Sexual offences claims

Tonight we heard, on the BBC news, that the enquiry into one of our leading singers is being extended. The singer concerned has denied any wrong doing.

I do think all concerned (accused  and accusee) should remain anonymous until the result of any trial is known. Only if the accused is found guilty should the guilty person be named. It must be awful to be dragged though the mill of public hate or doubt if in the end they are cleared of all charges. If found guilty then the accused should get deserved justice/punishment. If not guilty then the accused should walk free and not with a tarred reputation.

Certainly some people now coming forward have genuine cases that have a right to be heard.  However, some cases are historic and are very doubtful.

Morals were different in the 1960s and early 1970s. It is wrong to judge in 2015 morals of the long past. If we are talking about serious sexual crimes, and the evidence is good, then the cases should be heard. When I started work back in 1970 many girls got wolf-whistles and bottoms touched - this was the norm back then. Morals are different today.

Sex trials and anonymity

Yet again, we hear in the news that a high profile singer is "in the frame" for possible child abuse. Yet again, this person is named and shamed well before any legal action is taken, or even considered. The person named says he is totally innocent. To my mind this is wrong, both for the accused and the victim(s).

Anonymity should be given too ALL involved until anyone is found guilty. If found guilty, the law of the land is quite able to deal with it. It is WRONG that people who may well be innocent are still treated as guilty even before a case is heard. In this country, it is the law that a person is innocent until the prosecution proves beyond reasonable doubt that the accused is guilty.

In recent months, some high profile cases have been heard. Some have received long custodial sentences. Some were innocent. Let us not be too keen to judge without having heard the evidence.

Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2111478/

If you see no other film in a cinema this year, see this documentary film. It beggars believe how complicit the Catholic Church has been in suppressing and hiding child abuse cases by priests world-wide. The complicity goes right to the pope. No wonder he has decided to resign. Shame on the lot of them!

"Shame" Movie

This afternoon my wife and I went to the cinema in Cambridge to watch a new film called "Shame" starring Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan. The film is a UK Film 4 production, but it is set in New York and tells the story of a man, played by Fassbender, who is addicted to sex.  Although there is indeed a LOT of sex in the film it is, in truth, a story about loss, loneliness, isolation and sadness. Many will find it bleak and totally miserable. This is an "art house" genre film and there is no way you will find the sex scenes turn you on: the sex is empty and loveless. If you enjoy films, especially ones that challenge, then you may find this one worth watching.  There is a trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi404332057/