Helping the Family of Fallen Virginia Tech Police Officer Deriek Crouse

I wanted to re-post this from the SIGMA THREAT MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATES blog. As many of you know, I am a Senior Consultant with SIGMA, and one of the Managing Partners there is Major Gene Deisinger of the Virginia Tech Police Department. SIGMA also has a very close working relationship with QVerity. We were all saddened by the events at Tech last week. The following are details for those who wish to send condolences and / or provide support for the family of Deriek Crouse.

Deception Clouds Ginger White’s Motives in Dropping Cain Bombshell

In light of our recent analysis of presidential candidate Herman Cain’s comments in response to the claim by Ginger White that she and Cain had engaged in a 13-year affair, and in the interest of fair play, the QVerity team has analyzed statements made by White in her Nov. 30 interview with George Stephanopoulos on Good Morning America. For those of you who are unfamiliar with our analysis of Cain’s comments in his interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, we found that Cain exhibited significant deceptive behavior in attempting to deny the affair with White, and concluded that his behavior suggests that White’s allegation is likely true.

When It Comes to Telling the Truth, It Appears Cain Is Still Not Able

Continuing on with presidential primary coverage, the QVerity team was asked to analyze the statements of Herman Cain, who is, once again, in the news over allegations about his alleged sexual proclivities. In the wake of the most recent allegations against him, he gave an interview to Wolf Blitzer (or "Blitz" as Mr. Cain likes to call him).

The QVerity team analyzed this interview and found some significant deceptive indicators, as you will see. Special acknowledgement for their role in this analysis goes to deception detection experts Phil Houston, Susan Carnicero and Don Tennant.

The Disgrace of UC Davis

I have always prided myself on being someone who is not easily shaken, I have seen much violence throughout my life. I also pride myself as being a supporter of the police, and spent many years as a Police Benevolent Association panel attorney. However, on November 18th, I saw a police officer spray pepper spray into the faces of protestors at UC Davis who were doing nothing that would warrant such egregious conduct. They were sitting on the ground, arms interlaced posing no threat to a soul; an officer calmly walked in front of them and coated them with pepper spray. He, and his colleagues, were removing protestors who had been ordered to leave the campus by the Chancellor Linda Katehi. She should resign and the officers responsible should be fired.

Sandusky Exhibits Rampant Deceptive Behavior in Costas Interview

Recently, QVerity Analysts were asked to apply our detection of deception methodology to the Jerry Sandusky case. What follows is an analysis conducted by QVerity CEO, Phil Houston. It is truly fascinating reading. Based on this analysis, QVerity experts believe that there is much more that will come out about Sandusky in this horrific case. This analysis also gives readers a front row view of deception analysis being conducted by a man who is one of the leading experts in the world in this field.

Why Joe Had To Go: The Disgrace of Penn State

Penn State has been rocked to the foundation over the last few days. If the allegations are true, then a former coach, Jerry Sandusky, who retired in 1999 and then headed a charity from the university campus, was raping and molesting young children for over fifteen years. What is worse, again if the allegations are true, is that the university knew about this for over nine years yet did nothing to stop it. This is a disgrace.

Is Cain Able? Herman Cain's Problems With The Truth About Sexual Harassment.

As the 2012 Presidential campaign picks up steam, it is fair to say that the confidence level of most Americans in politicians and our overall political system is at an all-time low. One of the key drivers that undermine our confidence in our political leaders is a belief that most politicians will lie to us and do so frequently and without shame. Yesterday, a behavioral assessment by QVerity experts suggested that Presidential candidate Herman Cain went a long way to confirm our assumptions when he addressed recent allegations that he had sexually harassed two women while he was running the National Restaurant Association.

Winston Churchill and the Shadow of a Great Man

I awoke this morning to an email with an attached copy of a press article from the UK. It is my usual practice to read some of the UK newspapers each day to try to stay current with what is happening in the land of my birth. This article was different, however, because it was about me and compared me, or some of my accomplishments, to the man widely credited as the greatest Englishman of all time, Winston Churchill.

Casey Anthony: The Aftermath

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the Anthony trial and stated that the prosecution was messing up the case and that it was essentially theirs to lose; I was right. Yesterday, I predicted that Casey Anthony would be found guilty because of a few simple points that should be driven home; I was wrong.

Casey Anthony: Why She Will Be Found Guilty

The jury is currently hearing the closing arguments of the prosecution and defense lawyers in the Casey Anthony trial and, based on everything I have heard, she will be, and should be, found guilty. I shall be brief in giving some of the reasons why.

Media Madness: Prince Harry Cannot Now Return To Afghanistan

I was disappointed, but not surprised, to see that Britain’s Daily Mail and Sun newspapers were carrying news that Prince Harry is undergoing survival training in Wales in advance of his re-deployment to Afghanistan “some time next year”. He must now decline to return.

A Lie Spotting Challenge---Can You Spot Deception?

I wanted to share with everyone a challenge to test your detection of deception skills that was posted by my friend Pam Meyers on her website www.liespotting.com

The challenge is to watch a video of Lance Armstrong being interviewed by Larry King regarding his alleged use of performance enhancing drugs and determine whether or not you believe he is being deceptive. Once you have done this, you can then read the expert analysis performed by another good friend, colleague and CIA veteran, Phil Houston.

