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CEO Arrested in Capitol Riot Calls It ‘Worst Personal Decision of My Life'

37 points by jimmy2020 6y ago

zlast 6y ago
"In a statement, Mr. Rukstales said he regretted his participation, saying he exercised “extremely poor judgement” in following others into the Capitol..." He regrets getting caught. Big difference!
- 2pEXgD0fZ5cF 6y ago
  I agree. Honestly I don't grasp the value in such stories except the typical clickbaiting via emotional content. Putting statements like the one in the article out there as fast as possible can be classified mostly as self preservation, that in itself is natural. While I do believe that there are people among them that actually finally got a wakeup call and regret their actions, I do not think there is any reason to accept the signaling of regret of an individual person that participated in this as genuine.
  - jstarfish 6y ago
    Go figure: he's the CEO of a marketing company. He--of all people--might know a thing or two about spinning negative PR.
  - ardy42 6y ago
    > I agree. Honestly I don't grasp the value in such stories except the typical clickbaiting via emotional content. I'm not sure exactly what you mean, but this story has some value in disrupting the stereotypes many people probably have about the mob members (e.g. low education/rural people).
    - 2pEXgD0fZ5cF 6y ago
      > this story has some value in disrupting the stereotypes many people probably have about the mob members (e.g. low education/rural people) That is a good point actually, thanks for bringing it up.
- jimmy2020 6y ago
  He regretted going into the Capitol not getting caught.
- jstarfish 6y ago
  It's a trespassing charge (on "public" property), not embezzlement or insider trading or any sort of crime that directly benefitted him. I'm as cynical as it gets but even I can see how easy it is to get swept up in mob mentality. You too can see it play out in venues as innocuous as Sunday church. Nobody ever knows which hymns to stand up for, but everybody else goes along with it when the first person stands.
  - rchaud 6y ago
    >You too can see it play out in venues as innocuous as Sunday church. Nobody ever knows which hymns to stand up for, but everybody else goes along with it when the first person stands. I see people using such damage-reduction parallels on Twitter and Reddit, but it's strange to see it on HN. Is this the best comparison you came up with? Trespassing on private property with an armed mob :: standing up for the wrong hymn at a church?
    - Out_of_Characte 6y ago
      I dont think it is meant as an absolvement of his actions but rather a sensible explanation how certain people cooperated with the crowd without obvious benefit.
      - rchaud 6y ago
        That still doesn't hold water. A closer parallel would be breaking into the church with a group of armed people with the intention of disrupting the proceedings. Standing up for the wrong hymn doesn't necessitate a lawyer-approved 'statement' to the press.
      - awillen 6y ago
        Yeah I mean the key difference is if you get caught up in the actions of a mob of armed insurrectionists, that means you were in a crowd of armed insurrectionists in the first place.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
- Gibbon1 6y ago
  He regrets being part of a failed coup attempt planned and executed by halfwits.
  - lightgreen 6y ago
    There was no coup attempt by large margin. Try looking at histories of successful and unsuccessful coup attempts. They require several orders of degree better planning, coordination and execution. That was just hooligans, not different from hundreds of other riots happened in the US last year.
    - Gibbon1 6y ago
      I'm reminded of a case my civics teacher mentioned. A lady was convicted of felony theft. She walked into a store grabbed a mink coat and tried to run out with it. Not realizing it was chained to a pole. Appeals court ruled that just because it wasn't possible doesn't mean it's not a crime to attempt. These guys tried to prevent congress from transferring the presidency from Trump to Biden. That's a coup attempt. Being an idiot isn't an excuse.
      - Out_of_Characte 6y ago
        Whats the difference between a group of people tresspassing the capitol versus a group of people attempting to overthrow the government? Can your explanation be falsifiable?
        amanaplanacanal 6y ago
        Given that it was done as part of a protest against the election results, and at the perceived direction of somebody trying to keep their office, I think a jury could make a reasonable interpretation.
        mywittyname 6y ago
        What exactly do you think would have happened to the Congresspeople had they this mob encountered them? The mob sure looked prepared to take some of them into "custody." And some of them clearly had no qualms with beating that Capitol Police officer to death. Clearly Congresspeople, regardless of party affiliation, were not interested in finding out.
- trianglem 6y ago
  Examples must be made.
IAmWorried 6y ago
The unfortunate truth: prepare for Trump to pardon a lot of these people.
- lightgreen 6y ago
  We already seen hundreds of people escaped any consequences for hundreds of similar offences happened earlier this year. But Trump won't pardon them. It won't be a president to the time of conviction. But if you are so sure Trump is going to pardon them, let's make a bet?
  - wbsss4412 6y ago
    You don’t have to be convicted of a crime to be pardoned. I’m not even sure you have to be formally charged.
    - Aeronwen 6y ago
      Nixon was pardoned by Ford without being charged. But it was more of a symbolic gesture.
    - amanaplanacanal 6y ago
      I don’t believe that we have any court cases that speak to that one way or another. It’s only theory right now.
    - lightgreen 6y ago
      OK, let's bet money on it.
- rchaud 6y ago
  Trump pardons his inner circle, not the foot soldiers who can't give him anything except for their vote.
  - mywittyname 6y ago
    He's pardoned a lot of low-level people in an effort incite people. You can look at all of the war criminals as an example. I bet he'd pardon all of these people just to hear people bitch about it.
Darmody 6y ago
I am a right winger. I don't live in the US but I would've voted for Trump. I have my reasons, I liked a lot of the stuff he's done and I very much disliked other things. That said. Storming into the capitol is not something that comes out of an "extremely poor judgement". If you have any kind of respect for democracy you don't storm into one of the most important public buildings in the country. There's absolutely no excuse for that, just as you can't kill a person out of an "extremely poor judgement". It's a no-no. It goes beyond any red line you should not cross. I truly hope everybody who got inside get to be prosecuted for insurrection.
trestenhortz 6y ago
Paraphrased: “I deeply regret getting caught”. It’s always the way... they’re sorry about how bad things are for them but not sorry before despite apparently being intelligent enough to run a company. I genuinely hope he gets 10 years in prison, plenty of time to feel sorry.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
shadowprofile77 6y ago
So let me get this straight. Weeks of protests which started against racism and police brutality but in many places degenerated into mass looting and burning of whole buildings (often in both cases having no connection to perpetrators of violence against minorities) gets swept under the rug as justified social anger and legitimate social protest (not to mention the medical community performing clinical contortions to keep itself on the woke side of things despite its previous criticisms of those who were irresponsible in not socially distancing in public) But this bunch of people deserve lengthy prison sentences, all the hate that can be tossed on them and every nasty thought it's possible to generate? Talk about absurd double standards. No fan of Trump and these protestors strike me as idiotic, but if you're going to hate on them this much, it's worth analyzing why other fairly recent protests somehow deserved a free pass because of their supposed social justice credentials...
onecommentman 6y ago
Cogensia 100 W. Hillcrest Blvd., Ste. 406 Schaumburg, IL 60195 Anytime you see a Suite number, it’s a pretty small firm. Confirmed by https://www.glassdoor.com/Overview/Working-at-Customer-Asset-Consulting-CAC-Group-EI_IE677595.11,46.htm https://www.glassdoor.com/Overview/Working-at-Customer-Asset... So basically a glorified department head, if there are less than 50 employees. Before you pile on too much, remember the employees who are going to be impacted. Someday, it might be a small firm you are working at...

