I don't think this current trend demonizing everybody who ever associated with Epstein is good. All it is achieving showing everyone that do not associate with felons. Don't hire felons. Don't even shake hands with them in a social gathering.
Forgiveness is appropriate if the offender has learned a lesson and changed their ways.
If Epstein hadn't recidivated, would Anand Giridharadas have bestowed a "Disobedience Award" on Ito for breaking the rules at MIT to rehabilitate an ex-felon?
Is a low-level drug felony "better than" soliciting prostitution (the charges on Epstein's public record)? What if the drug felony involves selling to minors?
And I don’t even understand how one can solicit prostitution from someone who cannot legally consent.
I don't understand how one can solicit prostitution from someone who cannot legally consent either. But Ito played no roll in laying those laughable charges.
As for why the gnashing of teeth now? I know I’ve personally been aware of the details of Epstein’s case for years, but you sound like a crank when you show people photos of a pedophile’s weird temple and rant about all of the names in his flight logs. Why now for Cosby? Or Weinstein?
Perhaps it’s finally in the air that these men should be held accountable, perhaps to an even higher standard, for their abuse of power.
As for university funding... don’t get me started! Also can we start examining Kissinger and the other criminals employed by Harvard? The ivy institutions have decades old ties to the intelligence community. (Though it does sort of make sense to learn about the history of US plunder throughout the world from the people on the front lines... ok I’m starting to sound like a crank...)
Social norms are changing very quickly these days in ways no one expected. Look at the polls on acceptance of gay marriage prior to 2000 and today. There is a big shift, not just in the US. Hard to believe such shifts can happen in such time scales, if you read old sociology text books.
What is different today is how connected society is and how fast social pressure can build up. And thats having effects people haven't seen before - good and bad.
They have done good things. They have also done bad things. If I said what bad things, I would have a target on my back, so I wont. But suffice to say that there are upsides and downsides.
People are more controlled than they have ever been and thats why rapid shifts in opinion can be effected.
I think it's reasonable to suggest that you should avoid taking money from felons who used that money to rape children.