Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Seventeen

When I was eighteen, Canada passed the Young Offenders Act. Soon after, a Scarborough boy, about fifteen years old, murdered his parents and younger sister, then took some school friends into his home to see the bodies. Under the new act, the most he would serve is three years and his record would be eternally sealed.

I didn't and I don't agree with that. There isn't some magical switch that flips on when you're eighteen and suddenly you know right from wrong. We are who we are and that boy at fifteen was a cold blooded murderer, no less culpable than someone three years older or someone twice his age.

What I do understand is the intent behind the law. If I was to be judged by choices I made, things I thought, people I hurt at seventeen due to selfishness or ignorance, I would be harshly condemned I'm sure -- as would many people. A seventeen year old will not have the capacity to reason the consequences of his actions (for himself or for whomever else might be involved) as fully as an adult will -- that's why we don't lower the voting age, or allow them to legally smoke or drink or gamble -- we realize that the teenage minds are not fully formed, and the teenage years are volatile even for those in the best of families and that lack of experience, eagerness to grow up, peer pressure, family drama, normal angst  -- all might lead to regretful actions resulting from poor judgement.

I won't comment directly on the veracity of the Kavanagh situation -- we can never know the truth.  It's all just conjecture. But if it's true, he was seventeen in 1982. The behaviour described by his accuser is unconscionable in this day and age. Back then, not so much. I could bring forward several young men who've become wonderful, fabulous older men, who would likely cringe at some of the things they did at seventeen -- and at least as many women. You might say that the incident as described is not singular in its effects -- it included actions upon another -- and I would agree, but I would also say that at seventeen, in the 80s, most young men were pretty sure that most young women were as sexually ready as they were -- the previous generation had opened the door and many from my age group just walked through, often without checking first. Was it right? No. It was as wrong as it is today -- but one can understand why someone at seventeen in 1982, might not have grasped that yet, and might still evolve into a normal, decent human being.

The odd thing is that if Brett Kavanagh had been reported and charged with a crime for what allegedly happened at that party in 1982, and had he been convicted, he was a minor and any criminal record would likely have been sealed or expunged and this would not have been an issue for him some thirty-five years later - which is why laws like the YOA exist -- to protect the adult from the mistakes of the youth.

Also, to those who would say the allegations (and any new ones regarding Kavanagh) must be true because who would put themselves through this for a lie -- I'm just going to say that those on the rabid left would do just about anything to block a judge they fear might overturn Roe v Wade.

Regardless, true or not, much as we can judge the boy and say, if it happened, he was wrong and should have been called out/punished -- condemning a person for sins committed a lifetime ago is not something any of us should be applauding, unless of course, you've lived a blemish-free life.

canadianna
 

1 comment:

dmorris said...

I've read dozens of articles on this Ford/Kavanaugh case,and have to say that only in these politically correct times would this woman ever get a hearing.

Ford's claims stem from a psychiatric method known as recovered memory when she was treated by a psychiatrist in 2012. Recovered memory was thoroughly debunked and discredited in the 1990's,but only after many innocent people had had their lives ruined.
Seven witnesses have now come forward refuting Ford's claim,several of the witnesses said there was never a party to begin with,let alone a party in which Kavanaugh molested Ford.
Now,we have discovered that Ford has worked for Corcept therapeutics which manufactures a pill which can be used to abort a fetus,although the company claims it is primarily used for treatment of Cushing's syndrome.

An alleged second "witness" in Mexico popped up,then disavowed her claims that backed Ford and disappeared from the news.

And a third alleged witness has come forward,plus a claim by Stormy Daniels lawyer,Michael Avenatti,that Kavanaugh ran a sex club in college. The accusations get more desperate as a vote on Kavanaugh looms nearer.
And you're right,IF Kavanaugh had actually committed a crime and been convicted,the record would forever be sealed as he was a juvenile. At drunken parties in the 1960's,70's, and 80's, feeling up a drunk girl while drunk yourself wasn't considered a crime, and girls weren't delicate little flowers as they claim to have been in Ford's case. Many girls in college were party animals too, Ford may have been one of them.

The Ford accusations are indicative of how utterly vicious the Left has become in the last ten years, since the Obama presidency.They will stop at nothing,including false accusations. This is reminiscent of the old Soviet Union in Beria's day,where a person the system wanted out was accused of "counterrevolutionary activities".

The "metoo" movement has made any accusation of sexual impropriety on the same level,with the same intent. I don't believe Ford for one minute.