[Second in the original series of 3 posts about LB from November 2012]
It is clear from what happened on this blog yesterday that there are a large number of people idly trawling the net, seeking evidence to prove rumours. The net contains no answers - only fuel for speculation. My husband asked me crossly "Did you look at his Wikipaedia entry?" - "Yes - and curiously it doesn't mention that he is a practising paedophile." Although he (my husband) has a PhD and doesn't really believe in the net as the best source of facts - he has touching faith in Wikipaedia. But, to quote Auden, just as "a penny life will tell you all the facts", Wikipaedia will give you plenty of facts, but nothing of the essence, the emotional/spiritual side of a person.
When you, the readers, put Leon Brittan's name into Google and reach this place, what are you hoping for? Confirmation? Details of the abuse? A denunciation? A middle-aged man's tear stained memories of childhood misery and degradation? Or do you hope this blog can deny it - say it was rubbish, that during that period he was on a 3 year trade mission to Tierra del Fuego and nowhere near the Bryn Estyn (sic?) Home? [Sorry - the Elm Guest House!] Or are you simply looking for something new to say about it all?
Why am I writing about it? Nothing we do to the culprits can restore the childhood innocence of the men they damaged. Even if we name the guilty men and strip them of their public honours, how can we help their victims? Yes, there's a certain pleasure in revenge - it is good to see your enemy's body floating past you down the river - but when it's gone past, you are still left with your unhappiness and trauma. Even if we were to "string 'em up" "hanging's too good for them"... what then for the victims?
The real problem of paedophilia is that it's about power, like rape - and the urge amongst humans to gain power over each other is something so innate, that to eradicate paedophilia we will have to re-program the human race. Yes, you or I have never done this... but we probably have had an urge to power in other situations, to humiliate or best someone, to take revenge. These desires might make us behave badly in other ways. How do we stop it? How do we stop it? The remedy for change is within us individually, to become aware of our urges to dominate others and eradicate these urges or channel them into more constructive ends. The good will try to do this, the not so good will say it's rubbish, can't be done, it's human nature etc. etc. I'm not defending paedophilia - just saying, it's one extreme of poor human behaviour. This returns us to the idea that human nature is essentially bad (sinful?)... and what can we do about that? Interesting where these arguments lead you.
It is clear from what happened on this blog yesterday that there are a large number of people idly trawling the net, seeking evidence to prove rumours. The net contains no answers - only fuel for speculation. My husband asked me crossly "Did you look at his Wikipaedia entry?" - "Yes - and curiously it doesn't mention that he is a practising paedophile." Although he (my husband) has a PhD and doesn't really believe in the net as the best source of facts - he has touching faith in Wikipaedia. But, to quote Auden, just as "a penny life will tell you all the facts", Wikipaedia will give you plenty of facts, but nothing of the essence, the emotional/spiritual side of a person.
When you, the readers, put Leon Brittan's name into Google and reach this place, what are you hoping for? Confirmation? Details of the abuse? A denunciation? A middle-aged man's tear stained memories of childhood misery and degradation? Or do you hope this blog can deny it - say it was rubbish, that during that period he was on a 3 year trade mission to Tierra del Fuego and nowhere near the Bryn Estyn (sic?) Home? [Sorry - the Elm Guest House!] Or are you simply looking for something new to say about it all?
Why am I writing about it? Nothing we do to the culprits can restore the childhood innocence of the men they damaged. Even if we name the guilty men and strip them of their public honours, how can we help their victims? Yes, there's a certain pleasure in revenge - it is good to see your enemy's body floating past you down the river - but when it's gone past, you are still left with your unhappiness and trauma. Even if we were to "string 'em up" "hanging's too good for them"... what then for the victims?
The real problem of paedophilia is that it's about power, like rape - and the urge amongst humans to gain power over each other is something so innate, that to eradicate paedophilia we will have to re-program the human race. Yes, you or I have never done this... but we probably have had an urge to power in other situations, to humiliate or best someone, to take revenge. These desires might make us behave badly in other ways. How do we stop it? How do we stop it? The remedy for change is within us individually, to become aware of our urges to dominate others and eradicate these urges or channel them into more constructive ends. The good will try to do this, the not so good will say it's rubbish, can't be done, it's human nature etc. etc. I'm not defending paedophilia - just saying, it's one extreme of poor human behaviour. This returns us to the idea that human nature is essentially bad (sinful?)... and what can we do about that? Interesting where these arguments lead you.
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