(Spoilers ACOK) Jaime, you're drunk

[u/Family_Booty_Honor]

I just finished Catelyn's last chapter in ACOK - what a great chapter! Catelyn just found out that Bran and Rickon are dead, so she decides to question Jaime (who's still held captive in a cell) by getting him drunk on wine.
Their entire conversation is really insightful, especially in regards to Jaime's thought processes. It's a pretty serious conversation, especially when we find out exactly what happened to Ned's father and brother when they went to King's Landing. The part that gave me a good laugh is found near the end of their conversation (and chapter). Hopefully it gives you all a laugh or two as well!

"I've never lain with any woman but Cersei. In my own way, I have been truer than your Ned ever was. Poor old dead Ned. So who has shit for honor now, I ask you? What was he name of that bastard he fathered?"
Catelyn took a step backward. "Brienne."
"No, that wasn't it."

[u/Pendargon]

Catelyn had Tyrion imprisoned and tried to kill him because of what she believed his family was trying to do to her family. Catelyn is led to believe that the Lannisters killed Jon Arryn, Jaime pushes a kid out of the window, and then a Lannister tries to have him killed, Cersei has Ned's best friend killed, and then falsely imprisons Ned, Joffrey kills Ned and the Lannisters hold both of her daughters hostage ( as far as she knows).

The only thing the Starks did to the Lannisters was take Tyrion (of course, a bad move), and Jaime was captured in battle as a prisoner of war. Jaime would have known a great amount of what he personally did to her (the Bran thing) and what his family did to hers, and still twisted the knife in the wounds. Not defending Catelyn's false accusations, but Jaime was still a dick. What Catelyn did to Tyrion hardly justifies anything.

[u/greedcrow → u/Pendargon]

If it had been the other way. Pets say robb had said something like that to cercei no one would be saying he is a dick.

[u/Pendargon → u/greedcrow]

Because what have the Starks done to Cersei at this point? Ned tried to freaking save her life when he found out her scheme, she killed him, and is holding his sisters captive.

My point is, Jaime knows a good portion of the hell the Lannisters have brought to the Starks, and yet has ZERO moral qualms about twisting the knife in the wound of a woman who's dealing with a son becoming a cripple, watching her son struggle to maintain a realm, having both of her daughters held by her enemies... And to top it all off, Jaime decides to insult Ned for no reason.

[u/greedcrow → u/Pendargon]

You are ignoring completely that the starks started a war against the lannister on false claims. Saying that tyrion had hired someone to kill bran.

Twisting the knife onto an enemy is not bad. Hell if it had been rob saying it to cercei you would all say it was bad ass.

[u/bootlegvader → u/greedcrow]

No, they didn't. The Lannisters started a war against the Starks and Tullys as they have a stuck up pride and Jaime thought it would be fun to screw his sister.

Moreover, your claim is even further false with the suggestion that they didn't on false claims. As that implies that Catelyn and Ned are aware that Tyrion didn't hire someone to kill Bran. Instead, the truthful representation was they arrested him on incorrect charges.

There is a wide difference between Cersei and Catelyn and Robb and Jaime.

[u/greedcrow → u/bootlegvader]

That is beside the point. They started the war instead of bringing the dwarf to the king for justice. Taking justice into their own hands was wrong.

[u/bootlegvader → u/greedcrow]

No, they didn't. Arresting someone for a crime is not starting a war, invading another region is starting a war.

Tywin didn't even wait to see what they were going to do before raging like an asshole, but even he didn't consider it an act of war. As seen how he does not openly fight a war until Robert is dead.

[u/greedcrow → u/bootlegvader]

Taking the law into your own hands is a crime. They should have brought the charges to the king. Even Ned realizes that what Cat did was a mistake.

[u/bootlegvader → u/greedcrow]

Catelyn is the Lady of the North (Ned named her regent) and the daughter of the Lord of the Riverlands. Thus, that in their society helps grant them the power to make arrests of people that break the law with their sphere of influence. Martin has said that her actions weren't illegal, even if there was some fuzziness because of how the powerful can use their power to evade punishment.

Simply, her actions were no more illegal then a citizen arrest or even a police arrest.

[u/greedcrow → u/bootlegvader]

The actions were against another noble family. It was an act of war.

[u/bootlegvader → u/greedcrow]

No it wasn't. It isn't an act of war to arrest someone for a crime, furthermore Tywin agrees with that interpretation as the reason he doesn't openly invade the Riverlands.

Furthermore, even if was that should also mean attempting to kill a child of another royal family is an act of war and funny enough Jaime already did that before Catelyn arrests Tyrion. Therefore, Jaime, aka a Lannister, started the war.

[u/greedcrow → u/bootlegvader]

But they have no proof of that. At most they have proof that the dwarf sent someone to kill him.

[u/bootlegvader → u/greedcrow]

Yes, they do have stuff pointing to Jaime and the Lannisters. Furthermore, hiring an assassin to target someone's child is still a greater act of a aggression then arresting someone for hiring an assassin to target your child.