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RFK Jr faces call for investigation into claim he chainsawed whale’s head off (www.theguardian.com)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

112 comments fedilink hide all child comments

His independent White House campaign has fizzled, but the flow of bizarre stories of Robert F Kennedy Jr’s unorthodox handling of the carcasses of wild mammals has experienced no similar suspension.

An environmental group is calling for a federal investigation into the former presidential candidate for an episode in which he allegedly severed the head of a washed-up whale with a chainsaw – and drove home with it strapped to his car’s roof.

The episode has parallels with another extraordinary tale reported earlier in August in which Kennedy confessed to dumping a dead bear cub in New York’s Central Park and attempted to make it look like the animal was killed by a bicyclist.

The latest grisly revelation, about the whale head, is not particularly new – it stems from a 2012 interview Kennedy’s daughter Kick gave to Town & Country magazine, in which she talks about a visit to other family members of the political dynasty in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, more than two decades prior.

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[–] [email protected] 149 points 3 months ago (8 children)

His daughter:

“Every time we accelerated on the highway, whale juice would pour into the windows of the car, and it was the rankest thing on the planet. We all had plastic bags over our heads with mouth holes cut out, and people on the highway were giving us the finger, but that was just normal day to day stuff for us.”

[–] [email protected] 60 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Note that he intentionally took his kids to watch him saw the head off and put it on the car and take it home. Because he apparently liked to "study" such things. Weird as fuck.

[–] [email protected] 39 points 3 months ago (2 children)

All his life he has spent an unusual amount of time around animal corpses. Dead animals are kind of his thing.

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[–] [email protected] 46 points 3 months ago

That... sounds real.

[–] [email protected] 38 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Just a not weird family drive through the country. Seriously though, I'm betting the Harris campaign is sitting on several more of these stories that will roll out over the next couple months.

I'm also wondering where his collection is right now. If he's being investigated for a federal crime, there may be a search warrant in the works.

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[–] [email protected] 33 points 3 months ago (3 children)

whale juice would pour into the windows of the car

Why...

Why wouldn't you roll up the windows?

[–] [email protected] 45 points 3 months ago (10 children)

Straps go through the windows?

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[–] [email protected] 17 points 3 months ago

Normal Kennedy day. They only roll the windows up when things get weird.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 3 months ago

Based on what I'm hearing about the guy, I wouldn't be surprised if the windows and/or AC were broken and they just left it like that.

[–] [email protected] 26 points 3 months ago

what the fuck

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[–] [email protected] 104 points 3 months ago (3 children)

Man, Kennedys end up with a shocking number of dead things in their cars.

[–] [email protected] 64 points 3 months ago (1 children)

A truly mind blowing amount.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 3 months ago

They’re drowning in it.

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[–] [email protected] 81 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

RFK Jr: "This is a cool story, right? People will think I'm cool?"

Brain Worm: "Yes! Yes! And tell them about the bear!"

[–] [email protected] 20 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Beautiful. If Kirsty Noem taught us anything, it's that charming stories about animals are all the rage.

[–] [email protected] 67 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Okay, but if it was already dead, and he didn’t kill it, what’s the big deal?

“Mr Kennedy’s apparent transport of the marine mammal skull from Massachusetts to New York, and therefore across state lines, also represented a felony violation of the Lacey Act, one of the earliest wildlife conservation laws enacted by [the] United States in 1900,” he wrote, adding that it was also illegal to possess part of any animal protected by the endangered species act.

Oh.

[–] [email protected] 44 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (7 children)

I think the purpose of that language is to prevent ~~people~~ hunters claiming they just happened to find it dead.

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[–] zaph 24 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Maybe I was lied to in boy scouts but I was told that law even prevents you from keeping a feather naturally dropped by a bald eagle. So cutting the head off an endangered animal would definitely be a no no.

[–] [email protected] 32 points 3 months ago (4 children)

All feathers are illegal, but they will most certainly throw the book at you for Eagle feathers. The animal rescues have to transport dead bald eagles to the federal government where they get DNA tested and cataloged and feathers are only distributed to Native Americans who have gone through a permit process. A first time offense is a $100k fine and a year in prison.

Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act

Handling and Distribution of Bald and Golden Eagles and Parts

This is exactly as mentioned in other comments, to prevent the "it was already dead when I got here" excuse.

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 3 months ago

Not just bald eagles, or all eagles, or even all birds of prey. The migratory bird protection act covers nearly 1,100 species of birds: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Migratory_Bird_Treaty_Act_of_1918

And that list includes some very common birds, like some gulls.

[–] [email protected] 61 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Are we sure John McAfee didn't fake his death and change his name to RFK? Cause this is some weird-ass John McAfee shit.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Can we not use John McAfee and shit on the same sentence anymore? IYKYK

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[–] [email protected] 50 points 3 months ago

And this is only like, the fifth weirdest headline I've read about the guy.

[–] [email protected] 42 points 3 months ago

Trump: "People are calling us weird! Quick, bring on someone that is weirder than me and Vance!"

Staffers: "Turn on the RFK signal!"

[–] Timecircleline 40 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Cards against humanity-ass title

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[–] [email protected] 39 points 3 months ago (7 children)

Little know fact. A worm crawled into his skull and ate a piece of his brain. The brain then died, and that's RFK JR.

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[–] PrincessLeiasCat 28 points 3 months ago

What the fuck are even these headlines? What the fuck RFK Jr?!?!

[–] [email protected] 28 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Mf'er really named his kid Kick Kennedy?

[–] [email protected] 24 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Her actual name is Kathleen.

She's named after her great aunt Kathleen Kennedy, who died in a plane crash at 28 years old. Aunt Kathleen was nicknamed "Kick" because of her "irrepressible nature" and it seems she inherited the nickname as well.

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[–] [email protected] 25 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I know the meme is Ted Cruz being the Zodiac killer, but are we sure it isn't actually RFK Jr?

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Wrong coast. But considering the family said that he likes to "study" things like whale skulls, I wouldn't exactly be shocked if he had a human skull or two in his collection.

[–] Corkyskog 15 points 3 months ago (1 children)

He likes to play among rotting carcasses... behind the bastards had a really interesting podcast about him.

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[–] [email protected] 17 points 3 months ago (1 children)

So the unspoken bit about RFK Jr. is that he's a tweaker, right?

I mean, the details are all in the context of politically entitled progeny, but the underlying vibe I get from the stories about him is very reminiscent of the tweakers I've known over the years.

[–] vaultdweller013 16 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Watch the Behind the Bastards on him, he at least used to be really into drugs even got one of his brothers addicted.

Edit: Pretty sure it was the brother that died from a drug overdose.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 3 months ago

I say we make him americas next prime minister

[–] [email protected] 16 points 3 months ago (2 children)

TLDR; he ate a racoon.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 3 months ago (1 children)

In his defence, he thought it was human meat.

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[–] [email protected] 16 points 3 months ago (1 children)

This can't be fucking real.

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 3 months ago

This is a Kaufman-esque performance art piece, right? Jk rich people get a free pass on insanity.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 3 months ago

Every headline I read about this man is pure insanity.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 3 months ago

Just a friendly reminder that this man is now aligned with presidential hopeful Donald Trump.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Everyone around Trump seems to either end up in prison, a convicted felon, or in rare cases, dead. Funny how assholes and weirdos seem to gravitate to him.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Dang, we missed out on a whale beheading, bear practical joking, brain worming president! It's just too bad.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 months ago

Wild day for people who believe in consequences as we beg appeals courts to not let Trump off scot free for misuse of classified documents and hope theres a way to prosecute a Kennedy for decapitating a whale.

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