37 points by jimmy2020 6y ago

"In a statement, Mr. Rukstales said he regretted his participation, saying he exercised “extremely poor judgement” in following others into the Capitol..." He regrets getting caught. Big difference!

2pEXgD0fZ5cF 6y ago
I agree. Honestly I don't grasp the value in such stories except the typical clickbaiting via emotional content. Putting statements like the one in the article out there as fast as possible can be classified mostly as self preservation, that in itself is natural. While I do believe that there are people among them that actually finally got a wakeup call and regret their actions, I do not think there is any reason to accept the signaling of regret of an individual person that participated in this as genuine.
- jstarfish 6y ago
  Go figure: he's the CEO of a marketing company. He--of all people--might know a thing or two about spinning negative PR.
- ardy42 6y ago
  > I agree. Honestly I don't grasp the value in such stories except the typical clickbaiting via emotional content. I'm not sure exactly what you mean, but this story has some value in disrupting the stereotypes many people probably have about the mob members (e.g. low education/rural people).
  - 2pEXgD0fZ5cF 6y ago
    > this story has some value in disrupting the stereotypes many people probably have about the mob members (e.g. low education/rural people) That is a good point actually, thanks for bringing it up.
jimmy2020 6y ago
He regretted going into the Capitol not getting caught.
jstarfish 6y ago
It's a trespassing charge (on "public" property), not embezzlement or insider trading or any sort of crime that directly benefitted him. I'm as cynical as it gets but even I can see how easy it is to get swept up in mob mentality. You too can see it play out in venues as innocuous as Sunday church. Nobody ever knows which hymns to stand up for, but everybody else goes along with it when the first person stands.
- rchaud 6y ago
  >You too can see it play out in venues as innocuous as Sunday church. Nobody ever knows which hymns to stand up for, but everybody else goes along with it when the first person stands. I see people using such damage-reduction parallels on Twitter and Reddit, but it's strange to see it on HN. Is this the best comparison you came up with? Trespassing on private property with an armed mob :: standing up for the wrong hymn at a church?
  - Out_of_Characte 6y ago
    I dont think it is meant as an absolvement of his actions but rather a sensible explanation how certain people cooperated with the crowd without obvious benefit.
    - rchaud 6y ago
      That still doesn't hold water. A closer parallel would be breaking into the church with a group of armed people with the intention of disrupting the proceedings. Standing up for the wrong hymn doesn't necessitate a lawyer-approved 'statement' to the press.
    - awillen 6y ago
      Yeah I mean the key difference is if you get caught up in the actions of a mob of armed insurrectionists, that means you were in a crowd of armed insurrectionists in the first place.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
Gibbon1 6y ago
He regrets being part of a failed coup attempt planned and executed by halfwits.
- lightgreen 6y ago
  There was no coup attempt by large margin. Try looking at histories of successful and unsuccessful coup attempts. They require several orders of degree better planning, coordination and execution. That was just hooligans, not different from hundreds of other riots happened in the US last year.
  - Gibbon1 6y ago
    I'm reminded of a case my civics teacher mentioned. A lady was convicted of felony theft. She walked into a store grabbed a mink coat and tried to run out with it. Not realizing it was chained to a pole. Appeals court ruled that just because it wasn't possible doesn't mean it's not a crime to attempt. These guys tried to prevent congress from transferring the presidency from Trump to Biden. That's a coup attempt. Being an idiot isn't an excuse.
    - Out_of_Characte 6y ago
      Whats the difference between a group of people tresspassing the capitol versus a group of people attempting to overthrow the government? Can your explanation be falsifiable?
      - amanaplanacanal 6y ago
        Given that it was done as part of a protest against the election results, and at the perceived direction of somebody trying to keep their office, I think a jury could make a reasonable interpretation.
      - mywittyname 6y ago
        What exactly do you think would have happened to the Congresspeople had they this mob encountered them? The mob sure looked prepared to take some of them into "custody." And some of them clearly had no qualms with beating that Capitol Police officer to death. Clearly Congresspeople, regardless of party affiliation, were not interested in finding out.
trianglem 6y ago
Examples must be made.

