Inner workings of Bush/Gore (Jim O'Connor)

Barbara Laurence cns at cats.ucsc.edu
Sat Nov 18 18:20:57 PST 2000


My two bit analysis: Gore is an insecure mess. He was raised as a pleaser. He is driven by abandonment fears. He has constantly to make himself out to be more than he is, e.g., the bragging. Lurking under the surface of this pleaser is lots of anger, including anger at himself for having to "please the other, try harder, be perfect."

Bush is Gore's (dialectical) opposite, also an insecure mess. He's a teaser. He got attention as a child not by pleasing but by playing the bad boy. The dark side of the bad boy is anger at his parents for not placing limits on his acting out. He is driven by engulfment fears (the typical boozer). He thinks that he once was a "wild and crazy guy," now reformed. But he's just another dry drunk.

NB that those who have great abandonment fears also have great engulfment fears. Both want to be president because they seek all the gratification that goes with the big prize. They also both feel guilty as hell hence seek to expiate their sins, to "do good" to prove that they are really good boys. Jim O'Connor (consulting hours, Fridays, noon-1PM)



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