I am not, in any way, a football fan. Asked to name a footballer though, the name Rio Ferdinand would be one of the more high profile stars I could bring to mind. I have as little sympathy for these players generally as I have time for the “beautiful game” frankly if you asked me to describe a beautiful game, perhaps Trivial Pursuit would be a candidate, the symmetry, those coloured plastic pie sections and the graphics on the board too. If a footballer wants to have an affair with a high class call girl, it is up to him, if he expects his shenanigans to remain secret, then it does rather show why he kicks a ball around a bit of grass, rather than having a job which involves intelligence.
Despite my negativity, I did sympathise with Rio Ferdinand recently with the story of his stalker. According to the BBC she made a number of trips to his home, whereupon she demanded she speak with him. Susanne Ibru was convicted of harassment and sentenced to ten weeks in jail and had a ten year restraining order imposed on her. She may not visit the town in which Ferdinand resides, nor approach him or any of his family. Ibru also turned the court into a farce when she allegedly sacked her defence counsel before continuing to represent herself. It would appear she had the foresight to realise the verdict would not go her way and failed to return to court for the verdict. On her re arrest, it is reported she spat in the face of the arresting officer. The ten week custodial sentence is all I can see mentioned, although she admitted when brought back to court, the spitting incident. Ibru was described as an “accomplished athlete” who had aspirations to become a sports agent. A profession where you focus on other people’s positives to promote them, not unlike the business of public relations. The judge told her “"The pre-sentence report describes you as living in a fantasy world, unable to interpret social situations and boundaries…."You display a predatory and manipulative lifestyle and try to deliberately mislead interviewers." My interpretation of this, is a very dangerous individual. I believe, had she been a man harassing a woman, the sentence would have been much harsher. I also wonder how long it took Rio Ferdinand, despite his wealth and influence, to try to convince police to take him seriously. Did he get the inference to “man up” or, as those who have never experienced such a psychotic individual’s attentions, the suggestion that he should take it all as a compliment?
Maybe the above phrases echo in the minds of the majority of the public who have not experienced such manipulative individuals themselves. It is an established notion, that paedophiles are mentally ill and they receive no public sympathy for their actions. They tear lives apart and leave deep emotional scars on the individuals they target and those close to their victims. Thankfully, laws are there to protect those seen as vulnerable and massive agencies exist focussed on child protection. The same cannot be said of stalking or harassment, it is bad for women who receive it, for men, it obviously does not happen, oh no, of course it has just been reported that it does. “Sticks and stones may break your bones but someone turning up in the dead of night ranting or threatening suicide has absolutely no effect” Food for thought?
No comments:
Post a Comment