Rolf Harris in court

[Neil]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-24204750


TV presenter Rolf Harris has appeared in court charged with nine counts of indecent assault and four of making indecent images of children.

Just can't see how this is going to play out... I mean he seems such a "stand up guy"!

[krakenslayer]

I mean he seems such a "stand up guy"!

I'm kind of ambivalent about this whole celebrity perv witch-hunt.

On the one hand, I find it terribly disturbing that all of these people who I looked up to as a kid turned out to be serial sex pests.

On the other hand, you have to wonder how much of it is for real (and obviously much of it is for real), and how much is people jumping on the band-wagon after seeing how much attention and compensation came the way of Saville's victims. I'm not denigrating anyone who has genuinely been traumatized by an encounter with some rich creep who thinks he can do whatever he wants, but there are also a lot of unscrupulous people out there who won't hesitate to lie, exaggerate and smear the reputation of others to get rich. For this reason, I'm considering Harris and the rest innocent unless proven guilty.

The other aspect people don't consider is that the 70s was a very different time - not in the sense that it was okay to molest underagers, it never is and never has been - but there was less regulation, and laws surrounding, for example, underage access to nightclubs were less strictly upheld. If you're some famous twat on a night out, surrounded by groupies who are all trying to get off with you, it might never cross your mind that some of the girls in a nominally "over 18" establishment might actually be 14 or 15 (which many of them can pull off). I think it's important to differentiate between actively predatory behaviour (like Saville's), and that over-sexed idiots who accidentally slept with underagers once or twice years ago because they were too foolish to check the girl's age or, better yet, keep it in their pants.

Basically, I feel bad for anyone who has been taken advantage of in this whole affair, and that goes for falsely-accused "perpetrators" (e.g. Michael Le Vell) as well as the real victims.

[Neil]

Trial in April - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-24428587


Veteran entertainer Rolf Harris is to stand trial in April accused of indecent assault and making indecent images of children.

[Neil]

Even more charges! - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-25489501


Rolf Harris is facing three further prosecutions for sexual assault including one against girl "aged seven or eight".

[Neil]

Doesn't sound good -http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-27371573

If any of this sticks he'll be spending sometime behind bars. MBE/OBE/CBE will no doubt be removed too!

[Geordie9]

I always thought his Two Little Boys song was a bit strange

[Neil]

I have to say, I actually think he might be found guilty - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-27779830

[Neil]

Guilty - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-28094561

Within the BBC, his nickname was "The Octopus!"

[Geordie9]

Seems to me all these 'celebrity' paedos are getting caught too late when there just about dead, suppose its better late than never though

[MinionZombie]

Seems to me all these 'celebrity' paedos are getting caught too late when there just about dead, suppose its better late than never though

I guess pandora's box has been well and truly opened and everything is, rightly, being gone over after years of nobody giving a shit (very bad indeed).

It's amazing that this sort of abuse by so many stars was known of and ignored or even joked about in a flippant manner. :stunned:

[Neil]

It's amazing that this sort of abuse by so many stars was known of and ignored or even joked about in a flippant manner. :stunned:

This is an interesting audio excerpt from an interview with Johnny Rotten (John Lydon). Listen at 50s in! And this is from 1978!!!

Rjy8oLVOvi4

It was never aired!

[shootemindehead]

It never aired? There's a bleedin shock.

1978? Jesus, that's scary.

How screwed up is that, though. Savile, a KBE and a kiddyfiddler, held up by all as a bastion (albeit an odd one) of all that is good about Britain and Johnny Rotten, who was lambasted in the late 70's as a figure of establishment hate and yet rotten had/has more integrity in his little finger than Savile had in his entire existence.

Thank christ punk happened.

[Legion2213]

5 years 9 months for the dirty old board wobbler...will be 90 years old when he gets out if he serves that.

Latest news is the term has been challenged as too lenient, so he could get more.

Seems the 70's light entertainment/sleb culture was packed to the gills with pedos and sex pests!

[Neil]

5 years 9 months for the dirty old board wobbler...will be 90 years old when he gets out if he serves that.

Latest news is the term has been challenged as too lenient, so he could get more.

Seems the 70's light entertainment/sleb culture was packed to the gills with pedos and sex pests!
Most likely out in 3yrs or less I suspect...