Pollard’s fate is primarily due to his being an American. We seem to routinely trade spies that are traditional foreign agents. We did a really big (and uncharacteristically public) one with the Russians 4-5 years ago in which both sides traded several they had captured in recent years.
But spies that are Americans who have sold out their own country? I think they’ve always gotten pretty harsh punishments. Ames and Hanssen both got life sentences for example.
Hanssen got a bit of a “sweetheart deal” in that, although he betrayed his country from almost the day he began working for his country, his pension is still being paid to his wife (albeit the “survivor’s” portion). Sorry. That’s malarkey. SOB should’ve been ordered by the court to return his entire salary.
That is a good point.
I would think the Russians also have a bad attitude towards their own citizens who spy for another country.
At least one of those traded in that big spy swap you describe, though a Peruvian national, was a US citizen.
So what? It was thirty years ago and is completely irrelevant now.
The guys who think that exacting more revenge from Jonathan Pollard for his traitorous deeds are showing a lack of perspective. Jonathan Pollard has been in a jail cell for 30 fricking years, almost half of a normal human lifespan. He went in a young man and will come out a senior citizen. We fucking WRECKED his life. We didn’t kill him, but jeebus, people, just think about what that means, 30 years in jail. How would YOU feel if you faced 30 years in jail as a young man?
I’d say we’ve exacted more revenge from Pollard than if we’d killed him. Killing him would have been relatively merciful. Painful but brief, as opposed to 30 years of no family, no money, no fun, just watching yourself age while the world spins right past you, helpless to enjoy it.
Yes, we fucked Jonathan Pollard right over. We got him. What happens from here on out doesn’t matter. We took almost all of his adult life away from him. So trade him for whatever trinkets anyone, including Israel, is willing to offer. He’s not worth anything any more.
Once again, you’re full of shit. “We” didn’t wreck his life, he did. The prosecutor offered him a plea agreement in 1986, for which one major condition was that he totally stop talking to the press. So what did he do?
He gave an interview to Wolf Fucking Blitzer as well as 60 Minutes.
Moreover, he’s spent the last 20 years in a medium security prison. Oh, the humanity.
First of all, he did not go to jail voluntarily, we put him there, we keep him there, I’m sure if we asked him if he would like to be free to go to Israel he would say “Yes.” So let’s not ascribe to others the things that we do, OK?
Secondly, he did things that had bad consequences. I’m not arguing that his deeds did not constitute treason, or betrayal. And his subsequent behavior made things worse. My main point is, there’s not much left of him to trade.
Then why did he plead guilty?
I am on your side in this debate, but this is a bunch of horse manure.
I am saying that having plead guilty, he might not have subsequently elected to spend 30 years in jail. If he was there voluntarily, he could leave any time … right?
Ooh, how many criminals would voluntarily choose to go to prison if they had a choice to be free instead? Let me guess – 0. Your point is about as irrelevant as it can get.
Well you will have to explain to me why you think that.
We did? Why do you think we did that, hmm? Ponder ponder ponder …
Maybe he shoulda thoughta that when he decided to commit his crimes, huh?
Oh, wait, that was satire, wasn’t it?
It is Ravenman who claimed that Pollard did it to himself … what, are you guys afraid of taking responsibiiity for your deeds? He’s in jail because WE put him there.
Wow! I never thought criminals who admit their culpability would later regret their actions!
Someone call the Red Cross! An inmate would prefer not to be in prison! Let’s call in the civil rights leaders, something has got to be done about criminals being subject to punishment by the court system!
You’ve never been an honor student, but you’re starting to make ralph124c look well informed.
Why are you so faux-concerned about “us guys” taking responsibility for our deeds, and totally unconcerned about Pollard taking responsibility for his? He’s the one who stole secrets for money. He’s the one who pleaded guilty. He’s the one who violated his plea agreement. And this is the rest of the world’s problem, how exactly?
I’m completely OK with him being jailed for his misdeeds. I just think WE have to own the jailing. We can’t push the responsibility off onto him. Look, if you slug me and I slug you back, YOU might be the proximate cause of me slugging you, but still, I DID slug you. What’s so hard to understand.
I never said we jailed him without sufficient cause, or that his deeds weren’t traitorous, in fact, I described them as such.
I wonder how most of you would feel about jailing Dick Cheney for exposing Valerie Plame as a CIA agent. I think he should spend a few years in jail for that. Not sure how many, but five at the very least.
If we did, would you be here lamenting that “we” ruined his life?