• Ilovethebomb
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    2 months ago

    There’s a good chance he really was innocent, but being weird around kids like that is enough to tank your career regardless, which is probably for the best.

    • XIIIesq@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      It’s an odd case. Whilst most agree that he wasn’t a full blown child rapist, it’s clear that he had an interest in young boys that went further than just fantasy, but people choose to ignore it because “BeAt It ThO!!!”.

      You can appreciate art whilst knowing that the artist was sick.

      • disguy_ovahea@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        His father was physically and emotionally abusive to him and his siblings, forcing them to forgo their childhood for fame. He built and lived in an amusement park and would invite kids over to enjoy it. His story reads more like a trauma victim looking to live his missing childhood through others than “a sick artist.”

        • XIIIesq@lemmy.world
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          2 months ago

          I agree that his upbringing is an extenuating circumstance and I do believe that caused him to be repressed in many ways, that doesn’t mean he didn’t act out some fantasies that he had with young boys.

          “Sick” is a term that’s open to interpretation, some would say that the things he was accused of are sick, others would interpret that he was mentally unwell. I would say it’s a bit of both.