The Moussaoui Verdict: Freud Is Alive and Well

Breakpoint with Chuck Colson ^ | 5/9/2006 | Chuck Colson

[Mr. Silverback]

A recent cover of Newsweek magazine jarred me. In bold type across the face of the magazine cover were these words: “Freud Is Not Dead.” Just being reminded of Sigmund Freud, the Viennese psychiatrist who redefined modern psychiatry and dismissed God as the figment of our imaginations, gave me cold chills. Here was the man whose influence has ushered in the age of therapy—excusing anyone’s behavior because they sucked their thumb too long as a baby. He’s also one of the great intellectual influences that led to the sexual revolution of the 1960s, for which we pay dearly to this day.

Newsweek placed Freud on its cover to mark the 150th anniversary of his birth—May 6, 1856.

I was reminded how tragically true the Newsweek banner headline is when I read an analysis of the decision made by the jurors in the Moussaoui terrorist trial. When asked for the mitigating factors in the case that caused them to give this terrorist a life sentence instead of execution, the top two factors cited by the jury were, first, Moussaoui had an “unstable early childhood and dysfunctional family” life, and, according to the New York Times, “a hostile relationship with his mother that led to his being placed in French orphanages.” And second, that Moussaoui’s father had a violent temper and physically and emotionally abused his family.

No other reasons were cited by more than five jurors, but these two points were cited by nine of the twelve.

There you have it. Freud is not yet dead.

In the book How Now Shall We Live?, written with Nancy Pearcey, I devoted several chapters to the consequence of the Freudian revolution, the development of the excuse mentality—the blame somebody else and refuse to take personal responsibility syndrome. What’s really tragic about this is that I’ve seen it face-to-face as I’ve worked in hundreds and hundreds of prisons over the past thirty years. The thousands of Prison Fellowship volunteers encounter it every day: inmates justifying their behavior, excusing their crimes on the basis that they had an abusive childhood (at least, that’s what they define it as).

Yet sociologists are scrambling all over themselves trying to find an explanation for America’s soaring prison populations. When I got out of prison thirty years ago, there were approximately 230,000 people in prison in America. Today there are 2.3 million.

I believe crime is not caused by environment or poverty or race or any of the other factors sociologists for generations thought it was, but instead—as the latest scholarly studies show—it is caused by people making wrong moral decisions and the lack of moral training during the morally formative years. If that’s so, the worst thing we can do is tell people that they are not responsible for their own behavior. What they need is a bracing dose of biblical realism—that we are fallen creatures and are responsible for our sins—not more of the Freudian excuse mentality.

This month we celebrate, if that’s the correct word, the 150th anniversary of Freud’s birth. And we saw him alive and well, sitting in the courtroom, when the jury decided to send Mr. Moussaoui off to life in prison instead of sending him to the executioner, not because of what he did or his knowledge of right and wrong—he was determined perfectly sane—but because of his lousy childhood.

[Mr. Silverback]

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[Mr. Silverback]

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[rageaholic]

Despite what they may have told the press, I think some or most of the Jurors wanted Mousi to spend a lifetime in solitary confinement, and deny him martyrdom, because its as close as we can legally come to the torture that he deserves.

[Mr. Silverback]

I think you might be right, but I still think Colson's on to something. There really are people who, deep down, don't believe in evil anymore.

Also, any juror who was worried about "martyrdom" knows nothing about the Middle east. The radical Islamist grievance culture has millions of "martyrs" and there's no way killing Moussaoui would have increased recruiting or jihadi morale.

We should have killed him and "embalmed" him with pig's blood.

[Pessimist]

"..it is caused by people making wrong moral decisions and the lack of moral training during the morally formative years."

I think he's right.

[Beckwith]

Moussaoui had an “unstable early childhood and dysfunctional family” life, and, according to the New York Times, “a hostile relationship with his mother that led to his being placed in French orphanages.” And second, that Moussaoui’s father had a violent temper and physically and emotionally abused his family.

Sounds like the average, clean-livin' Muslim family to me.

[rageaholic]

The point about not executing him, they denyed Mousi the fantasy of getting the post-death reward he wanted.

Imagine his frustration rotting away in solitary, waiting for death, while in his mind, his buddies are enjoying a XXX rated post-death sex party with drinks and snacks.

[livius]

There really are people who, deep down, don't believe in evil anymore.

I agree. And I think Colson is right on target here. Oddly enough, the first thing I thought when I heard the verdict and the reason for it, was "Freud strikes again." Somebody needs to put a stake through Freud's withered little heart.

[Retain Mike]

I think Moussauoi achieved great victory just from being allowed access to our criminal justice system, and providing him the opportunity to continuously tell everyone who he was and what he represented. In this way terrorism was ushered into the population of normal, though disapproved, behaviors civilized societies must deal with. Terrorist acts now become a harsher method of civil disobedience, and the perpetrators can then accumulate constituencies willing to legitimize them. In elevating terrorists to a perceived status equivalent to common criminals, we compromise the ability of this and other societies to exclude terrorists as they seek to establish or to retain representative governments. Some activities must be beyond the pale for civilization to survive

[Mr. Silverback]

I think Moussauoi achieved great victory just from being allowed access to our criminal justice system, and providing him the opportunity to continuously tell everyone who he was and what he represented.

Afraid so. If the Taliban fighters were battlefield combatants, then a guy sent from Taliban's domain to kill Americans is certainly a combatatn, and should have been subject to military tribunal and summary execution.

[Mr. Silverback]

I think Moussauoi achieved great victory just from being allowed access to our criminal justice system, and providing him the opportunity to continuously tell everyone who he was and what he represented.

Afraid so. If the Taliban fighters were battlefield combatants, then a guy sent from Taliban's domain to kill Americans is certainly a combatant, and should have been subject to military tribunal and summary execution.

[Mr. Silverback]

Ping to Tuesday's Breakpoint.

[Victoria Delsoul]

I believe crime is not caused by environment or poverty or race or any of the other factors sociologists for generations thought it was, but instead—as the latest scholarly studies show—it is caused by people making wrong moral decisions and the lack of moral training during the morally formative years. If that’s so, the worst thing we can do is tell people that they are not responsible for their own behavior. What they need is a bracing dose of biblical realism—that we are fallen creatures and are responsible for our sins—not more of the Freudian excuse mentality.

Bumpity bump!