I don't understand this Mark Wahlberg pardon request

[Eug]

Why should he get a pardon? He was involved in two racial incidents, including punching out a guy or two. He was convicted. ie. He is a convicted criminal for racist attacks.

Sure, he may be a nicer guy now, but that doesn't change the fact he was already convicted. In fact, he already served his time.

 

[TechBoyJK]

Well, I think there is a legit argument (albeit I'm not the one to make it) that he's in a position now, with money and influence, that having a criminal record is holding him back.

For instance, he wants to expand a business he owns but he can't because he's a felon. He's got cash money sitting there to hire people and create jobs, but he can't put it to use.

What he wants pardoned is something the victim has long since forgiven him for, and even admitted the attack wasn't as bad as it seemed. The victim was a vietnam vet and he said the 'attack' was petty and he forgot about it after like a week.

 

[Subyman]

I've never completely agreed with felony punishments that last after you've served your time. Case-by-case, sure eliminate gun ownership from some convicts, but its a blanket punishment that always haunts the person, no matter how much they change and want to move forward with their life. I'm not saying I agree with the pardon.

 

[Strk]

I've never completely agreed with felony punishments that last after you've served your time. Case-by-case, sure eliminate gun ownership from some convicts, but its a blanket punishment that always haunts the person, no matter how much they change and want to move forward with their life. I'm not saying I agree with the pardon.

I can't say I agree with it always, but the current felony system is pretty flawed, as you said. I remember watching an interview Bill Maher did with Rand Paul about wanting to allow convicted felons to vote (obviously different issue and he is not talking about all convicted felons). I can see there being a scale/review system for convicted felons.

 

[Eug]

At least as a convicted felon he'll never have to do jury duty.

For instance, he wants to expand a business he owns but he can't because he's a felon. He's got cash money sitting there to hire people and create jobs, but he can't put it to use.

Please expand on that. What did he want to do?

What he wants pardoned is something the victim has long since forgiven him for, and even admitted the attack wasn't as bad as it seemed. The victim was a vietnam vet and he said the 'attack' was petty and he forgot about it after like a week.

Perhaps, but that was actually his second incident. The first incident was chasing around black kids and throwing stuff at them. Not saying he should be shunned for life for doing that as a 14 year old or whatever, but it's not as if it was a casual mistake either.

 

[Jimzz]

Problem is he never apologized to the guy he hit and when asked about it he said he forgave himself. It was on his AMA at reddit and was called out for it.

So he is still a ass. Might have money and not on drugs anymore but seems his attitude has not changed. I say no pardon for him.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Perhaps, but that was actually his second incident. The first incident was chasing around black kids and throwing stuff at them. Not saying he should be shunned for life for doing that as a 14 year old or whatever, but it's not as if it was a casual mistake either.

Nothing you do as a 14 year old should follow you around for life short of shooting up a school or something equivalently insane. If we held 14 year olds to the standard of "don't do anything stupid," the species would have died out thousands of years ago. So he threw rocks at some black kids. Was it stupid? Yes. Is 29 years enough time to get over it? Absolutely. The entire point of our justice system is the notion that people can reform; if three decades isn't enough time to forgive the transgressions of a child then we have utterly failed as a society.

 

[Eug]

For his other incident with the Vietnamese guys, he was older and was tried as an adult. And he was convicted.

And it isn't as if he's still locked in jail or told to give up all his money to the US justice system or anything like that.

 

[Jaskalas]

Why should he get a pardon?

Forgiveness is a core principle of Western religions.

 

[maddogchen]

Forgiveness is a core principle of Western religions.

Then he should apologize to the people he beat up and ask for their forgiveness first

 

[SMOGZINN]

Well, I think there is a legit argument (albeit I'm not the one to make it) that he's in a position now, with money and influence, that having a criminal record is holding him back.

For instance, he wants to expand a business he owns but he can't because he's a felon. He's got cash money sitting there to hire people and create jobs, but he can't put it to use.

What he wants pardoned is something the victim has long since forgiven him for, and even admitted the attack wasn't as bad as it seemed. The victim was a vietnam vet and he said the 'attack' was petty and he forgot about it after like a week.

So, the argument is that he is a rich felon and therefore should not have to suffer under the same restrictions that a poor felon would?

 

[smackababy]

So, the argument is that he is a rich felon and therefore should not have to suffer under the same restrictions that a poor felon would?

