4 ms·

He may not be a suspect, but it is troubling when someone befriends a known pedophile: Mr. Gates started the relationship after Mr. Epstein was convicted of

• hutzlibu 7y ago
  Well, pedophiles are also people. And if they show remorse and moved on (or in therapy) etc. I do not see a problem. The problem here is just, that apparently he did not moved on at all and just continued undisturbed.
• neom 7y ago
  I have a close relative who is a pedophile. I still give them my time. Don't underestimate human compassion, regardless of your value judgement on it.
  • malvosenior 7y ago
    Are you saying that Gates was being compassionate toward Epstein? Gates hid the depth of his affiliation with Epstein until this NYT article came out. He knew it was wrong. Much more likely is that Epstein had dirt on Gates and/or connections Gates wanted.
    • roenxi 7y ago
      No, it isn't wrong; guilt by association is not a civilised concept. And if someone commits a crime then the courts determine an appropriate punishment and that is the end of what gets called 'wrong'. I'm on board if you don't want to talk to convicted paedophiles - seems reasonable to me - but being judgemental of someone else's relationships is not fair.
      • malvosenior 7y ago
        The absolute failure of the courts to enact justice in the Epstein case is a great example of why people should think for themselves and not outsource their sense of right and wrong to third parties. I personally do not believe that Gates (one of the most successful people to have ever lived) was naive enough to not know who and what Epstein was. I also see Gates' attempt to hide his relationship with Epstein as further evidence of wrongdoing.
        • topmonk 7y ago
          But that's mob justice. I'm not saying you're wrong, but failure of our courts can lead to extraordinarily bad times.
          • malvosenior 7y ago
            It most definitely will lead to bad times! That being said, it's not like people are out with actual pitchforks. We're talking about people on the internet criticizing Bill Gates' affiliation with Epstein. Gates is still rich, powerful and free from any real repercussions other than a deserved hit to his reputation (and really, barely even that). Sadly I think we'll never see true justice since those tasked with it seem completely unwilling to do their job in this case.
      • dmix 7y ago
        Thank you, the way people bring out the pitchforks merely over guilt-by-association is one of the worst parts of social media. I swear we're going to have to relearn all of the lessons we learned over the centuries of developing civil society, all in the name of some strange utopian perfectionism we're putting on every popular person. Mob justice is rarely good justice.
        • malvosenior 7y ago
          There are obviously times when mob justice goes too far. I do not think Epstein is one of those cases. He was a sex trafficker for the rich and powerful. His associates should be investigated and their attempts to get the media to bury the story should be pointed out.
  • amiga_500 7y ago
    Is Gates a close relative of Epstein? Did your relative serve his time? If so then your example has nothing to lend.
• trianglem 7y ago
  I've known men that have slept with women who were 15 in countries where it was legal. Not only were these men great examples of humanity but they actively helped those less fortunate than themselves.
• Semaphor 7y ago
  OT maybe, but I wish people would stop using pedophile as if it were a crime. > Pedophilia is a psychiatric disorder in which an adult or older adolescent experiences a primary or exclusive sexual attraction to prepubescent children. [0] The problem and crime is, when those people act on those attractions and the way society reacts to pedophiles is certainly not helping anyone and I’d assume hindering some of them from seeking or even receiving help. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedophilia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedophilia