Mitterrand faces calls to quit over 'boys' for sex claim(French culture minister)

[SpartanDem]

Source: The Guardian

The French culture minister, Frédéric Mitterrand, last night faced calls for his resignation over an autobiography published four years ago in which he described paying "young boys" for sex while travelling abroad.

Mitterrand was the first major political figure to leap to the defence of the film director Roman Polanski when he was arrested in Switzerland last month facing deportation to the United States for having had sex with a 13-year-old girl there in 1977.

Mitterrand's impassioned comments in support of Polanski, who had initially faces charges of rape, and against an "a frightening America", were controversial and the French government eventually distanced itself.

But Mitterrand's critics on the political extreme right and the left have now questioned his suitability for office over his self-confessed penchant for "young boys" in Bangkok.


Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/oct/08/france

---

No wonder he came out so quickly in Polanski's defense apparently they enjoy the same past time of screwing underage kids. Kinda makes you wonder what other Polanski defenders like to do in their off time.

[Ken Burch]

1. How do you say "So there!" in French?

Seems the appropriate response to this guy.

[Abacus]

49. Hm, maybe "Donc, voilà!" ? /nt

[Kurska]

2. Erm, you are aware of the Spartans and their habit of..

nevermind.

[No Elephants]

7. LOL.. Just noticed the OP's nom.

[Kurska]

8. Just a healthy dose of irony about the OP's username and then his comments

Check it out.

[No Elephants]

11. Got it and edited my post just before I noticed yours. Sorry, It's still early

on the East Coast. Hadn't finished my first cup of coffee yet.

Not defending pedophilia, even on the part of Spartans, but, since their entire society was geared toward creating efficient warriors, I can see why their apprentice/assistants served multiple functions. No spilling secrets to the local mata haris while fighting abroad, no time wasted finding women, etc. Again, not justify it. Just saying I can see reasons why the Spartans wanted the practice.

Of course, why the OP chose his name is a different story. Maybe he lives in Sparta?

[Kurska]

12. Pedestery was a practice grounded in a time before compulsory education

The relationships were often developed because the bonds would allow knowledge to pass from generation to generation, knowledge both scientific and martial.
We can (hopefully), trust our teachers and warriors to impart lessons on the youth without buggering them, atleast in the modern age.

[No Elephants]

13. Spartan males did have compulsory education, though. And it is very possible to educate the youth

of a society without fucking them.

[Kurska]

14. I never said it made sense. I'm just repeating the common explanation for it.

And while military education was compulsory, the finer arts of statecraft, governance and other such skills were passed down through "bonds"

Again all this is disgusting and scarring for the children involved, kids just aren't supposed to be exposed to sex.

[EFerrari]

54. You realize, don't you, that bedrooms weren't even invented

until the late sixteenth century or so, at least in European culture?

[roguevalley]

55. it was one thing to love a boy (acceptable in Greece society) and

another thing to do them (not acceptable). There are books out there on it. They will explain it better but loving them was the desired goal, not sex. Sex with boys was very much looked down upon by the upper classes who indulged pederasty. It was the principles of love and mentoring that were sought after, not the sex. The sex could get you scorned out of your sandals by your peers.

[verdalaven]

15. Michigan State Spartans

He lives in MI. :) It is probably his college.

Go Chips! (Sorry SpartanDem!)

[No Elephants]

32. Good detective work! Thanks.

[SpartanDem]

36. You're correct

No problem after last weekend the whole losing to CMU thing bothers me a whole lot less.

[Alcibiades]

38. Michigan

Though what possible connection that would have to Sparta, I don't know. :think:

[mikelgb]

58. lol

[tomm2thumbs]

3. interesting tidbit from that article link

''When the book was first published, Mitterrand... was asked about his use of the term "young boys". He said that he called all men "boys" and that it had nothing to do with children.''

If that was true, why travel all the way to Thailand where the child sex trade is considered a huge problem? Sounds like a liar to me.

[No Elephants]

9. And why would any official who is homosexual call his sexual partners

"boys" when homosexuality is so much more acceptable these days, especially in Europe, than is pedophilia?

[pnwmom]

22. And why would he call them "young boys" and "slaves" and travel all the way to Thailand

for them, when young men are easily available in Europe?

