5 ms·

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

by 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.

by zlast 6y ago

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.