IAmWorried 6y ago

The unfortunate truth: prepare for Trump to pardon a lot of these people.

lightgreen 6y ago
We already seen hundreds of people escaped any consequences for hundreds of similar offences happened earlier this year. But Trump won't pardon them. It won't be a president to the time of conviction. But if you are so sure Trump is going to pardon them, let's make a bet?
- wbsss4412 6y ago
  You don’t have to be convicted of a crime to be pardoned. I’m not even sure you have to be formally charged.
  - Aeronwen 6y ago
    Nixon was pardoned by Ford without being charged. But it was more of a symbolic gesture.
  - amanaplanacanal 6y ago
    I don’t believe that we have any court cases that speak to that one way or another. It’s only theory right now.
  - lightgreen 6y ago
    OK, let's bet money on it.
rchaud 6y ago
Trump pardons his inner circle, not the foot soldiers who can't give him anything except for their vote.
- mywittyname 6y ago
  He's pardoned a lot of low-level people in an effort incite people. You can look at all of the war criminals as an example. I bet he'd pardon all of these people just to hear people bitch about it.

Darmody 6y ago

I am a right winger. I don't live in the US but I would've voted for Trump. I have my reasons, I liked a lot of the stuff he's done and I very much disliked other things. That said. Storming into the capitol is not something that comes out of an "extremely poor judgement". If you have any kind of respect for democracy you don't storm into one of the most important public buildings in the country. There's absolutely no excuse for that, just as you can't kill a person out of an "extremely poor judgement". It's a no-no. It goes beyond any red line you should not cross. I truly hope everybody who got inside get to be prosecuted for insurrection.

trestenhortz 6y ago

Paraphrased: “I deeply regret getting caught”. It’s always the way... they’re sorry about how bad things are for them but not sorry before despite apparently being intelligent enough to run a company. I genuinely hope he gets 10 years in prison, plenty of time to feel sorry.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

shadowprofile77 6y ago

So let me get this straight. Weeks of protests which started against racism and police brutality but in many places degenerated into mass looting and burning of whole buildings (often in both cases having no connection to perpetrators of violence against minorities) gets swept under the rug as justified social anger and legitimate social protest (not to mention the medical community performing clinical contortions to keep itself on the woke side of things despite its previous criticisms of those who were irresponsible in not socially distancing in public) But this bunch of people deserve lengthy prison sentences, all the hate that can be tossed on them and every nasty thought it's possible to generate? Talk about absurd double standards. No fan of Trump and these protestors strike me as idiotic, but if you're going to hate on them this much, it's worth analyzing why other fairly recent protests somehow deserved a free pass because of their supposed social justice credentials...

onecommentman 6y ago

Cogensia 100 W. Hillcrest Blvd., Ste. 406 Schaumburg, IL 60195 Anytime you see a Suite number, it’s a pretty small firm. Confirmed by https://www.glassdoor.com/Overview/Working-at-Customer-Asset-Consulting-CAC-Group-EI_IE677595.11,46.htm https://www.glassdoor.com/Overview/Working-at-Customer-Asset... So basically a glorified department head, if there are less than 50 employees. Before you pile on too much, remember the employees who are going to be impacted. Someday, it might be a small firm you are working at...