[closeupready]

43. Remember I asked about the age of consent (recently) in France; people here said 13

so you mean to tell me that he couldn't find a male in France of the age of consent? :mad:

[pnwmom]

45. Then he wouldn't have had the "fun" and "excitement"

of participating in a market of sex slaves.

It's disconcerting that his book seems to have made no impression 4 years ago. You'd think these remarks would have gotten some attention.

[closeupready]

46. Yes, I don't understand it either.

Perhaps readers thought he was merely embellishing his experiences?

But even if he was embellishing, what would that say about the character of someone like that?

[pnwmom]

24. He's absolutely lying now. Because he also said:

"All these rituals of the market for youths, the slave market excited me enormously ... the abundance of very attractive and immediately available young boys put me in a state of desire."

These slave markets aren't filled with adult men, they're filled with women and children.

[roguevalley]

56. what a dickhead. I hope they investigate the crap out of him. of course

he would defend. Pedophiles don't understand the evil that they do. For them, its all good, just 'boys'.

[bobburgster]

4. Polanski's situation now is govt. instigated bs.

[pnwmom]

21. The government didn't instigate it. The government reacted to claims (since

recanted) that there was prosecutorial misconduct.

[bobburgster]

61. That is why they instigated it.

[Rebubula]

31. Yup...

...the government has no right prosecuting a child rapist that fled the country. What a bunch of assholes....

:eyes:

[bobburgster]

62. How many years did they have...

...to arrest him? Why wait until now? If you don't smell something rotten in Denmark you may want to get your sense of smell checked.

[leftynyc]

64. What's rotten

is that a child rapist got to spend so many years free. I couldn't care less on the "why now"?

[bobburgster]

66. I understand your feelings.

I just do not like the govt. acting self-righteous, when the only reason they acted was to hid their own actions.

[MrModerate]

5. I'm not a Polanski apologist, but I do think it's interesting that . . .

The book has been out for four years, and they're just now beating Mitterand up about it -- since he's come out in defense of Polanski.

It goes to show that celebrity cuts both ways in these moral turpitude cases. There's no question in my mind that his high profile has helped Polanski avoid extradition up 'til now, any more than that same high profile is why the LA authorities resurrected this particular cold case when they have 10,000 other similar cold cases they could have decided to warm up instead.

[panzerfaust]

17. Sorry about the beating

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/oct/08/france

"When the book was first published, Mitterrand ... was asked about his use of the term "young boys". He said that he called all men "boys" and that it had nothing to do with children."

Right...

[pnwmom]

20. The LA authorities only decided to "warm this up" after they found themselves

having to defend against since recanted-statements about prosecutorial malfeasance.

[MrModerate]

60. So "justice" doesn't play an especially large part in the decision . . .

It's somebody's embarassed boss rattling a subordinate's cage?

Doesn't surprise me a bit.

[harry_pothead]

6. Wow, he's make a fine conservative.

[No Elephants]

10. Yes, I'm sure Spielberg and Winger are pedophiles. Please. Call them on

their support for Polanski, if that's how you feel. But, don't engage in that kind of low tactic. It's quintessentially RW.

[pnwmom]

19. Spielberg? I hadn't heard anything from him. n/t

[No Elephants]

33. Oh, good lord no. As far as I know NEITHER of them are pedophiles. It was pure sarcasm.

[pnwmom]

39. I thought you were saying that Spielberg had supported Polanski,

not that he had behaved like Polanski. Same with Winger.

[Gwendolyn]

42. Spielberg has always supported Polanski. He wanted him to direct Schindler's List. n/t

[panzerfaust]

16. Oddly, he was first politician to protest Pedophile Polanski's arrest

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/oct/08/france

"Mitterrand was the first major political figure to leap to the defence of the film director Roman Polanski when he was arrested in Switzerland last month facing deportation to the United States for having had sex with a 13-year-old girl there in 1977."

"All these rituals of the market for youths, the slave market excited me {Mitterrand} enormously ... the abundance of very attractive and immediately available young boys put me in a state of desire."

He needs to be in prison ... along with Polanski

[pnwmom]

18. We know that Woody married his teenage (19 year old) step-daughter.

No, she wasn't 13, but he behaved reprehensibly, since she'd grown up with him as her father.

[No Elephants]

34. They went to a lot of events together (just the 2 of them) well before she was 19.

And lived together before they married. I don't know how long. And, of course, FWIW, Farrow alleged he molested their son as well.

