Over the weekend, local blogger Dan probably penned the best post of the year from any local blogger. Dan is an acquaintance of Jan Helder, a local lawyer who was charged with enticing a 14 year-old girl for sex. Turns out the girl was a law enforcement official and the case was thrown out of court. Dan writes eloquently about his compassion for the Helder, which is rare because so often both the media and politicians capitalize off the fear of sexual predators.
I guess my biggest problem with all this is that, in many ways, he's a kind, caring, decent human being. I have laughed with him, and drank beer with him - I can't hate him. He's not a monster. Yet, what he apparently was attempting to do was monstrous.If you watched the news, you’d think that a sexual predator is some alien creature that lurks in the dead of night feeding off the chastity and innocence of frightened victims. The truth is so much scarier; a sexual predator is just a regular person with a bad problem, not so much different from any other person you might know.
Now that is a rational perspective if i've ever heard one! These talking heads on cable TV, who pose as journalists, are destroying our moral sensibilities with their constant pandering to the fears of the unintelligent.
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