Blah Blah Flowers

I am a gadfly flapping around in the wind of public opinion or somewhat, so needed Kate Harding to remind me that Roman Polanski drug-raped a child and was then a fugitive from justice for thirty years, not a victim of cruel and unusual prejudice. She presents some especially inglorious highlights from the 'OMG!!1! Will no-one think of the poor persecuted rich artist who has been able to get on with his career in Europe' crowd. She points to Joan Shore at HuffPo who, in what I hope is a satirical piece, says that while she doesn't mind about the Swiss Banks holding on to all that looted Nazi gold what she can't stand is their police seizing a rapist. A surprising number of film directors and producers seem to share this view, including Henning Molfenter, who is quoted as saying "There is no way I'd go to Switzerland now. You can't watch films knowing Roman Polanski is sitting in a cell 5km away". Then there is Whoopi Goldberg, who doesn't think nonconsensual sex with a minor is rape. Bernard-Henri Lévy manages to sum up the issue in the pompous manner we all love the French for, We ask the Swiss courts to free him immediately and not to turn this ingenious filmmaker into a martyr of a politico-legal imbroglio that is unworthy of two democracies like Switzerland and the United States. Good sense, as well as honor, require it. Yep, it's dishonourable to pursue a felon for a crime they pleaded guilty to. Fortunately not everyone on HuffPo wants to give a pass to artists.

There's more from Kate Harding here.

If you like that sort of thing, there's a Facebook group here.

Labels: art, Europe, movies, rapists, United States