To Convict Casey Anthony: Prosecute With Authority

The Casey Anthony trial in Florida has once again put the American jury system into the spotlight. I will immediately divulge my bias, or pre-judgment: I am convinced that this young woman is guilty of homicide. Whether she is found guilty, however, will depend upon a number of factors, few of which have to do with her culpability, but rather they have to do with the ability of the prosecutor or defense lawyer to establish authority in the eyes of the jury.

You Should Be Committed: Why People Blindly Support Politicians or Effectively Lose Weight---It’s All About Commitment!

Recent political scandals, and mistaken historical recitations by politicians have left many people wondering why some people will seemingly, and often illogically, leap to the defense of those who otherwise should be chastised, ridiculed or, heaven forbid, educated. The answer is simple: the human desire, sometimes unconscious, to appear consistent. This is called the “commitment-consistency principle.”

No Room For Regret: How To Make Regret A Thing Of The Past!

I must start out this short piece by stating that I would not describe myself as a self-help guru and that this piece is a deviation from the norm for me. I am, however, fascinated by the study of people, and then looking to apply lessons learned. I find the subjects of deception, persuasion, influence and personal safety truly fascinating.

So, this week the news has been filled with stories of woe for people in public life, nothing really new there, who are likely experiencing huge regret for deceit they perpetrated and actions they took that have now returned to haunt them. Specifically, I am talking about John Edwards and Anthony Weiner (the fact that I select two Democrats should further infuriate some of my critics who suggest I am a right wing propagandist / “nut job”; I am neither. For good measure, therefore, I will add that what they are feeling has likely, or hopefully, been felt by Newt Gingrich, David Vitter, Larry Craig and many others).

Eye Contact: The Myths About Lying; The Truth About Deepening Your Love!

This week I was confronted, once again, with the old myth about lack of eye contact being indicative of deception. Someone I know had been involved in interviewing a candidate for a job. He told me he was convinced the candidate was being dishonest because “he kept looking away and wouldn’t look me in the eyes”.

Oh, dear! Their gut reaction that the candidate was dishonest may have been correct, but it is highly unlikely it was being shown by the lack of eye contact.

Hot Dog! How Deception Detection Experts Caught Rep. Weiner With His Pants Down.

I am often asked about detection of deception and the type of analysis applied to the written and spoken word to make determinations as to whether someone may be being economical with the truth. When this question has come it is often accompanied by a request for an example of the analysis, and so I have decided to post an analysis performed by friends and colleagues at QVerity, Don Tennant and Phil Houston. Don is both an excellent writer and analyst with extensive experience in the QVerity methodology and Phil is one of the designers of the methodology.

No Cause for Rapture

Harold Camping, an elderly preacher, Christian radio host and president of Family Radio from California predicted that the “rapture” would occur throughout the world on May 21st, 2011. He was wrong!

Even Politicians Lie: The "Shocking" Epidemic of Deceit

I have just finished reading an article about British politician Chris Huhne, whose estranged wife, having known for a while of one instance of infidelity during their marriage, has, through her lawyer, expressed her “shock” at the allegation that he may have had yet another lover!

This is the same Chris Huhne alleged to have had issues with his parliamentary expenses and who, his wife claimed, during their marriage asked people to take responsibility for motoring offenses he committed. So she knew he was a liar but is shocked that he lied. I am, well, shocked!

Meeting Murder or Overreacting?

“I met Murder on the way
He had a face like Castleraegh”

This was written in 1819 in a poem about the “Peterloo Massacre”, by the famous English poet Percy Shelley. He was referring to Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, commonly known as Lord Castleraegh (pronounced Castle-ray for those who missed the rhyme), who, at the time of the massacre, was the Foreign Secretary of Britain.

The lines of the poem are instructive to me because they remind me, although it was not their intended purpose, that many people believe that they can tell whether a person is capable of murder, or targeted violence, simply by looking at them or by hearing a single utterance. Those who have seen killing “up close” will quickly tell you that this belief reflects rank ignorance and leads to many people being falsely accused and others, who do pose a threat, being missed.

The Men Who Killed Bin-Laden: Time to Honor Our Heroes

On May 2nd, 2011, (May 1st in the USA) members of the elite SEAL Team 6, a highly trained and experienced counter-terrorism special operations group, with intelligence support from the CIA, executed a daring, and surgical operation in Abbottabad, Pakistan, that brought an end to the hypocritical, vulgar life of the psychotic thug Osama Bin Laden.

Abbottabad is a pleasant town, or hill station, named for a British Major James Abbott, that lies between the mountains and Rawalpindi, a garrison town for the Pakistani Army and, until 2003, the home of the infamous Khalid Sheik Muhammed.

The Tucson Blame Game: Time To Dial Back The Rhetoric

As people fall over themselves to assign blame for the shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and murder of six others by Jared Lee Loughner, the only thing we can say for sure is that we do not yet know why he did what he did. It is time for people to comfort the grieving, aid the survivors and allow the authorities to do their jobs and investigate the motives behind this abhorrent act. While it is only right and dignified for people to call for greater civility in the public square, we must stop short, for now, of assigning blame to anyone but Loughner himself.

Why Potential Employee Screening is Vital!

From my friends at Sports Intelligence Analysts. An important case study: the recent publicity about the University of Pittsburgh surrounding the allegations against their head coach clearly demonstrates the need for effective screening of potential employees in any organization.