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I got arrested in Kazakhstan and represented myself in court

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Re: I got arrested in Kazakhstan and represented myself in court

#81

Post by Pinatubo »

jlg23 wrote: post #79

Great read, but I don't buy it. I've not been to Kazakhstan but traveled Africa and South America extensively. I've been to war zones. A lot of things don't add up: * A cop takes a bribe, is surprised the tourist is in some computer and then returns the bribe? I've never ever encountered a cop who takes bribes but does not know how the system works. They are not this stupid. This, by the way, is the best way to avoid…

If you read his story about his SF arrest you'll see he and his friend were drunkenly interfering with paramedics trying to treat an accident victim, even after the police told them to stop. He then threatened to commit suicide while in jail and got put on psychiatric hold.

And somehow he turns that into a story of injustice. So yes, he likes storytelling.

Re: I got arrested in Kazakhstan and represented myself in court

#82

Post by higgsfield »

jlg23 wrote: post #79

Great read, but I don't buy it. I've not been to Kazakhstan but traveled Africa and South America extensively. I've been to war zones. A lot of things don't add up: * A cop takes a bribe, is surprised the tourist is in some computer and then returns the bribe? I've never ever encountered a cop who takes bribes but does not know how the system works. They are not this stupid. This, by the way, is the best way to avoid…

I live in Kazakhstan and this story is absolutely true in my opinion. Yerlan (Irlan is incorrect) just wanted to get "easy" money from foreign. I even think this was a first time when he'd wanted to take a bribe as he hadn't known how computer system works. "Cops being happy to have some "criminal" around for getting drunk and they even pay?" - lol he was just a poor student whose visa expired, he wasn't a drug dealer. In Kazakhstan, most people are hospitable. And paying for guests is absolutely normal. "The girl's story did not make much sense" - in our country sexual education is at a very low level. Abortions at young age is a big problem in poor small cities like where author have been.

Re: I got arrested in Kazakhstan and represented myself in court

#83

Post by Viper007Bond »

plaguuuuuu wrote: post #80
HNaTTY wrote: post #67

Reading this and then going back and reading his SF arrest story (linked in the article) is a real contrast.

Is that story legit?

It happened, but whether it happened like he said is up for debate. There's reports from others out there that he actually was being drunk, disruptive to rescue operations, and elbowed a cop in the eye.

Yet another reason to have body cameras -- no he said, they said.

Re: I got arrested in Kazakhstan and represented myself in court

#84

Post by adventured »

zanny wrote: post #74
grizzles wrote: post #62

This dude just grassed on all the people who bent the rules to be nice to him. With pictures. For a moment of blog fame. Very uncool.

Hopefully any higher up officials can recognize this just gave what is probably on average a fairly affluent tech class on HN a more positive outlook on Kazakhstan. Its positive advertising for the country to hear that you don't end up in a gulag for having your passport lapse.

Higher up officials in Kazakhstan have never heard of HN.

Re: I got arrested in Kazakhstan and represented myself in court

#85

Post by theoh »

at-fates-hands wrote: post #21
pavel_lishin wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Serious question: given how ... unstable ... McAfee seems to be, how reliable is this guide?

Just because he's paranoid schizophrenic now does not lessen his experiences before his brain went AWOL. Considering he's dealt with some pretty hostile governments and government officials, I'd say the advice is pretty solid. On a side note, when I was in telecom, My boss (who had been in the industry for 15 years) used to tell me about working for MCI and doing surveying and laying copper in several middle eastern…

Being schizophrenic does not mean that the brain/mind is "AWOL". Schizophrenics endure experience like the rest of us. The idea that the insane have "no mind" is an old-fashioned, dehumanizing idea which should not be tolerated even on HN where everyone is of course young, healthy and overconfident. (!)

Re: I got arrested in Kazakhstan and represented myself in court

#86

Post by true_religion »

grizzles wrote: post #62

This dude just grassed on all the people who bent the rules to be nice to him. With pictures. For a moment of blog fame. Very uncool.

I'm not sure if they bent the rules to be nice to him, or bent the rules because bribe money is shared between all parties involved.

Re: I got arrested in Kazakhstan and represented myself in court

#88

Post by jjawssd »

Pinatubo wrote: post #81
jlg23 wrote: post #79

Great read, but I don't buy it. I've not been to Kazakhstan but traveled Africa and South America extensively. I've been to war zones. A lot of things don't add up: * A cop takes a bribe, is surprised the tourist is in some computer and then returns the bribe? I've never ever encountered a cop who takes bribes but does not know how the system works. They are not this stupid. This, by the way, is the best way to avoid…

If you read his story about his SF arrest you'll see he and his friend were drunkenly interfering with paramedics trying to treat an accident victim, even after the police told them to stop. He then threatened to commit suicide while in jail and got put on psychiatric hold. And somehow he turns that into a story of injustice. So yes, he likes storytelling.

Good perspective

Re: I got arrested in Kazakhstan and represented myself in court

#89

Post by taneq »

theoh wrote: post #85
at-fates-hands wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just because he's paranoid schizophrenic now does not lessen his experiences before his brain went AWOL. Considering he's dealt with some pretty hostile governments and government officials, I'd say the advice is pretty solid. On a side note, when I was in telecom, My boss (who had been in the industry for 15 years) used to tell me about working for MCI and doing surveying and laying copper in several middle eastern…

Being schizophrenic does not mean that the brain/mind is "AWOL". Schizophrenics endure experience like the rest of us. The idea that the insane have "no mind" is an old-fashioned, dehumanizing idea which should not be tolerated even on HN where everyone is of course young, healthy and overconfident. (!)

I was thinking about this just the other day, the term "demented" literally means "with mind removed".
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