Posted by Robert Hansen
Bipolar Disorder
Highway of Tears
Hansen moved to Anchorage in 1967 at 28. He had a (second) wife and two children. By 1972 he was arrested for rape, kidnapping, assault or what have you.
Recidivism, pathology, or some other reason. At 21 and already married he went to prison for two years in the tiny town of Pochahantas, Iowa.
It is as if being married spurred the mania side.
I didn’t know. I still don’t. I keep Googling “bipolar disorder” and “Freud” and come up with nothing.
If I Google “bipolar disorder” and “alcohol” I get a lot of hits. It makes perfect sense. The manic part is enhanced, albeit temporarily. The depression part is enhanced big time, and it becomes permanent.
Hansen, who died recently, was a very smart and meticulous man even though he was uneducated. His life was an escalating pattern. The insurance fraud, bakery, plane, and the worst parts did not happen until the early ’80s. His plea was brilliant: confess to the four you know about and do not say anything more about it.
The Frozen Ground, 2013
Back to the video and Brian Steven Smith. I have been searching the web and there is not much more about him. His 21-years-older wife appears to be a dolt if not an enabler. I wanted to see more, especially the house, and the vid helps. Maybe someday I will unmute it.
The stunning part is the enclosed arraignment booth. He is handcuffed and surrounded by police, is that necessary? It looks like some third-world country. Was he executed that day?
He looks scared as hell. And he should be.
Eek, Alaska
What an amazing piece of luck, finding the SD card. Perhaps there are others.
First, it is a good movie. I agree with some comments and reviews that it is good to see Nicholas Cage back doing what he does.
Next, I am not a fan of the bipolar disorder diagnosis. I understand it a little. I see how it can be useful. I also realize that sedation probably helps.
Robert Hansen was not smart. He was an abused only child. His IQ was 92 and he had a rural Iowa high school education. He preyed on “easy” victims and left a lot of clues. He committed his first major crime at age 20 and has been in an out of jail all his life.
Obviously he had a violent and secret life that was more like an obsession. He had seemingly normal spells and then acts of extreme psychopathy. He liked to hurt and kill. I believe that takes priority over bipolar disorder.
Up and down moods is normal. Depression is not normal and is harmful. Manic episodes that are illegal is sociopathy.