The argument is that all felons should face similar 'pardons' or, at the least, have the incidents fall off their record after a certain number of years. Beating up someone as an 18 year old shouldn't be something that prevents you from getting a job 20 years later, especially, if you haven't had any criminal incidents since. Wahlberg just happens to be in a position where he can afford to fight for this to happen. And, while he is not trying to change the entire system, it could set a precedent that might help other lower profile offenders facing similar problems.

If you're convicted of a felony in the US, your job options afterwards are two things: construction and crime. Doesn't matter the felony.

 

[unokitty]

Why should he get a pardon? He was involved in two racial incidents, including punching out a guy or two. He was convicted. ie. He is a convicted criminal for racist attacks.

Sure, he may be a nicer guy now, but that doesn't change the fact he was already convicted. In fact, he already served his time.

Marc Rich

In spite of United States boycott of Iran, Rich traded with the Ayatollah’s government even while Americans were being held hostage in Tehran. It would be one of a series of distasteful (and in most cases, illegal) moves: he would do business with Libya, South Africa, Cuba and other countries under embargo or boycott. And it paid off: Rich made billions.

Apparently comfortable with his own business practices, Rich flouted tax laws as well. In 1983, Rich was indicted on 65 criminal charges, including tax fraud. He was said to have evaded at least $50 million in federal taxes, leading former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani to remark that it was “the biggest tax evasion case in US history.” His company eventually handed over about $200 million in civil penalties but Rich and his business partner avoided prosecution – and up to 300 years in prison – by fleeing to Switzerland.

Even as the Internal Revenue Service offered huge rewards for his capture, Rich hardly suffered. Fortune magazine reported that after he fled, he continued to bring in millions, earning roughly $300 million in 1988 alone. His parties were lavish and legendary, ranging from a New Year’s Eve bash at his St. Moritz ski house to entertaining celebrities at his $9.5 million manse in Marbella, Spain.

Nearly two decades later, Rich was at the center of one of the most controversial presidential pardons in history. Even though he appeared on the FBI’s “Most Wanted” list alongside Osama bin Laden, Rich was pardoned by then President Clinton in 2001.

I thought pardons were a political act.

Should Wahlberg get a pardon? I don't know. How much has he donated to Obama?

Uno

 

[SMOGZINN]

The argument is that all felons should face similar 'pardons' or, at the least, have the incidents fall off their record after a certain number of years. Beating up someone as an 18 year old shouldn't be something that prevents you from getting a job 20 years later, especially, if you haven't had any criminal incidents since. Wahlberg just happens to be in a position where he can afford to fight for this to happen. And, while he is not trying to change the entire system, it could set a precedent that might help other lower profile offenders facing similar problems.

I would agree with most of what you said, I think that we need to decide if a person is reformed or not and not try to have it both ways. If they are reformed, we need to remove the cloud hanging over their head and let them be productive members of society. If they are not reformed then why are we releasing them?

But it does not sound like what he wants to do would actually help anyone that is not rich. Changing the system is one thing, making it so there is a loophole that you can use if you can afford years of good layers is what I see.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

The argument is that all felons should face similar 'pardons' or, at the least, have the incidents fall off their record after a certain number of years. Beating up someone as an 18 year old shouldn't be something that prevents you from getting a job 20 years later, especially, if you haven't had any criminal incidents since. Wahlberg just happens to be in a position where he can afford to fight for this to happen. And, while he is not trying to change the entire system, it could set a precedent that might help other lower profile offenders facing similar problems.

If you're convicted of a felony in the US, your job options afterwards are two things: construction and crime. Doesn't matter the felony.

He wasn't even 18. He did some dickish things to some black kids when he was 14 and then he violently assaulted a Vietnamese man when he was 16. And, yeah, it sounds like he was a racist piece of shit (which is not at all surprising given where he grew up). But if anyone thinks that Mark Wahlberg, the successful rapper and actor, the multimillionaire celebrity, is still a racist piece of shit who goes around beating up minority figures because he did so as a child 27 years ago, you're an imbecile. He's obviously not the same troubled youth that he was... but forgiveness is just never an option? Why?

I have a good friend who did some similarly stupid things growing up. He was young, he made mistakes, and he served his time. He hasn't re-offended in a decade... but because that stuff never really goes away, his job options are almost non-existent. Expecting children to understand that their stupidity is going to follow them forever is unrealistic, unfair and completely antithetical to the idea that reform is a possible outcome of the system of justice we've ostensibly established to do exactly that. If our goal in dealing with crime is to make sure juvenile delinquents never have a chance at a normal life, we're doing a bang-up job. For anyone with even an ounce of sense, it comes across as petty, vindictive lunacy that only serves to propagate a cycle of criminal behavior.

