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Culture War Roundup for the week of December 5, 2022

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Sam Brinton Warrant Issued—Biden Official Accused of Stealing Luggage Again

A felony arrest warrant has been issued for Brinton, who is non-binary, after accusations they stole luggage from the Harry Reid International Airport, Las Vegas TV station KLAS reported.

The charge is for grand larceny with a value between $1,200 and $5,000, the warrant states.

Grand larceny is a category B felony in Nevada and punishable by one to 10 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.

So I think it's safe to say I believe that that Tweet thread that accused him of having a continually escalating fetish was right. IIRC there was some criticism of the Tweeter's objectivity and credentials, but I guess even a broken clock..

I suppose my reaction could be called bigoted but I'm not surprised by this, nor was I surprised by the initial charges or even the claims that he was playing out a sexual fetish. In fact, I found it highly more plausible than the alternative given his bizarre behavior and reported lies when confronted.

Taken as a whole, I am more likely to distrust someone who shows such suspect behavior while also apparently being hellbent on signaling deviancy. Not a good combination.

EDIT: Strong language edit.

Something tells me he/she will not see jail time. The usual community service and public contrition. I don't know what compels someone to throw their career away for something so stupid.

Would someone who steals a couple of suitcases generally receive a prison sentence?

Should someone who steals a couple of suitcases – in general – receive a prison sentence? Maybe if it was a repeat offence, but for the first conviction, it seems excessive.

This is a repeat offense though. The first suitcase + contents was over $1,000 so it's not like he shoplifted a candy bar.

Article says the charge carries a sentence of 1-10 years in prison. I'm assuming, the American justice system being what it is, that typically we're looking at the very low end of that range, some portion of which is replaced by parole.

he should. Jails exist for criminals. He committed a crime, ergo jail time.

If a normal executive abruptly turned kleptomanic, would you expect jail time? I would not.

Me neither. The odds that this person will go to jail are about zero.

That's an interesting question. Are there "klepto therapy" vacation resorts for the wealthy/politicians, the way there are drug and sex-addiction rehab centers they volunteer to go to instead of taking a prison sentence?

Jails exist for criminals.

So do fines. And lethal injections.

Yeah, I can't imagine this resulting in jailtime regardless of who the professional is. I'd imagine some people are going to chalk that up to bias, in the pro-LGBT sense in this case, or in a generic "jail is for poor people" sense in the case of a generic professional... but professionals are professionals because they've already demonstrated their ability to be generally productive, law-abiding members of society. Clearly something has gone wrong in a case like this one, but someone who was productive and law-abiding and has stopped being so seems like a better bet for treatment/rehabilitation than someone who has never been productive and law-abiding at all.

My bet is treatment and community service, which seems entirely appropriate given the situation.

On the other hand, repeat offender.