[pnwmom]

23. Just as bad (if not worse), he spoke of enjoying sex with young "slaves."

"All these rituals of the market for youths, the slave market excited me enormously ... the abundance of very attractive and immediately available young boys put me in a state of desire."

[Joe Chi Minh]

25. The fabled "catamites". Ha! Ha! Who needs enemies with friends like that? Who'll be next? Dahmer?

Fritzl? West?

[Dogmudgeon]

26. It's another DU PEDO FRENZY !!!!!!!

:woohoo:

--d!

[pnwmom]

40. Yeah, how can people be concerned about child sex slaves?

After all, they're in Thailand and that's so far away.

:sarcasm:

[Odin2005]

27. Laws against child rape are so bourgeois, dontcha know?

The cultural Ubermenschen don't need no stinkin' laws! :sarcasm:

[Joe Chi Minh]

28. Apparently Polanski's Art House, French defenders considered that his being an

artistic genius and all made him different and special with regard to such delicate matters.

[Odin2005]

29. Typical elitist behavior.

[Joe Chi Minh]

50. I hope you're not right. There's got to be some elitists a little better than that!

[mamaleah]

59. Maybe someone can educate us on how more advanced the Europeans are.

You know, us repressed puritans just do not understand the ins and outs of real sexual freedom which apparently includes sex with children.

Excuse me while I go vomit.

[Swagman]

30. people are jumping to ill-founded conclusions here and taking words out of context

it's very common for gay men to refer to someone younger as a 'boy'..particularly in Europe and it doesn't mean he was into under-aged boys.

Unless anyone can point to evidence that he was ?

and Thailand has a huge prostitution trade of men and women-particularly gay bars where male prostitutes work and look younger than they are.

Moralize if you want about his actions but comparing him with Polanski or inferring that's why he defended him is pretty outrageous.

Personally-I'd prefer to have my politicians tell the truth about themselves.

[No Elephants]

35. We are assuming only that that "boy" means "boy" and "slave" means "slave."

We've stated our reasons for so stating. You are assuming he is gay. What are your reasons for that?


BTW, I have heard gay mean say things like "Dear Boy, when addressing an adult male. I have never read a book in which a politician said he slept with a boy when he meant an adult male. Gay men speaking among themselves or their friends is an entirely different thing from a politician writing a book.

Anyway, sleeping with a slave of any age would be heinous enough.

[pnwmom]

41. Read his own words. He said not boy but "young boy"

and he referred to being excited by a "slave market" in young boys.

How many adult men do you think are enslaved in Thailand? And why would Mitterand have to travel all the way to Thailand just to have sex with young men?

[Threedifferentones]

57. I think plenty of adult men are enslaved in Thailand.

They just are not sex slaves...

[closeupready]

44. Have you read the excerpt from his memoirs?

From the translation I read, it's very clear that he is aware of the misery of those who work in this "slave market", and he even says he recognizes that this arrangement is morally "abominable", but that he couldn't help himself.

[proteus_lives]

67. WOW.

And sick. Sounds like you're projecting a little. Take any trips to Bangkok lately?

:puke:

[tocqueville]

37. Mitterand should resign

anyway he is tost today

[avaistheone1]

47. Child Prostitution Ring that Reached Reagan/Bush Whitehouse

http://www.voxfux.com/features/bush_child_sex_coverup/franklin.htm


some things never change.

[Gman2]

48. This French Dip, makes Clinton seem like a choirboy.

[geek tragedy]

51. Another loathsome pigvomit sex tourist.

No wonder he stood up for another villain who sexually exploited a young person.

A moral and ethical degenerate and leper. France should be embarrassed.

[chatnoir]

52. Why is this only causing outrage now, 4 yrs later??

These details were not noticed when the book was published??

[EFerrari]

53. That still beats Los Angeles Country by about 26 years. n/t

[WildEyedLiberal]

63. But European attitudes towards sex are so much more evolved than our repressed puritan sensibilities

How backwards and proletariat Americans are, with their buttoned-up and oppressive attitudes about sex slavery and child rape! Thank God for the enlightened bourgeoisie like Monsieur Mitterrand, declaiming his outrage over America's "frightening" tendency to condemn pedophilia!

[ecstatic]

65. simply unreal... nt