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On Roman Polanski
Oct. 2nd, 2009 12:28 pmI don’t know how talented he is, I haven’t seen much of his work and I’m not much of a judge.
And it doesn’t matter.
Really. Talent - in any field - should not justify heinous crimes. Not now. Not ever. We cannot work on a system that says “but he’s really good at X! We should totally let him get away with rape!” The fact I’ve even felt the need to type that makes me feel vaguely queasy.
Yes, it was a long time ago - because he was a fugitive. Rape and paedophilia are not crimes that we should dismiss so quickly. This is not a case of a crime being overlooked. The idea that you can escape from prosecution if you take a long enough holiday is a dubious one
And there are no words to describe how utterly repellent ANY implications of consent in this case are. She was 13. There is no consent. There is no POSSIBILITY of consent. I don’t care if she broke into his home, stripped naked, lay on his bed to a Barry White record and threw aphrodisiacs at him (and I sincerely doubt anything remotely close to that happened). She. Was. Thirteen. She was a child. Under no circumstances can consent take place. Under no circumstances can he have had sex with that girl without it being rape. END OF. Enough with this repellent blame the victim shit - it’s past tiresome and way past sickening.
And can we also have more slapping of the “he made a mistake.” crap I’ve seen in some news reports. How, in the name of all that is holy, do you MISTAKENLY rape someone? Seriously, I’m not even going to try and fit that in my brain, I really aren’t. You cannot mistakenly rape a child. Using the word ‘mistake’ just tries to diminish what he has done - and, in turn - diminishes the victim as well.
For those who believe there may have been a miscarriage of justice - well I do not know beyond the fact he confessed (not, admittedly reliable evidence) however you can console yourself that he is a man of wealth and privilege and it is very rare that the wheels of justice crush innocent, rich men. In fact, if you have a passion against legal injustices (and you most certainly should) I advise your turn your eyes to the fate of poor minorities - there you will find the most widespread and the most severe abuses and sheer absence of justice. Justice is rarely blind, and she can hear the clink of money from quite a distance.
(To add on all of this: I do not particularly blame the French for NOT extraditing him. Largely because I think it’s a very good idea for European nations to avoid any kind of assumption of extradition with the US. Britain has fallen into that trap and some of our people have paid for it. Unfortunately the American Justice system and understanding of rights are... different from what we expect and demand. However, extradition policy is a different matter from dropping crimes altogether)
And to add again: While all this is the case, I also have no time or patience with the people salivating over the idea he will be thrown in prison to be anally raped/assaulted/murdered by all the denizens within. The fact that the prison system - any prison system - allows such vile abuses is something to be ASHAMED of. To the very core. The value of a society can be judged on how it treats its most vulnerable people - and there are precious few more vulnerable than convicts. Rape, assault and murder are unconscionable acts - regardless of WHO the victim is. It is disgusting and repellent to wish any of these on anyone - and a mark of national shame on any nation that allows such to happen within their prison system indifference or acceptance.
And it doesn’t matter.
Really. Talent - in any field - should not justify heinous crimes. Not now. Not ever. We cannot work on a system that says “but he’s really good at X! We should totally let him get away with rape!” The fact I’ve even felt the need to type that makes me feel vaguely queasy.
Yes, it was a long time ago - because he was a fugitive. Rape and paedophilia are not crimes that we should dismiss so quickly. This is not a case of a crime being overlooked. The idea that you can escape from prosecution if you take a long enough holiday is a dubious one
And there are no words to describe how utterly repellent ANY implications of consent in this case are. She was 13. There is no consent. There is no POSSIBILITY of consent. I don’t care if she broke into his home, stripped naked, lay on his bed to a Barry White record and threw aphrodisiacs at him (and I sincerely doubt anything remotely close to that happened). She. Was. Thirteen. She was a child. Under no circumstances can consent take place. Under no circumstances can he have had sex with that girl without it being rape. END OF. Enough with this repellent blame the victim shit - it’s past tiresome and way past sickening.
And can we also have more slapping of the “he made a mistake.” crap I’ve seen in some news reports. How, in the name of all that is holy, do you MISTAKENLY rape someone? Seriously, I’m not even going to try and fit that in my brain, I really aren’t. You cannot mistakenly rape a child. Using the word ‘mistake’ just tries to diminish what he has done - and, in turn - diminishes the victim as well.
For those who believe there may have been a miscarriage of justice - well I do not know beyond the fact he confessed (not, admittedly reliable evidence) however you can console yourself that he is a man of wealth and privilege and it is very rare that the wheels of justice crush innocent, rich men. In fact, if you have a passion against legal injustices (and you most certainly should) I advise your turn your eyes to the fate of poor minorities - there you will find the most widespread and the most severe abuses and sheer absence of justice. Justice is rarely blind, and she can hear the clink of money from quite a distance.
(To add on all of this: I do not particularly blame the French for NOT extraditing him. Largely because I think it’s a very good idea for European nations to avoid any kind of assumption of extradition with the US. Britain has fallen into that trap and some of our people have paid for it. Unfortunately the American Justice system and understanding of rights are... different from what we expect and demand. However, extradition policy is a different matter from dropping crimes altogether)
And to add again: While all this is the case, I also have no time or patience with the people salivating over the idea he will be thrown in prison to be anally raped/assaulted/murdered by all the denizens within. The fact that the prison system - any prison system - allows such vile abuses is something to be ASHAMED of. To the very core. The value of a society can be judged on how it treats its most vulnerable people - and there are precious few more vulnerable than convicts. Rape, assault and murder are unconscionable acts - regardless of WHO the victim is. It is disgusting and repellent to wish any of these on anyone - and a mark of national shame on any nation that allows such to happen within their prison system indifference or acceptance.