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You may or may not be aware of the UK headlines today. Shevaun Pennington, a 12-year-old girl from Wigan, has run off to France with 31-year-old Toby Studebaker, a former US marine. Apparently the two of them met over the Internet, both pretended that they were in their late teens, and at least one of the two met with the other with thoughts of marriage and children on their minds.
Though it's sorely tempting to comment on the fact that, if a US marine can't tell the difference between a 12 year old girl and a 19 year old woman then what chance have they got distinguishing between an Iraqi civilian and an Iraqi guerilla, I'll leave that subject alone for now. I'll also tactfully avoid mentioning just how disappointed the two 'teenagers' must have been upon first seeing each other in the flesh;
"Gee, you look young for 19"
'Yeah, uh...I'm very petite. Um...you look old for your age. In fact, you look as old as my dad'
"Well...you've seen Dawson’s Creek; all teenagers look at least 21, right?"
'Well...I suppose so...fancy going to Paris?'
Instead I'd rather like to spend a bit of time looking at people's reactions to this story. After all, this is a story that has paedophilia at its centre by pretty much anyone's standards. So whilst the papers are, for once, acting with a certain amount of restraint in that the overwhelming tone of the reports is concern for Shevaun's safety, one would expect the general public to be horrified at this soldier for taking advantage of a naive young girl. One may expect the baying for his blood to begin shortly, and in earnest. One would be wrong.
Maybe it's the "If I don't laugh, I'll cry" defence kicking in, but the main reaction as near as I can tell is "Jesus, look at the STATE of her! I mean, Christ, is he so desperate to get laid that he'll take a statutory rape charge in order to have sex with a kid who looks like she would be improved by having a Siamese twin conjoined to her head?!" Maybe that's a trifle harsh (or maybe my friends and I have just got too vivid and unpleasant an imagination...), but nobody seems to be taking this particularly seriously at all. So why not? How come a man can get beaten up in this country for having the same name as a paedophile, but someone who travels over 3000 miles in order to have sex with a 12-year-old girl becomes the subject of bawdy contempt, if not jocular sympathy?
Well, as the full story of what has happened is not known, there's going to be a certain amount of unsubstantiated guesswork going on here, so bear with me. As I've mentioned, the picture of Shevaun that was released to the media is...well, it's less than flattering. The poor girl is not an oil painting, as many have commented on. Well here's a thing; she's only a child, so why the hell SHOULD she have to have model good looks? I rather though that the point here is that she shouldn't have to worry about whether or not she'll be seen as attractive to a 31 year old, yet we're sniggering and making derogatory comments about someone who is a victim in this situation. I don't get it; I mean, when Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were abducted and murdered, no-one was going "Yeah well, a couple of blondes in footy shirts...I mean, any man would, wouldn't they?".
She's just a child, and as such she shouldn't be expected to worry about how sexually attractive she is. Yet here she is, running off with a man whom she doubtless intends to have a sexual relationship with. So whose fault is that? Is it hers, for lying to a man and leading him on? Is it his for taking advantage of someone who is clearly just a kid? Or is it something more? Well, here is where the guesswork comes in; I would say it's about 1% the first explanation, 49% the second, and 50% something else entirely. If this girls photo has caused disbelieving mirth among all and sundry, it's doesn't take a great leap of the imagination to accept that she quite probably got an equal amount of grief at school. After all, we were all schoolkids once and I'm sure we can all recall the abuse heaped upon the ugly girl in our class, and all in the name of ensuring that whomever it was getting picked on, if it wasn't us then who cares? I know I never gave a damn, just so long as my peers weren't laughing at me.
Well, if we can understand that Shevaun was almost certainly on the receiving end of teasing and bullying about, among other things, her looks then why on earth are we so surprised that she's ran off with someone who most likely showered her with compliments and bolstered her ego by telling her how much he liked her? Again I must stress, this is no more than me guessing as to the circumstances, but it doesn't sound so unbelievable does it? Yes, Studebaker is pretty much without doubt a predatory paedophile and as such he richly deserves to have his testes nailed to the inside wall of a Tiger enclosure at the zoo. But what about the fact that she was driven part of the way into his arms? I'm not talking about the specific individuals who teased her, but the fact that (and you all knew this was coming...) society allows it.
Speaking as someone who, if you allow me a moment of uncharacteristic boastfulness, has raised the use of vitriol and bile to something like an art form, it may seems very strange that I'm bemoaning the fact that it was probably teasing that drove Shevaun into this deeply unpleasant situation. And I should clarify, I'm not expecting kids to stop belittling each any time soon; that’s just part of growing up. But I am expecting society as a whole to take a bit more interest in making young people feel valued. There have been enough foaming tabloid rants about what we should do to protect our children from paedophiles. Surely we should start a little closer to home, and try and arm our kids with a greater sense of self worth, so that the honeyed words of a sick b*****d won’t tempt them to throw away their childhood in exchange for underage sex and mental scarring.
