It muddies waters that should be CRYSTAL FUCKING CLEAR and that is enraging.

Oh, I hear you. But I, too, have to remind myself that no matter how stupid this girl's mother was, she isn't to blame, either.

I recall being hit on as a 13 year old by a guy who was 17 and it brings up all sorts of icky feelings. This fucker was a predator and I am lucky he couldnt't get close enough to me to act, because my parents were super-vigilant when I was that age.

it was almost inevitable that he was going to end up abusing children

I agree with everything you said about Jackson except I don't see the "almost inevitable" part. Although my knowledge on how abused children grow up is minimal....

But, yeah, I can't get around the fact that honoring the victim's desire to let it all be over and letting it go would mean (a) opening the door to letting a horrific number of domestic violence and child abuse cases go, and (b) sending a loud, clear signal that you can dodge the law forever with zero consequences if you're only rich and important enough.

Yeah. I was just really blinded by the "She wants it gone, let it be gone, please let it be gone," desire and not really looking at the bigger picture.

Bleah. I just look at Matilda sitting on the floor all absorbed in her toddler TV and the mama bear brain goes pure HULK SMASH.

Oh God yes. What I want most for my kids is for them to be kids and be kept safe from this sort of thing and frankly, I'm a little ashamed of myself that I... not so much let that slip, because as I already said, if anyone ever laid a finger on Abby or Nate, for that matter in such a manner, I'd probably kill, but that I let the victim's adult wishes supercede the child who was violated and all the children that can be protected in the future.

And now for something completely different...

A few months back CJ submitted a poem to a poetry contest. He had actually written the poem a few months before, but edited it down to fit the word count requirement. Anyway, he is poem was chosen to be published in a "Young American Poetry Digest" for 2009.

We just got our copy of the digest and it is so cool seeing his creativity in print. My mom had been so proud of him and had paid for our copy of the book. I'm so sorry she didn't get to see it. CJ is very happy with himself, as he should be.

Go CJ!

Aww, go CJ! would he mind if you posted the poem? I'd love to read it.

That's great news about CJ! A poet! That's not how I pegged him at age 10.

The full version of his poem was written back in November and is here.

The edited/condensed version is...

He should have died many times before.
Why?
Why have my friends died in wars I survived?
Why have I lived through diseases
that my family died from?
But there was on thing he could not
escape, and that is time.
Death celebrates triumphantly.
He has finally caught up to the one
who has eluded him.
But Death is surprised when he is asked
"Is it my time now?"
And they walk, like friends,
to the land of Death.

I like the longer version better, but there was a tight word count requirement for this submission.

Congratulations Dana, and go CJ! Good to see some good news in here.

I am going to keep out of the Polanski discussion as my opinion on the matter has already been said.

Cool apple. Horrible science journalism. (As always in the Telegraph, unnamed experts say the odds are a million to one.) [link]