Chris Illingworth is not a monster
I only just found out about this. You probably already know, but in case you don’t, here goes.
Chris Illingworth, 60, had his home searched, has been arrested and questioned and now has to face charges in court alleging that he disseminated “child-abuse material” over the Internet.
Mr Illingworth’s crime was to embed what allegedly seems to basically be the equivalent of the controversial Steve Irwin baby-dangle scene, at a video sharing website. I kid you not.
The original footage was produced by the family of the child (a circus family if the story is accurate) wherein a toddler is swung around by his father, then uploaded to the Internet. It was a rather vigorous swing, but the child supposedly appeared unharmed, unstressed and indeed, happy.
Of course, children’s rights activists, or at least some of them, are up in arms about the child’s treatment, and that’s their right. I’m not denying that at all. Indeed, I’m not denying that the original treatment of the child may be child abuse or that it’s not an important issue.
Indeed, it’s far more important than the circus that now surrounds Mr Illingworth.
Australian commercial news channels broadcast the Irwin baby-dangle incident as a part of their news service, and they make money from advertising! The footage of the child being swung around on the video Mr Illingworth posted has supposedly been shown on TV in the US.
Better call Interpol! It’s a global conspiracy!
No. Not really.
It was Task Force Argos that raided Mr Illingworth’s home. A taskforce supposedly dedicated to taking down paedophiles.
Illingworth isn’t a paedophile. Even if found guilty, he is not a paedophile.
But hey, the police allege that he’s some kind of monster. And so are you if you’ve watched anything like the video discussed. Say, if someone sent you a link in your email or on Facebook. At least, that’s what the Queensland Police would seem to be “thinking”.
And I have to use some poetic license when I say “think”. The rat in the treadmill seems to need replacing.
What if you were reporting on the treatment of the child being spun around? What if you wished to condemn the act? You post the video in a blog entry the way people showed footage of Steve Irwin when they criticised him and then BAM!!! In comes Task Force Argos to stop you from… Well. Stopping you from engaging in child welfare advocacy.
How about the policing-challenged Queensland Police go ahead with some real work instead. You know, go after actual paedophiles! There are likely a few still at large that, y’know, pose a bit more threat to child welfare than Chris Illingworth does.
Good luck with your case and good luck with your health, Mr Illingworth.
And for that section of the child-welfare advocacy lobby* that seem to think that it’s okay to just casually dismiss serious democratic concerns in order to save the children; what kind of role-model models the acceptance of authoritarianism and obedience to the state? Have you ever considered that that kind of inculcation could itself constitute child neglect?
~ Bruce
P.S. Hat tip to Lana Brindley for this one.
* Oh, and for a bit of perspective, I’m anti-child smacking etc. If I got my views on the topic organised, I’d be a child-welfare lobbyist of sorts myself.
Update: Geez. It’s late and I have to go to bed, but cripes I found a few errors in the post. Including one I thought I took care of last night (a “do” instead of don’t). There was even a “there/their” confusion! Arrgghh! Don’t blog up late!
What about photos of politicians kissing babies if it discovered later they have a cold?
What about every second clip from “funny” home video shows on commercial networks? Are any of those clips “staged”? Are any kids hurt? Is the chance of a cash reward and/or 15 seconds of fame enough to encourage “staging” that causes harm?
Well, the police are going to have to sustain their action and their claims in a court of law. I don’t fancy their chances.
His lawyers should have a feild day with this
No offense to you Australians, but incidents like these make Greg Proops’ comments about the country (said in jest) seem like an accurate potrayal.
“It was like Arkansas with a beach…
… An entire country with a ‘no fat chicks’ sticker on it.”
Exaggerated humour should never ever reflect reality.
It’s already happened here in the U.S. and that’s quite a tragedy indeed.
Australians need to fight this before it gets any worse. If even one of these cases of oppression of free speech gets by, it will leave a precedent for further censorship nanny legislation.
Good luck Chris – I hope you win and counter sue the stripes of those cops!!
This cuntry is getting too bloody regulated.
Im not proud to be australian when i see things like this.
The world mourns a CONVICTED pedofile ,drug addict and and freak (Michael Jacson).
And here you this supossedly developed contry a normal guy who uploaded a video of a father playing with his child is about to go to prison.
What the f&^k is wrong with the law system there?
Stas,
Not sure that Jackson was convicted (I didn’t follow it that close.) I was under the impression he agreed to settle the civil side and that the criminal prosecution fell through.
What the f&^k is wrong with the law system there?
Well, Jackson wasn’t prosecuted in Queensland, so do you mean Earth?
It is screwed up though of course. The people prosecuting Chris Illingworth were testing out the powers of a relatively new unit and needed a test case – using Illingworth. I’m glad he’s sticking up for himself (and therefore everyone else in the same jurisdiction subject to the same rubbish.)
If Jackson wasnt convicted, then why the hell he fled to the arab immirates?
And why did he had that wonderland facility and spent SO much time around little children?
Come on, even if he is not a pedofile, a such weirdo should not be allowed near any kids, exept his own.
As to Illingworht, it’s kinda horrifiying, a regular citeze is targeted for a “trial run” of a new and what seems to be, not a very bright unit. At time I wander, is that whole thing run by idiots?
Here.
Dunno about that forum, John.
The obvious mishandling of information undertaken by Operation Ore not withstanding, unlike Argos, they seem to have caught a lot of legitimate crooks and helped rescue quite a lot of kids.
The “OBU Introduction” in the forum makes Operation Ore out to be the crime of the century, which seems just a bit histrionic. 9/11 comes to mind as particularly worse and we’ve 9 decades left to go. If they were talking about the 20th century (when Operation Ore started – 1999), then I recind my 9/11 comment and instead cite the holocaust as the worst crime of the century.
Neither 9/11 nor the holocaust rescued anyone’s kids either, and given the volume of information involved in Operation Ore, I can’t see how “OBU Investigations” can do much more that trim around the edges hoping to come across anomalies. Not that I’m endorsing the conduct involved in Operation Ore of course.
With a little bit of lay-criminology, taking this exaggerated claim of persecution into consideration in light of the nature of the crimes involved, I’m left a little wary. I’d slowly slink away from that forum, and as soon as nobody’s looking, run!
I gather you found the forum through a quick Google search?
At any rate, the SMH post cited I’ve linked to in my latest post.
Indeed. I’d not seen your latter post, at that point.
I thought it was interesting how it’s being talked about in the UK.