It is really REALLY hard to decide; even professional have had difficulty.
Joel Send a noteboard - 26/08/2012 02:08:43 AM
So it is a small victory for Breivik that he and his actions were declared sane now. Then again, as cold-blooded, planned and politically motivated as his deed was it's kind of hard, and maybe even too much of an easy way out, to dismiss him as insane, as unreal as such a act seems to us. So, 21 years, with the outlook of more if he is still a threat. May not sound enough at first glance, but works.
I guess I can agree that it is a small victory, but regardless of what the court thinks of his brain chemistry, it is unlikely that any noticeable percentage of people think he's anything but a sociopath. Winning on paper doesn't seem so important to what he wanted to accomplish. I agree that your statement below is what truly matters.
And, I don't get the people who are bitching about the 21 year thing. I like the idea of reviewing cases at some point as a general thing, and it's not as though 21 years is long enough to forget what he did or why he did it. I think Norway covered the bases very well, w/o changing themselves to suit him.
The most important result is the last paragraph anyway. Norway did not turn vigilante or paranoid, but kept its spirit. I hope the country punishes him by still being as multi-cultural and open minded as it is.
In large part because Breivik completely altered his behavior between examinations; he is smart and well educated enough to know what they seek and how to present evidence for his preferred result. However, he spent a decade planning his killing spree without ever showing any sign of mental instability. He was also careful to avoid showing any sign of criminal behavior; he does not even have a speeding ticket on his record, because he did not want to draw police attention.
So, for ten long years, he did not, even though he spent that time meticulously planning his massacres. He joined a gun club so he had all legal access to guns possible under Norwegian law, but did not immediately rush out and buy guns: He waited YEARS to buy his first guns, just to avoid suspicion. His cop uniform was so convincing an off-duty cop on Utøya walked up to him believing him a colleague responding to the Oslo bombing, only to be shot in the head. He started a farming company, with all the legal paperwork in order, just so purchasing massive amounts of fertilizer would seem innocuous. He gives every appearance of being a perfectly rational cold blooded killer (except when telling one court psychiatrist he is suicidal before telling another he has never been suicidal, but does that suggest a rational or irrational mind...?) He does not even have the classic sociopathic inability to distinguish between right and wrong: He admitted from the outset his murders were wrong and horrified him as well, but claimed them "necessary."
From what I have seen, the evidence for/against his sanity is inconclusive, but "inconclusive" was not among the rulings available to the court.
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Last First in wotmania Chat
Slightly better than chocolate.
Love still can't be coerced.
Please Don't Eat the Newbies!

LoL. Be well, RAFOlk.
Norway killer Anders Breivik ruled sane, given 21-year prison term
24/08/2012 11:35:06 AM
- 1285 Views
Only 21 years? Weaksauce. *NM*
24/08/2012 02:35:56 PM
- 246 Views
It can be extended if they think he's still a danger. *NM*
24/08/2012 03:24:41 PM
- 235 Views
How do they decide that?
24/08/2012 04:22:31 PM
- 465 Views
[Norway, 20 years from now]
24/08/2012 04:42:45 PM
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OR
24/08/2012 04:54:39 PM
- 535 Views
Pretty sure mine's more futuristically accurate. *NM*
24/08/2012 05:23:33 PM
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Your extensive experience with forensic psychology is really shining through here. *NM*
25/08/2012 11:08:28 AM
- 244 Views
Is it that simple?
24/08/2012 05:04:34 PM
- 633 Views
Actually, in the sentence declared...
24/08/2012 05:10:44 PM
- 553 Views
If that's so . . .
24/08/2012 05:19:51 PM
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Well, obviously, it's in case he reforms
24/08/2012 08:02:48 PM
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That's where the system goes wrong though.
24/08/2012 08:46:49 PM
- 521 Views
There is a point to keep him locked up. Actually, 77 points.
25/08/2012 06:12:36 PM
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I agree.
25/08/2012 06:26:34 PM
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From what I can tell they do it that way to impose a minimum sentence without parole.
26/08/2012 01:28:21 AM
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really? I hate the media
24/08/2012 09:22:03 PM
- 509 Views
Jonte is right about forvaring, but it is so foreign to us media overlooking it is hardly surprising
26/08/2012 01:16:17 AM
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LOL, my wife and I have nearly given up on an English translation of "forvaring."
26/08/2012 12:50:19 AM
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Can you give some version of it?
26/08/2012 01:38:07 AM
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Did, in my response to rt.
26/08/2012 01:55:05 AM
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Timothy McVeigh was executed.
24/08/2012 05:13:49 PM
- 587 Views
I never did understand the point of this trial
24/08/2012 06:27:57 PM
- 651 Views
Well, wouldn't the answer be that nobody goes to any sort of institution w/o first
24/08/2012 06:39:56 PM
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I mostly agree with you.
24/08/2012 06:48:04 PM
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What people think.
25/08/2012 07:03:02 PM
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hm
25/08/2012 07:34:05 PM
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So far, it looks like I am wrong
25/08/2012 09:28:09 PM
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I don't know if being a sociopath is the same as being insane.
25/08/2012 09:30:47 PM
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Which is the biggest reason I probably need to be more hip to the definitions.
25/08/2012 09:52:19 PM
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Yeah, exactly. That kinda makes it impossible for me to vote. *NM*
26/08/2012 12:10:38 AM
- 277 Views
It is really REALLY hard to decide; even professional have had difficulty.
26/08/2012 02:08:43 AM
- 383 Views
21 years for killing 70+ people - Norway is a crazy, crazy place. *NM*
25/08/2012 04:44:07 PM
- 217 Views
Did you read any of the other replies in this post?
25/08/2012 05:24:21 PM
- 487 Views
Did you really expect him to read when he had the opportunity to be loud and snippy? *NM*
26/08/2012 01:40:30 AM
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It would be an understatement to say I have mixed feelings about this.
26/08/2012 12:39:19 AM
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For those who are confused about the premise of the Norwegian justice system
26/08/2012 09:25:18 AM
- 575 Views
I fear this clarification may further confuse things, by making punishment seem a non-factor.
26/08/2012 09:41:48 PM
- 606 Views