"After decades in prison, he has failed to address the deficiencies that led him to assassinate Senator Kennedy. Mr. Sirhan lacks the insight that would prevent him from making the same types of dangerous decisions he made in the past."
Said Gavin Newsom, quoted in "Gov. Gavin Newsom rejects parole for Sirhan Sirhan, convicted of killing Robert F. Kennedy" (L.A. Times).
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53 comments:
"...Mr. Sirhan lacks the insight that would prevent him from making the same types of dangerous decisions he made in the past."
One could say the same thing about Newsom.
Objection! You can't be among the most notorious crimes, only among the more notorious crimes.
The only way to have parole denied is to kill a democrat I guess.
In a sane state Sirhan would have been executed years ago.
Jody Foster's wannabe boyfriend needs to be interviewed, live on CNN, tonight!
If Sirhan Sirhan had murdered a Republican politician he’d have been paroled long ago. Consider the cases of Sara Moore, Squeaky Fromme, and John Hinckley, Jr.
Sirhan is not Black enough.
I just had this vinyl on my turntable as I read your blog post.
Chicken skin.
This video is clipped from the Smothers Brother's show and is the best version ever. The syrupy strings are gone replaced by a great choral backing.
https://youtu.be/DXl3XG5aGtM
This might be the only thing Gavin has done his whole life that I agree with.
Kennedys aren't what they used to be, so he probably won't make the same mistake again.
In my world, the Sirhans never get considered for parole. They are in for life, and life means just that. They are kept just barely visible to the outside world as Examples Of What Happens If You Do Really Bad Stuff.
That policy serves two of the three aims of criminal justice: retribution and deterrence. Two sides of the same coin, maybe.
They don't serve the third aim, of rehabilitation. Well, the aims tend to conflict. Too bad.
But Newsom's "explanation" seems to be all about rehab and the probability of it leading to a result that all right-thinking people should want: a miscreant reformed, a sinner saved. Such an attitude is, excuse me, totally out of place in a capital case like this. Newsom sounds defensive, cowardly, fatuous.
I have argued that Sirhan Sirhan was hypnotized in a plot that was financed by Aristotle Onassis.
I consider that hypnosis to be a mitigating circumstance for Sirhan. Therefore, I would approve his parole.
A pure political calculation by Newsom.
He should have shot a republican.
If he had, he would have been released long ago...with a book and movie deal.
Savvy politics
The New Right wing kook conspiracy is that Sirhan Sirhan was really an israeli agent. Israel didn't like JFK or RFK, neither wanted Isreal to get nuclear weapons and submarine missiles. That's the problem with the Rightwing. They're dumb. even in their conspiracies.
Newsome has an easy job. His sheeplike voters will support thim no matter what. So all he has to do is please his rich donors. And the Democrat political establishment in Sacramento. Keep them happy. The California peasants can be ignored because they'll always vote D.
Newsome didn't pardon Sirhan because some powerful Democrats don't want him pardoned. He shot a liberal icon. If he'd shot Reagan, he'd be out free as a bird.
I'm fine with Newsom's decision, but, as others have noted, the mills of justice grind much finer with assassins who aim at Democratic rather than Republican candidates....A lot of these assassins just want to be noticed. The lesson Newsom is teaching these loons is to just aim at Republicans....To some extent, I sympathize with Fauci, but the last person on earth to whom he should be addressing concerns about death threats is Rand Paul. Paul gets shot at, beaten up, and harassed at frequent intervals. I only hope that Fauci's rather unfair accusation against Paul doesn't trigger another attempt on Paul's life.
If Sirhan Sirhan had murdered a Republican politician he’d have been paroled long ago. Consider the cases of Sara Moore, Squeaky Fromme, and John Hinckley, Jr.
Well, if Bobby Kennedy had survived the assassination, as did the victims of Sara Moore's, Squeaky Fromme's, and John Hinckley's attempts, he might well be getting out.
Mr. Sirhan lacks the insight that would prevent him from making the same types of dangerous decisions he made in the past.
Is the governor seriously trying to suggest that, if the septuagenarian Sirhan is released from the joint, he's likely to go out and start assassinating politicians again, because of this lack of "insight"?
two words that NEVER (or, almost Never) get mentioned in an Article about Sir Han Sirhan
1) Palestinian
2) Israel
I wonder Why that is? I mean, a Palestinian EXPLICITLY assassinates a President candidate because of our country's support of Israel and THAT, NEVER gets mentioned
Why IS that?
Assassins who target democrats kill, the Republican victims survived. Other than that first order difference, you people make a great point of how Republicans are bullied by the big bad libtards.
well he was a palestinian christian, onassis made his money running oil to the nazis, the middleman was another middle eastern figure, with arabists sympathies
Howard: "Assassins who target democrats kill, the Republican victims survived. Other than that first order difference, you people make a great point of how Republicans are bullied by the big bad libtards."
The Dunning Kruger-ness is quite high with this comment.
Sirhan is Arab? I thought he was a knight from Hong Kong.
