The trial of Anders Behring Breivik

[rvg]

Before the trial, I had a firm belief that he was not insane.

As the trial progresses, I'm starting to lean towards insane.

He clearly has a number of personality disorders, the question is how much they control his actions, and where the line goes between sane and insane in a legal sense.

Or he is just really-really evil. It takes a special kind of guy to go and shoot dozens of children.

[Kadagar_AV]

Or he is just really-really evil. It takes a special kind of guy to go and shoot dozens of children.

Norway is a secular country, and thus the concept of "evil" has no place in court.

Two lines of thought colliding:

1. He is "evil".

2. Because of genetical or sociological reasons he deemed his actions to be for the best.


The court is of course all set on option two, and is right now trying to see if it is the genetics that let him down - thus sending him to a mental ward facility. Or if it's society who let him down - thus sending him to prison.

Me? I am really torn on the issue. Whereas I support the general idea of lowering immigration I can not support the killing of young people like that.

With that said, imagine spending you'r life as a right winger, surrounded by people like HoreTore (no offense meant, I just mean that you are Norwegian and on this forum symbolize many of the Norwegian political policies).

I'd go a little bonkers too.

[rvg]

Norway is a secular country, and thus the concept of "evil" has no place in court.

Two lines of thought colliding:

1. He is "evil".

2. Because of genetical or sociological reasons he deemed his actions to be for the best.


The court is of course all set on option two, and is right now trying to see if it is the genetics that let him down - thus sending him to a mental ward facility. Or if it's society who let him down - thus sending him to prison.

Me? I am really torn on the issue. Whereas I support the general idea of lowering immigration I can not support the killing of young people like that.

With that said, imagine spending you'r life as a right winger, surrounded by people like HoreTore (no offense meant, I just mean that you are Norwegian and on this forum symbolize many of the Norwegian political policies).

I'd go a little bonkers too.

I wasn't making a legal argument, merely stating my opinion about the guy.

[HoreTore]

I wouldn't say evil though.

Violence is the choice of the idiot, the loser and the lazy. Genuinly evil people find more elaborate ways to torment their victims than blind violence.

[rvg]

I wouldn't say evil though.

Violence is the choice of the idiot, the loser and the lazy. Genuinly evil people find more elaborate ways to torment their victims than blind violence.

Why do you find evil and stupidity to be mutually exclusive?

[HoreTore]

Why do you find evil and stupidity to be mutually exclusive?

Good point.

Kadagar, engaging in politics and trying to persuade others that your opinions are correct takes a lot more effort than gunning down 77 unarmed civillians. The first is a lifetimes work, the second takes a couple of years in planning.

He was too lazy to do the hard stuff, so he chose the easy stuff. He is also completely incapable of accepting that people disagree with him. He didn't fight for his views, he gunned down those he disagreed with.

I don't know how he does on an IQ-test, but his intelligence in social science is awful. Rock-bottom.

[Fragony]

Good point.

Kadagar, engaging in politics and trying to persuade others that your opinions are correct takes a lot more effort than gunning down 77 unarmed civillians. The first is a lifetimes work, the second takes a couple of years in planning.

He was too lazy to do the hard stuff, so he chose the easy stuff.

You need to think like him, for him it's a longterm investment, none of these kids will become future leaders. That is also why he claims self-defence

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

Kadagar, engaging in politics and trying to persuade others that your opinions are correct takes a lot more effort than gunning down 77 unarmed civillians. The first is a lifetimes work, the second takes a couple of years in planning.

He was too lazy to do the hard stuff, so he chose the easy stuff. He is also completely incapable of accepting that people disagree with him. He didn't fight for his views, he gunned down those he disagreed with.

I don't know how he does on an IQ-test, but his intelligence in social science is awful. Rock-bottom.

This is a matter of persepctive, he is operating on a different set of norms to you. From his perspective, he is willing to kill and die for his beliefs - I recall he said he didn't exepct to be taken alive.

By contrast, all you do is talk. So, that make you the coward from his perspective.

Me - I suppose my views sit somewhere between the two, but I feel very strongly that to simply dismiss Breivik as lazy or cowardly is reductive.