Child porn damages precedent set

The BBC comes out with a news article that I find rather interesting.

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A British man living in the US has been told by a judge to pay $200,000 (£130,000 ) to a woman for possessing an indecent image of her as a child.

The judge said it was the first such criminal case in which someone found possessing illegal images had to pay restitution, despite not creating them.

Briton Alan Hesketh was sentenced to 78 months in prison in October.

"We're dealing with a frontier here," Judge Warren W Eginton was quoted by Associated Press (AP).

'Feeling of revulsion'

Mr Hesketh, of Stonington, Connecticut, was found with more than 2,000 images of child pornography.

Images of the victim as a child were found amid the collection.

"There is a feeling of revulsion about this type of conduct," the judge said.

The defendant's attorney said he would appeal against the decision, saying it was too high and may lead to more claims by other victims of child abuse.

The lawyer representing the victim, however, said there was no difference between the defendant and those who made the images.

"The victim is a victim of sexual exploitation caused by this defendant," Marsh was quoted as saying by AP.

Ernie Allen, president of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, said he hoped the decision would serve to act as a deterrent.

"We think this is a terrific precedent," Mr Allen said. "The photos stay out there forever. Every time they are downloaded, every time they are distributed, the victim in that image is re-victimized."
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So what do you think about that? I quite like it. I think this new precedent is a good one, and one that if anything should strengthen. Violence and oppression toward the vulnerable needs to be addressed at various levels - not only those who are "snapping" the photos - but also those purchasing them - those contributing to the cycle of abuse.

The fact that many people do not understand is that once a child has been victimized ONCE - it does not end there. The violence to children continues as pictures continue to spread, websites continue to get hit, etc. HUMAN BEINGS are a renewable resource that are making some people far too much money. No one should be a commodity in any form or fashion - and anyone who helps to contribute to that should pay severe consequences.

Kindness to the ungrateful and wicked

Warning: Confused and heretical rant ahead.

There is a text I have been struggling with the last couple days. It comes from the Bible, the book of Luke, chapter 6 verses 35 and 36. It says:

“But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

I am okay up through the first sentence, it is logical to me; love your enemies, do good to them, but don’t expect anything in return. I can handle that. I have people I am not a fan of, but I can be polite - okay, I guess that is not loving them, I still have work to do, but I GET it. You want to know why? Because in the book of Psalms I hear David talking about a God that will take revenge for him. We don’t need to seek that for ourselves. God is a righteous God that will make sure justice is served in the end.

But then I read on. I get to the part that says God is “kind to the ungrateful and wicked.” What? I mean, if I really think about it, I am thankful for a God like this. I want to serve a God that is kind and merciful – but if I am completely honest with you, sometimes I don’t think it is fair that God is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.

I can’t help but think about some of the pimps of the women that I work with. Some of them are the personification of EVIL here on earth. The things they have done to these girls are unimaginable. How am I to be merciful as God is merciful to these individuals when all I feel is anger and rage in my heart for how they have treated another human being?

What about traffickers? What about those who force children into war? What about those who are slave holders? What about corrupt governmental officials that do nothing about all of this? What about these people – WHY is God showing his kindness and mercy to them? ESPECIALLY when they are ungrateful and unwilling to receive it?

I guess, bottom line, I’m a fan of a God that wants (and does) save everyone; a God that is about grace. But I am sure glad that when he gives us texts like the ones above…the kindness and mercy to others is not reliant on my actions. Because I most often lack the ability to love those whom I believe are wicked. I have a hard time overlooking my concern that they experience justice in the end.