Though it's sorely tempting to comment on the fact that, if a US marine can't tell the difference between a 12 year old girl and a 19 year old woman then what chance have they got distinguishing between an Iraqi civilian and an Iraqi guerilla, I'll leave that subject alone for now. I'll also tactfully avoid mentioning just how disappointed the two 'teenagers' must have been upon first seeing each other in the flesh;
"Gee, you look young for 19"
'Yeah, uh...I'm very petite. Um...you look old for your age. In fact, you look as old as my dad'
"Well...you've seen Dawson’s Creek; all teenagers look at least 21, right?"
'Well...I suppose so...fancy going to Paris?'
Instead I'd rather like to spend a bit of time looking at people's reactions to this story. After all, this is a story that has paedophilia at its centre by pretty much anyone's standards. So whilst the papers are, for once, acting with a certain amount of restraint in that the overwhelming tone of the reports is concern for Shevaun's safety, one would expect the general public to be horrified at this soldier for taking advantage of a naive young girl. One may expect the baying for his blood to begin shortly, and in earnest. One would be wrong.
Maybe it's the "If I don't laugh, I'll cry" defence kicking in, but the main reaction as near as I can tell is "Jesus, look at the STATE of her! I mean, Christ, is he so desperate to get laid that he'll take a statutory rape charge in order to have sex with a kid who looks like she would be improved by having a Siamese twin conjoined to her head?!" Maybe that's a trifle harsh (or maybe my friends and I have just got too vivid and unpleasant an imagination...), but nobody seems to be taking this particularly seriously at all. So why not? How come a man can get beaten up in this country for having the same name as a paedophile, but someone who travels over 3000 miles in order to have sex with a 12-year-old girl becomes the subject of bawdy contempt, if not jocular sympathy?
Well, as the full story of what has happened is not known, there's going to be a certain amount of unsubstantiated guesswork going on here, so bear with me. As I've mentioned, the picture of Shevaun that was released to the media is...well, it's less than flattering. The poor girl is not an oil painting, as many have commented on. Well here's a thing; she's only a child, so why the hell SHOULD she have to have model good looks? I rather though that the point here is that she shouldn't have to worry about whether or not she'll be seen as attractive to a 31 year old, yet we're sniggering and making derogatory comments about someone who is a victim in this situation. I don't get it; I mean, when Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were abducted and murdered, no-one was going "Yeah well, a couple of blondes in footy shirts...I mean, any man would, wouldn't they?".
She's just a child, and as such she shouldn't be expected to worry about how sexually attractive she is. Yet here she is, running off with a man whom she doubtless intends to have a sexual relationship with. So whose fault is that? Is it hers, for lying to a man and leading him on? Is it his for taking advantage of someone who is clearly just a kid? Or is it something more? Well, here is where the guesswork comes in; I would say it's about 1% the first explanation, 49% the second, and 50% something else entirely. If this girls photo has caused disbelieving mirth among all and sundry, it's doesn't take a great leap of the imagination to accept that she quite probably got an equal amount of grief at school. After all, we were all schoolkids once and I'm sure we can all recall the abuse heaped upon the ugly girl in our class, and all in the name of ensuring that whomever it was getting picked on, if it wasn't us then who cares? I know I never gave a damn, just so long as my peers weren't laughing at me.
Well, if we can understand that Shevaun was almost certainly on the receiving end of teasing and bullying about, among other things, her looks then why on earth are we so surprised that she's ran off with someone who most likely showered her with compliments and bolstered her ego by telling her how much he liked her? Again I must stress, this is no more than me guessing as to the circumstances, but it doesn't sound so unbelievable does it? Yes, Studebaker is pretty much without doubt a predatory paedophile and as such he richly deserves to have his testes nailed to the inside wall of a Tiger enclosure at the zoo. But what about the fact that she was driven part of the way into his arms? I'm not talking about the specific individuals who teased her, but the fact that (and you all knew this was coming...) society allows it.
Speaking as someone who, if you allow me a moment of uncharacteristic boastfulness, has raised the use of vitriol and bile to something like an art form, it may seems very strange that I'm bemoaning the fact that it was probably teasing that drove Shevaun into this deeply unpleasant situation. And I should clarify, I'm not expecting kids to stop belittling each any time soon; that’s just part of growing up. But I am expecting society as a whole to take a bit more interest in making young people feel valued. There have been enough foaming tabloid rants about what we should do to protect our children from paedophiles. Surely we should start a little closer to home, and try and arm our kids with a greater sense of self worth, so that the honeyed words of a sick b*****d won’t tempt them to throw away their childhood in exchange for underage sex and mental scarring.
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Child pornography has been found on a computer used by him, and it is suspected that he knew her real age.
Abduction, apparently.
Arrested for what? Flying to meet someone that lied about her age/appearance?
The guy has been arrested in Frankfurt, Germany. The girl has been found and fine.
News flash on BBC now.
News flash on BBC now.
Goatboy wrote:
> and stay at home and read Bunty if you're a 12yr old girl.
Does bunty still exist? I remember throwing a bunty annual across my class that a stupid girl was reading over 15 years ago!
> and stay at home and read Bunty if you're a 12yr old girl.
Does bunty still exist? I remember throwing a bunty annual across my class that a stupid girl was reading over 15 years ago!
