Seems strange for such an erudite man. Obviously profiling is common sense once. Predicting the general behavior of a narcissistic character disorder is common sense, too, once the disorder is understood. It seems like magic up until then.

The profiler must enter into the world of the kind of person who could have committed such actions, and understand the dynamics and the etiology of that mind. That will go a long way toward describing the person and predicting future behavior.

As I said it's not perfect by any means. They can be way off, right on, and anywhere in between. Sometimes an investigator may be better off not knowing of a profiler's work so as to better keep an open mind. And sometimes, in certain kinds of crimes, there is enough information available to the profiler that it behooves the investigator to pay attention.

A case which is a profiler's dream is the Casey Anthony affair. One can easily describe what her home life was like growing up, what Mom's like, and how she will act in the future. Not rocket science, or even science, but certainly would be accurate.

I'm a bit reluctant to post that which is below, as it overstates the current issue. There is, though, some truth in it.

“’There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all argument, and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance. This principle is, contempt prior to examination.’ –Dr. Paley