It happens. The isolated case featured in the news where a husband allegedly kills his wife: to get custody of the kids, to avoid paying alimony, to evade paying child support, to avert parting with half of his “stuff”, etc.

But then if you review them all, it may appear that it’s not just an isolated case here and there at all. And maybe it’s not really about the kids or the money or the stuff.

Instead, a narcissistic sociopath is really just looking to keep his dirty little secrets secret.

That’s the chilling conclusion in this disturbing article in the Boston Globe: Why do men kill their wives? Could some of these murders really be no more than “divorce substitutes”?

For those interested in digging deeper into the pathos, whether for self-preservation or not, the article seems to be inspired at least in part by psychologist David Adams’ forthcoming book Why Do They Kill? Men Who Murder Their Intimate Partners.

As example after example faces trial in Boston alone, if nothing else, it should serve as a reminder that any kind of a divorce really would have been more tolerable than the possible reality of jail – or worse.