Goatboy wrote:
> the Marine phones his
> sister to say he's "very very mad" about the fact she lied
> to him about her age.
I wonder if she ever posted him her real picture.
"I'm 19 year old sexbomb looking for a good time with fighting man"
*Picture* Anna Kournikova
What she should have said:
"I'm a very stupid 12 year old ugmonster who is looking to get attention by causing my parents grief, by running away with a 31 year old American Marine".
*Picture* Ug Nelson
> the Marine phones his
> sister to say he's "very very mad" about the fact she lied
> to him about her age.
I wonder if she ever posted him her real picture.
"I'm 19 year old sexbomb looking for a good time with fighting man"
*Picture* Anna Kournikova
What she should have said:
"I'm a very stupid 12 year old ugmonster who is looking to get attention by causing my parents grief, by running away with a 31 year old American Marine".
*Picture* Ug Nelson
Light wrote:
> Upsettingly enough, quite a few...
>
> Well...actually, in the course of my old job, it was approximately 15
> (in that they were on charges and got convicted). But you can add a
> couple more to that in terms of the ones we got off the charges
> (including one chap who's defence was that the 8, 10, and 12 year old
> boys had seduced him...).
:-(
I want to join the police after University and hopefully specialise and join the CID. I suppose I would have to meet a few too. I bet it is hard to remain impartial in cases like the one you describe.
> Upsettingly enough, quite a few...
>
> Well...actually, in the course of my old job, it was approximately 15
> (in that they were on charges and got convicted). But you can add a
> couple more to that in terms of the ones we got off the charges
> (including one chap who's defence was that the 8, 10, and 12 year old
> boys had seduced him...).
:-(
I want to join the police after University and hopefully specialise and join the CID. I suppose I would have to meet a few too. I bet it is hard to remain impartial in cases like the one you describe.
So the girl phones home to say she's ok, and the Marine phones his sister to say he's "very very mad" about the fact she lied to him about her age.
I say that the Judd Nelson-alike is going to get a major asswhupping when she gets home, and Jarhead is going to never, ever use the internet again.
Moral of this story?
Stay at home and have a w##k if you're a 30something, and stay at home and read Bunty if you're a 12yr old girl.
I say that the Judd Nelson-alike is going to get a major asswhupping when she gets home, and Jarhead is going to never, ever use the internet again.
Moral of this story?
Stay at home and have a w##k if you're a 30something, and stay at home and read Bunty if you're a 12yr old girl.
DébUK wrote:
>
> lol. How any paedophiles have you met?
Upsettingly enough, quite a few...
Well...actually, in the course of my old job, it was approximately 15 (in that they were on charges and got convicted). But you can add a couple more to that in terms of the ones we got off the charges (including one chap who's defence was that the 8, 10, and 12 year old boys had seduced him...).
Excuse me; I think I need a shower after writing that.
>
> lol. How any paedophiles have you met?
Upsettingly enough, quite a few...
Well...actually, in the course of my old job, it was approximately 15 (in that they were on charges and got convicted). But you can add a couple more to that in terms of the ones we got off the charges (including one chap who's defence was that the 8, 10, and 12 year old boys had seduced him...).
Excuse me; I think I need a shower after writing that.
Miserableman wrote:
>
>
> I'll declare a bias of my own. I'm a part-time IT trainer, most of the
> parental-age generation I meet are asking me why they can't find their
> file or whatnot at work. I still reckon the average parent is going to
> have a pretty hard time tracking what their child is doing on the net,
> and I doubt you disagree.
Absolutely; I don't disagree in the least.
But I have to say it again; I'm not slagging the internet in any way at all. And I'm not saying that this is purely the fault of the parents. But neither do I doubt that you'd agree that when paedophiles general meet their targets through showering them with praise and flattering their ego, it's a good idea to make sure our children, in general, feel valued by those closest to them so that they don't have to bolster their ego's with the double-edged words of someone who (to be blunt) just wants to shag them. That's not a dig at the net at all; that's a dig at how easy it seems to be for a paedophile to charm a childinto spending time with them
>
>
> That was aimed at Goatboys argument, that the parents are at fault for
> allowing their daughter on the net for 11 hours a day.
Fair enough.
>
>
> I'll declare a bias of my own. I'm a part-time IT trainer, most of the
> parental-age generation I meet are asking me why they can't find their
> file or whatnot at work. I still reckon the average parent is going to
> have a pretty hard time tracking what their child is doing on the net,
> and I doubt you disagree.
Absolutely; I don't disagree in the least.
But I have to say it again; I'm not slagging the internet in any way at all. And I'm not saying that this is purely the fault of the parents. But neither do I doubt that you'd agree that when paedophiles general meet their targets through showering them with praise and flattering their ego, it's a good idea to make sure our children, in general, feel valued by those closest to them so that they don't have to bolster their ego's with the double-edged words of someone who (to be blunt) just wants to shag them. That's not a dig at the net at all; that's a dig at how easy it seems to be for a paedophile to charm a childinto spending time with them
>
>
> That was aimed at Goatboys argument, that the parents are at fault for
> allowing their daughter on the net for 11 hours a day.
Fair enough.
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