'A camp environment': why Alan Turing fatefully told police he was gay

theguardian.com

12 points·ndsipa_pomu··7 comments

It sounds to me like he was living in a gay "bubble" and didn't realise that other sections of society would be hostile to openly gay behaviour.

Police are not your friends. Arresting you is more preferable to them than helping you.

Well the story is about men who studied at King's college, many of whom would become powerful. If you are rich and powerful the relationship can change from one of suspicion to one of deference.

The tldr of the article is basically that Turing had been brought up among powerful men for whom things are permitted that are out of reach to the commoners. The mistake he made was to assume everyone else was treated the same.

Nope. If you're powerful they may want to curry your favor but they'd much rather have dirt on you to manipulate you with. You're kidding yourself if you think the rich and powerful don't simply tell the police to talk to their lawyers.

> they'd much rather have dirt on you to manipulate you with.

People in power would not tolerate a police trying to manipulate them. By definition, people in power would have the power to change that.

Power is what decides what police does, who they target and who they leave alone. It controls the budget, appoints the leaders and sets the directions.

Power, in 1950s England, came to people from Eton and King's college. They didn't need to fear the police because they (and their family) controlled it.

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