"If Sirhan Sirhan had murdered a Republican politician he’d have been paroled long ago."
Its so unfair.
"The Dunning Kruger-ness is quite high with this comment.'
Drago learned some new words.
niarchos was tied with the saudis, and the company,
https://www.irishcentral.com/news/did-aristotle-onassis-order-robert-kennedy-shooting-104264909-237719651
the godfather of the san francisco da, bill ayers hated bobby kennedy, a relative of mine the san roman bros respected him for reasons unclear, the dulles brothers and their braintrust, were not our friends in many respects,
Drago is a blood thirsty back seat driver who cheered when Vietnamese children were napalmed. His only regret is George Bush didn't fuse the Middle East into glass vaporizing millions.
We should apply this criteria to ALL violent criminals. Are they likely to maim, rape or murder again? Then they shouldn’t get out of prison. If Sirhan had raped and murdered a middle class college girl or beat to death an Asian grandma for her wallet he would already be out of prison. Some animals are more equal than others.
we only had to go to vietnam, after kennedy had diem killed, based on the daisy chain that began with a vietcong agent,
@hombre "In a sane state Sirhan would have been executed years ago." Well, no, because we don't want to execute an innocent man or something. Or, if we did that, we too would be vicious murderers of the innocent. Or, killing is just bad, unless they're entering the Capitol and scaring us.
It's always hard to remember the arguments against.
For the first time in memory, I applaud my governor...but it's qualified. Why all the bullshit about maybe he'll do it again? Why not just leave it at, "A crime so historically consequential that he deserves to never again be free"?
"Mr. Sirhan’s assassination of Senator Kennedy is among the most notorious crimes in American history."
At least until the high crimes (or was it misdemeanors?) of 6 Jan 20. Now, that assassination is relegated to the lessor crimes in US history, like Pearl Harbor, 9/11 and Hilary's email accounts.
or hopkinson's murder spree, sanctioned by duckworth and durbin, (change my mind)
1. Obviously Gavin is running for POTUS in'24.
2. Three of the four completely assassinated sitting Presidents were Republican, and I doubt the public knows how many were attempted.
The problem with the convicted felon is that if the Governor lets him out and the democrats get their voting rights act passed, the felon might vote for Trump.
I'd have no problem with life without parole (or death without mercy) for Sirhan, so I have no problem with the outcome. Let him rot.
But that rationale, that a now 77-year-old guy hasn't reflected adequately on the error of his ways, just strikes me as funny.
@Mattman "that a now 77-year-old guy hasn't reflected adequately on the error of his ways". Yeah. But if I were him, and I were a fervent Palestine supporter, I think I would have reflected on the error of my ways by now. Did killing Robert Kennedy in some way advance the Palestinian cause? Don't think so, and probably he doesn't either.
Howard: "Drago is a blood thirsty back seat driver who cheered when Vietnamese children were napalmed."
You've been listening to too many jodies (they are just songs you know) and you are clearly smart enough to have abandoned your earlier nonsensical remark.
Good for you.
Mutaman: "Drago learned some new words."
You misspelled "Drago's point is not really refutable".
Better luck next time.
Personally, I don't care if Sirhan remains in jail or is released, but nothing says 1984 Orwellian thought as well as your quote of Gavin Newsom.
Occasionally Gavin's political judgment kicks in:
Sirhan Sirhan--judgment in
French Laundry--judgment out
He can't be a pretty boy weasel all the time.
”Blogger Big Mike said...
If Sirhan Sirhan had murdered a Republican politician he’d have been paroled long ago. Consider the cases of Sara Moore, Squeaky Fromme, and John Hinckley, Jr.”
They didn’t kill anyone. Moore and Fromme didn’t even wound anyone.
Everybody who knows anything about the assassination knows that Sirhan was reacting to Kennedy's (not "our country's") support for Israel.
No same person thinks Sirhan was an Israeli agent. You can find somebody saying any stupid thing on line. Knowing (and being honest about) just how few people support the cockamamie theories is where discernment, judgement, and wisdom come in.
'Objection! You can't be among the most notorious crimes, only among the more notorious crimes.'
Kind of like being 'one of the most unique...'
Even a blind Democrat squirrel finds a nut now and then.
The last person to assassinate a Republican President was executed 45 days after he died. If anything, these assassins of Democrats are getting away with murder by comparison...
Robert Cook said...
"They didn’t kill anyone. Moore and Fromme didn’t even wound anyone."
Sara Jane Moore shot a bystander.
Seamus: if the standard for attempted murder is success versus effort, that warps justice. Of course such warping occurs regularly. It doesn't make it less destructive.
Gavin Newsome made sure the money shot got into his statement -- Sirhan hadn't properly changed his politics. Of course, no "reporters" present asked "which politics?". For decades they have been studiously avoiding his Islamic radicalism. Now all Newsome need do is whistle, and there's nothing but obedience to the continuing agenda of concealment. Ditto the fact that communists killed JFK.
They didn’t kill anyone. Moore and Fromme didn’t even wound anyone.
Not for lack of trying.
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