Russel Brand has arguably hit the jackpot. As someone who simply ‘can’t get enough sex’ and who obviously believes in the sanctity of rape and has no concept nor interest in any form of ‘consent’, prison may prove to be a manifestation of his Utopian dream. Sort of.

However, the problem of ‘rape’ is always difficult. Because, generally (but by no means ‘always’) it is perpetrated by one person on one other, with no-one else around. No witnesses. Which then, should it come to court, as it always should but hardly ever does, becomes ‘his word against hers’. And why do so many rape cases go unreported? Because the victims are riddled with shame, guilt, fear and all manner of horrendous emotions which no woman should ever have to face. So judges advise jurors not to make any judgments on late reporting, like weeks, months, years after the event. It doesn’t mean ‘it wasn’t rape’, it just means the victims fears over-rode their need for justice.

Andy Burnham, he of the great soundbyte but complete lack of understanding of ‘big pictures’, generally, stated that we need to change how rape is prosecuted so the victim doesn’t feel she’s on trial.

And there’s the problem. Our legal system, particularly the criminal one, is combative. It’s a fight. Generally in which, dirty fighting is perfectly acceptable. So faced with an alleged rapist and an alleged defendant, with no witnesses, it becomes a battle of reputations, of previous behaviours, and of any dirt that can be dug to support the actors.

Women are allowed to wear high heels and short skirts. They’re allowed to drink. They’re even allowed to be as promiscuous as they like. The key words ‘as THEY like’. Not, ‘as someone else would like them to be’. Yet promiscuity and a few drinks would be held up by defence lawyers as some kind of lifestyle statement that they’re ready, eager and gagging for positively anybody to just help themselves.

But yet, as with everything, Andy, it just ain’t that simple. Because of the woke-level hypersensitivity we’re now surrounded by in all facets of our lives, ‘sexual assault’ is now a much vaguer and broader term than it was when Donald was ‘grabbing ‘em by the pussy’. And thus can and has been weaponised to seek revenge, to make an employment claim, by the unscrupulous.

And there are incidents where ‘rape’ has been fabricated for such ends too. Hence the need for those defence lawyers to ensure that isn’t the case in this instance. That ‘rape’ is being used as the golden bullet in a personal attack on someone.

Rape is a horrible, violent, life-changing crime. It is vile. Yet a wrongful accusation of rape is also life-changing. Even if eventually innocence is proclaimed. And victims must feel ‘safe’ to come forward immediately, which is absolutely not the case now.

So there’s your balancing act, Andy. Rightly, rape victims must be protected from being virtually abused and character-assassinated by opposing lawyers. Whilst alleged rapists must be given every opportunity to show that, if true, they are innocent of the crime. Other than Russell Brand, obviously, we just want him in prison just for unprecedented levels of misogyny and obnoxiousness.

How hard can that be to do?

Happy Saturday,

A xxxx