existential fears under “control” by deemphasizing relatedness. (See this article on millennial nihilism, “Why Millennials Are Making Memes on Wanting to Die.")
In other words, the nihilist either has had overwhelmingly dissatisfying experiences of relatedness and connection, or finds them so much of an overload to the synapses that they resort to more manageable mental and emotional worlds.
We can all be at least temporarily beguiled by narcissism and nihilistic existential concerns. However, I believe we can thoroughly refute both narcissism and nihilism with experiences of relatedness. But we won’t find our social beings online. We have to meet, face-to-face and heart-to-heart, IRL (In Real Life).
This is one of those times that social media can become toxic and overwhelming. If so, it's time to disconnect from the online world and connect to your neighbors and nature.
Thanks for reading, and I hope this is helpful to those affected by the El Paso tragedy, and our evolving human story.
You may also be interested in: "Narcissism, Needs for Certainty and Closure, and Relatedness."
Update: This article was written before the Dayton, Ohio massacre.
Also:
Williams TC. (2017) The French Origins of “You Will Not Replace Us, The New Yorker, November 27, 2017
Charlton L (2019) What Is the Great Replacement?, The New York Times, August 6, 2019
(c) 2019 Ravi Chandra, M.D., D.F.A.P.A.