Re: whats up with Pete Townsend?

["S.P. Goodman" <spgoodman@earthlight.net>]

It comes down to a couple of actual facts, which are certainly never
reported as much as the wild speculation and insinuation preferred by the
press in the UK.  So far this morning, Pete's still not been charged with
anything, and he's out on bail, as well as volunteered his PC and CDs for
police examination.  No word after several days as to whether or not the
coppers actually found anything.  The only fact involved so far is the
acquisition of his credit card info by an apparently notorious child porn
web site running out of Texas, that was recently shut down.  Most Americans
have already heard about how the Postal Service not only has their own
police force, but also has run stings in even "straight" porn, placing ads
in magazines for mail-order and 900 numbers - and anyone who gets in touch
with them is apparently guilty as hell, even if they were just mildly
curious and decided to mail/call.

It was the US Postal Service that gave Pete Townshend's info to the police
in the UK, having found his credit card data in their culling through the
confiscated stuff from the Texas bust.  It's unfortunate and also
unfortunately typical that British Tabloids (which include the Guardian by
the way) have decided to convict him before any evidence beyond this single
fact has been found - but if one reads the articles (if one knows how to
sift through all the innuendo, vagueries and scandalous non-facts that is)
you'll find that the only facts so far involve the credit card data, and
Pete's handing over his PC and CDs before being asked to do so.

I think back however on the fact that quasi-paedophilic material has been
openly marketed to the world-at-large (and especially in the US) publicly
and without any criticism whatsoever for years upon years.  Remember "Bugsy
Malone"?  Jon-Benet Ramsey's cavorting in full makeup etc?  So now, after
years of this, a few folks being human get a little curious about it (and 
by
this I don't obviously mean paedophiles), and not being on kiddy-porn
mailing lists, go to a site to see what is going on, and get prompted to
enter their credit card data.  Theoretically it could be as simple as that.
I recall that Pete Townshend not only has worked with anti-child abuse
organizations in the past, but has said that he was abused himself as a
child.  Many songs from "Tommy" ("Fiddle About" and "The Acid Queen" come 
to
mind) might then have greater perspective, yes?

If you think about it though, all of those 'age-verification' routines
involve a credit card.  It might have been something as seemingly innocuous
as this that yielded Pete Townshend's credit card data - which as you 
should
know is not presented as the same thing as paying for entrance to such a
site.  Perhaps the Postal Service and the screaming puritans running their
private police force think otherwise, and have decided to present such as
the exact opposite.  In the meantime the stingee swings in the media wind,
convicted by proxy and innuendo.

Before the Internet, British tabloids didn't tend to be read outside the 
UK,
though their antics were certainly infamous world-wide.  Now they might 
have
to improve their responsibility factor, and live up to the standards held 
by
the legitimate press.  You'd think that having a good deal to do with the
exascerbated conditions leading up to Princess Di's death would have caused
this to occur.  But then I'm probably wrong.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Thomas Tibert" <tibbe@pi.se>
To: <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
Sent: Wednesday, January 15, 2003 09:25:AM
Subject: Re: whats up with Pete Townsend?


>
> On Wednesday, Jan 15, 2003, at 10:07 Europe/Stockholm, Louie Angulo
> wrote:
>
> > I just listened to the news about Pete Townsend jesus,
> > is this just celebrity sensationalism or for real?
> > cheers
> > L.a
>
> http://www.guardian.co.uk/letters/story/0,3604,874192,00.html
>
>
>
>
>