We all thought that the election of Barack Obama would lead to the redemption of our nation, lead our country to repudiate the international terrorism, murder, kidnapping and theft waged by the Bush Criminal Cartel. We expected Obama to bring about a new age, one in which his administration would be dedicated to the pursuit of justice, to demand an accounting and reparations for victims, seize assets from the criminals, hold public hearings and indict those against whom there was sufficient evidence, re-establish decent relationships with other nations. End these illegal wars, stop the kidnapping, torture, and murder which had become part of the official policy of the Bush Regime.
Man, what were we drinking a year ago? Because in the harsh light of morning, one year down the road, it looks to me like we're living in the same old corrupt seedy joint that we occupied in 2008.
Our legal system is a disgrace. Where is the prosecution of the criminals who have started illegal wars, brought about the murder of hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people? Where is the prosecution of the Wall Street criminals who have stolen everything from the public? How can "our" politicians take bribes from Wall Street, and pretend to be honest? How sickening is this whole system? Why did Eric Holder refuse to prosecute the Aipac spies and instead let them walk free? Why is Bernie Madoff the only criminal from Wall Street who's in prison, and why are the rest of them allowed to continue to rape and pillage? What is our "Justice" system doing? What's really going on?
Well, sadly, the only real news we've heard lately about "justice" in this country is that the U.S. has demanded that Switzerland arrest a 76-year-old man based on a plea bargain he made, 32 years ago, to consensual sex with a minor. Is this really the best we've got?
Roman Polanski is an internationally-renowned filmmaker. He began his live as a young man in the Krakow Ghetto created by the Nazis to isolate the Jews before sending them off to be slaughtered. He escaped the ghetto and was raised secretly by a Polish Catholic family, who claimed he was their child. In later years he went to film school and became an accomplished filmmaker in Europe.
His first big hit in the U.S. was Rosemary's Baby, followed in later years by Chinatown, Death and the Maiden, and The Pianist. His total body of work is too lengthy to list here, and I'm only mentioning a few that had widespread distribution within the U.S.
In 1969, Polanski's pregnant wife Sharon Tate was butchered by the Charlie Manson cult.
In 1977, Polanski was arrested based on charges that while he was at a Hollywood party, he had given drugs and alcohol to a 13-year-old, and had sexual intercourse with her. He negotiated a plea bargain, but someone later repudiated it and he fled the country rather than face an extended period of imprisonment. This was consensual sex. Nobody claimed it was forcible rape.
For the past 32 years, Polanski has lived his life lawfully, working in his field as a filmmaker in Europe. Recently some people made a documentary, apparently in an effort to clear his name in connection with the 1977 incident. Apparently Polanski or some of his supporters claim that he only entered into the plea bargain based upon the understanding and agreement that he would be given a minimum sentence -- perhaps time served. This is generally the way it works. But somebody in L.A. -- perhaps a judge -- decided to repudiate the agreement at the last minute, and wanted to send Polanski to prison for a lengthy term. That's why Polanski fled the country. Or at least that is someone's version of what happened.
I support statutory rape laws. We should have some age -- I think 18 is fair -- that is hands-off to everyone. Of course if the sexual partner is also under 18, the laws should not apply. But all the over-18-year-old (usually) men out there should be very careful to check ID and, better yet, don't just pick some young girl and have sex with her without getting to know a little about her, to make sure she's old enough to be a consenting partner. So I support the laws. But I don't like judges who repudiate plea agreements at the last minute, because that's not fair. Assuming that's what happened.
So, somebody gets their panties in a wad about Polanski trying to clear his name, and the U.S. government gets involved and asks Switzerland to arrest Polanski. Of all the terrorists and criminals wandering around the U.S. freely, in the open -- by which I mean most of the people who worked in the Bush administration -- the U.S. government instead decides to go after a 76-year-old filmmaker based upon a "crime" of consensual sex with a minor that occurred 32 years ago. Give me an F-ing break.
But our government is insistent to Switzerland: Turn Him Over. Give Us That Prisoner. So Polanski shows up for the Zurich film festival, and ends up cuffed and thrown in jail. The U.S. government is demanding that Switzerland turn that "criminal" Polanski over to us. I suppose once we get him, he'll be hooded, sent to Guantanamo, beaten, tortured, locked in a cage 24 hours/day, and left to die. Or is that only for the Muslims?
Fast forward a few weeks to see the U.S. engage in disgusting hypocrisy when the shoe is on the other foot. A few years ago, some CIA thugs kidnapped a man in Italy, took him to Egypt and left him to be tortured and brutalized based upon the fact that he was a Muslim. Or, in the CIA parlance, a "suspected terrorist." A court in Italy indicted the CIA thugs and convicted them in abstentia of, among other crimes, kidnapping. They are convicted felons. The CIA agents refused to appear in Italy for their trial and apparently are hiding out in the U.S., with full protection by the U.S. government. All the press in the U.S. is reporting that it is "unlikely" any of these CIA agents will ever "do time." But why?
Why would Roman Polanski be hunted through the international corridors of film festivals to be drug in chains back to the U.S., presumably to be shut away in Attica or Guantanamo for the rest of his life based on having consensual sex with a minor? But CIA thugs who are convicted felons, who conspired to and did kidnap and cause great bodily harm, participated in attempted murder, are given the full protection of the U.S. government which refuses to arrest them and turn them over to Italy to be thrown in prison, which is where they belong because they are criminals.
The CIA agents are criminals. They have engaged in kidnapping, torture, murder, and international drug running. They work for the biggest criminal enterprise in the world: The United States of America. And because of that, they can do anything they want, kidnap anyone, brutalize, torture, and murder anyone they want anywhere they want, without consequences.
Those CIA thugs should be turned over to Italy to serve out the rest of their lives in Italian prisons. After all, if our government can get so excited about a 76-year-old man who, 30 years ago had consensual sex with a minor, then somebody inside the Obama administration should manage to get a little bit excited about convicted kidnappers and felons walking freely in our communities. Aren't these CIA agents terrorists? They sure terrorized the guy from Italy that they kidnapped. I thought we didn't like the terrorists, but it turns out that we employ them.
If nothing else, maybe we can negotiate one of those prisoner exchanges. We turn over the 23 convicted felon CIA agents who kidnapped and almost killed some poor guy in exchange for Switzerland giving us a 76-year-old movie guy. Maybe we can call in the thugs and murderers of Blackwater to arrange for armed transport of the dangerous movie dude. Make sure he doesn't escape and return to making movies.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-italy-verdict5-2009nov05,0,2106586.story
Stardom is a fickle thing.
ReplyDeleteOne day a person might be in a plush super star hacienda living the "good life",(nudge, nudge, wink, wink), the next on the lamb from the forces of Moral Purity.
If memory serves, an out of court settlement to the girls' family was enough for them to relocate to Hawaii.
Pimping is a rough trade.
As to the criminality of the state, this has always been a given- one of the hopes of the Romantics was that a government might be devised which was not blatantly corrupt.
The jury seems to be out on that one.
Don Smith