Hollywood has the best moral compass, because it has compassion.
–Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, explaining why his industry is almost unanimously against the extradition and sentencing of director Roman Polanski for the child rape to which he pled guilty 32 years ago
My personal thoughts are let the guy go. It’s bad a person was raped. But that was so many years ago. The guy has been through so much in his life. It’s crazy to arrest him now. Let it go. The government could spend its money on other things.
–Peg Yorkin, founder of the Feminist Majority Foundation, indicating that at least one feminist believes there should be a statute of limitations on the rape of children
I know it wasn’t rape-rape. It was something else but I don’t believe it was rape-rape… When we’re talking about what someone did, and what they were charged with, we have to say what it actually was, not what we think it was.
–Actress Whoopi Goldberg, explaining why raping a child isn’t really rape, exactly
By their extraterritorial nature, film festivals the world over have always permitted works to be shown and for filmmakers to present them freely and safely, even when certain States opposed this.
–Woody Allen, Monica Bellucci, Jonathan Demme, Costa Gavras, Terry Gilliam, Buck Henry, John Landis, David Lynch, Michael Mann, Martin Scorcese, Tilda Swinton, Wim Wenders, and a bunch of other people you’ve never heard of trying to explain their novel theory that film festivals are now embassy-like zones, and filmmakers are ambassador-like persons with “diplomatic immunity” against whom nations are not allowed to enforce their laws (read the whole petition; its writers and signers refer to the rape and sodomization of a 13-year-old girl as “a case of morals”)
October 1, 2009 at 11:57 am
Basically:
1) Rape is rape, except when it isn’t.
2) Justice is justice, except when it isn’t.
3) Crimes against women are timelessly abhorrent and should be punished, except when they shouldn’t.
4) There should be no haven for sex criminals, except when there should be.
Rules to live by apparently, (except when we shouldn’t).
October 1, 2009 at 2:35 pm
I’m still trying to figure out how “rape rape” is different than rape.
And in regards to the last quote you put there, the issue isn’t about Polanski being prevented from showing his films, but rather the requirement that he take responsibility for what he did. This “defense” by Hollyweird is really no different than the “but he’s a really great athlete!” argument.
October 1, 2009 at 3:40 pm
They are all sickening.
October 2, 2009 at 11:50 am
I read a headline the other day that says it all; “What Would Hollywood say if Roman Polanski were a Catholic priest?”
Hypocrisy of the highest order. I’m disappointed in Wim Wenders
October 2, 2009 at 12:27 pm
ok- can’t let this one go.. I’m home sick.
Notice the use of the clinical term ‘person’ in Peg Yorkin’s quote. Not the personal, “woman’ or more accurate ‘child’…. if a person is raped, a feminist says ‘its bad’– but is it only ‘bad’ if a woman or child is raped? Would she say, “its crazy to arrest him now. Just let it go…”
hypocrites…
October 2, 2009 at 5:12 pm
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:
I’d be more than happy to grant immediate amnesty to all illegal immigrants if in exchange I could permanently deport Hollywood.
October 5, 2009 at 11:41 am
“People are defending Roman Polanski because he made some good movies? Are you kidding me? He made good movies 30 years ago, Jay! Even Johnnie Cochran didn’t have the nerve to go, ‘Well, did you see O.J. play against New England?’” — Comedian Chris Rock on Jay Leno.
Apparently not everyone in Hollywood is an idiot.
October 5, 2009 at 11:53 am
No, Kevin Smith (director of Dogma, among others) had something very harsh things to say about Polanski.