So, yeah, if someone does something stupid, racist and violent as a minor, we should hold them accountable. And we should teach them why such behavior is wrong. And if they don't do it again, we should forgive them. Holding it over their head forever doesn't do anyone any favors.

 

[Newell Steamer]

I never understood the appeal for Mark Wahlberg,..

He is nothing more than some loud mouthed ill tempered Boston meat head;

"If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn't have went down like it did," and, "There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, 'OK, we're going to land somewhere safely, don't worry,'"

Fucking buffoon.

 

[rudder]

NM

 

[Doc Savage Fan]

NM

The article you linked said his eye was injured while fighting the Communists in the Vietnam War.

 

[Eug]

I never understood the appeal for Mark Wahlberg,..

He is nothing more than some loud mouthed ill tempered Boston meat head;


Fucking buffoon.

Yeah, those 9/11 comments were insanely stupid. But then again he apologized for them and admitted they were insanely stupid.

But then again I think he realized nobody would ever watch his movies again if he didn't retract those statements.

BTW, at about the same time I also read an article from some tech writer - as in consumer PCs and what not - musing about creating an auto landing system for planes. That also struck me as insanely stupid.

 

[sm625]

Nothing is holding Wahlberg back. You dont need to own a gun when you can afford to hire someone who can carry a gun for you. The same basic premise applies to business interests as well.

And his 9/11 comments were perfectly fine. The only buffoons around here are the spineless lilylivered coward govt teet sucking boot licking fluoride guzzling GMO chewing psychotropic pill popping bankster succoling scum who cower in fear at the very thought of someone actually standing up for themselves.

 

[smackababy]

I never understood the appeal for Mark Wahlberg,..

He is nothing more than some loud mouthed ill tempered Boston meat head;


Fucking buffoon.

How is that stupid? If a group of people armed with ANYTHING were hijacking a plane (or bus or car or house) I am in, I am going to fight. There was this idea put forth that a hijacking was always used as a hostage situation and nobody thought the planes would be killed, but that is complete BS. All it takes is one person to stand up and he has a mob behind him. If you choose to cower in fear rather than act, you are the buffoon.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Yeah, those 9/11 comments were insanely stupid. But then again he apologized for them and admitted they were insanely stupid.

But then again I think he realized nobody would ever watch his movies again if he didn't retract those statements.

BTW, at about the same time I also read an article from some tech writer - as in consumer PCs and what not - musing about creating an auto landing system for planes. That also struck me as insanely stupid.

A lot of what Mark Wahlberg says comes across as breathtakingly stupid. That doesn't mean he doesn't deserve forgiveness for a 27 year old crime he committed in his youth.

 

[Newell Steamer]

How is that stupid? If a group of people armed with ANYTHING were hijacking a plane (or bus or car or house) I am in, I am going to fight. There was this idea put forth that a hijacking was always used as a hostage situation and nobody thought the planes would be killed, but that is complete BS. All it takes is one person to stand up and he has a mob behind him. If you choose to cower in fear rather than act, you are the buffoon.

He isn't a buffoon for thumping his chest (he is indeed correct in fighting back), but his pampered ass would have just sat in the seat and taken it.

Before 9/11, most people had a sheeple mentality (again, including Mark). And, if some blow hard DID get up to do something, I am sure people would have stopped HIM, in fear that his actions would have gotten all of them killed.

Yes, today, that is out the window and people will play the part of bad ass McBad Asserson. Today, sure, you go on and prove to the whole world how no one (and you mean NO ONE) pushes you around,..



,... but, back then, most people would have taken it,.. including Mark Wahlberg and you.

 

[who?]

In Arkansas felons who have completed all their probation, prison, and parole can get their voting privilege back.

 

[Eug]

How is that stupid? If a group of people armed with ANYTHING were hijacking a plane (or bus or car or house) I am in, I am going to fight. There was this idea put forth that a hijacking was always used as a hostage situation and nobody thought the planes would be killed, but that is complete BS. All it takes is one person to stand up and he has a mob behind him. If you choose to cower in fear rather than act, you are the buffoon.

He claimed he would gotten the plane safely landed, which is utter buffoonery. He's a frickin' actor, not a black ops dude and commercial airline pilot.