18 votes

Swedish human rights activist Anna Ardin accused Julian Assange of sexual assault, but is glad he's now free

5 comments

  1. [5]
    Halfdan
    Link
    Complicated? Really? He's a multiple rapist with a fetish for impregnating women—and that's the generous interpretation. If we read Inside Wikileaks, there's this bit: And that's not even...

    She is at pains to describe him neither as a hero nor a monster, but a complicated man.

    Complicated? Really? He's a multiple rapist with a fetish for impregnating women—and that's the generous interpretation. If we read Inside Wikileaks, there's this bit:

    We often discussed the theory of evolution. If he did have faith in anything, it was the theory of evolution. Julian thought that the stronger members of the species not only prevailed, but produced heirs who were better able to survive. Naturally, in his view, his genes particularly deserved to be reproduced.
    Once I sat in a large group and listened to Julian boast about how many children he had fathered in various parts of the world. He seemed to enjoy the idea of lots and lots of little Julians, one on every continent. Whether he took care of any of these alleged children, or whether they existed at all, was another question.

    And that's not even mentioning how he used the honeypot angle to turn wikileaks and the entire gulible left into his personal rape defence league.

    17 votes
    1. [4]
      sparksbet
      Link Parent
      It seems rather patronizing to criticize a woman he sexually assaulted for not speaking negatively enough about him.

      It seems rather patronizing to criticize a woman he sexually assaulted for not speaking negatively enough about him.

      31 votes
      1. DefinitelyNotAFae
        Link Parent
        Yeah, I think she gets to control her perspective. She very much still wishes he'd have had to deal with the assault charges (sexual misconduct in regards to her). She's a progressive Christian...

        Yeah, I think she gets to control her perspective. She very much still wishes he'd have had to deal with the assault charges (sexual misconduct in regards to her). She's a progressive Christian deacon, being in the mindset of forgiveness makes sense for her. It might make sense for anyone tbh. But she's explicitly not saying it was OK or he didn't commit those acts or any sort of recant, the opposite in fact.

        I appreciate it.

        14 votes
      2. [2]
        Halfdan
        Link Parent
        My personal feeling it that she was very clear on exactly what she was going to say, and decided to go for heavy understatement in order to be taken seriously. If so, it might even be the best...

        My personal feeling it that she was very clear on exactly what she was going to say, and decided to go for heavy understatement in order to be taken seriously. If so, it might even be the best approach strategy-wise.

        But even with that, once made public, her statement will live its own live on the public arena, influencing other abuse cases and such. So I think it makes sense to criticize it on its own merits.

        4 votes
        1. DefinitelyNotAFae
          Link Parent
          I don't understand the concern about other abuse cases? She did not do sexual abuse apologia that I saw. Nor defend him on those grounds.

          I don't understand the concern about other abuse cases? She did not do sexual abuse apologia that I saw. Nor defend him on those grounds.

          15 votes