For
over thirty years, Jeffrey Epstein has been
a known pedophile. We can
reasonably conclude that by the time he was
finally convicted in
2008, his perverted enterprise was fully
operationalized on a global
scale. Why else would U.S. Attorney
Alexander Acosta negotiate a
non-prosecution agreement to avoid federal
charges? Why else would
the monster get away with a light conviction
and even lighter
sentence? These are rhetorical questions
because the public now knows
it was/is an exclusive club of the mainly
white, wealthy, and
powerful who closed ranks for their
protection.
I
don’t have the time nor the stomach to view
the Epstein files. A
few verified sources have given me all I
need to know. We should be
careful not to use a broad brush for anyone
whose name appears in the
Epstein files. For example, Stevie Wonder’s
name shows up in the
files for good reason: he was listed as an
‘anti-Israel celebrity’
when he refused to perform at an Israeli
fundraiser in 2012.
The
names of others with documented ties to
Epstein have been both
predictable and surprising. Woody Allen, who
married his ex-wife’s
adopted daughter, was no surprise. However,
people like philosopher
Noam Chomsky and spiritual guru Deepak
Chopra were a big
disappointment to their legion of followers.
Epstein and his sick
sidekick, Ghislaine Maxwell, used an
alluring mix of access to
lucrative business deals, influential
people, lavish recreation, and
children to keep the addiction going and
growing. The depravity of
Little St. James Island ran deep and wide.
A
bigger surprise is the lack of public
outrage in this country over
the biggest child trafficking and sexual
abuse network in the world.
In Britain, Prince Andrew lost his royal
titles immediately, while in
the U.S., it required congressional action
to release files.
Unnecessary redactions and classified files
hide the reprehensible
actions of the unknown. Still, a lot of
information has been
revealed. It seems that we have been
conditioned to accept all forms
of violence against women and girls. We are
bombarded by sexualized
images of women and children, commodified by
capitalism, for the
enjoyment of men. Cultural and social
narratives help to normalize
sexual domination. Women and children get
blamed for their
situations, and even in 2026, rapes are
under reported and under
prosecuted, making it difficult to hold
perpetrators accountable.
I
will go to my grave not understanding what
part of dominion over an
innocent child’s body represents the epitome
of power for men.
Priests and entertainers like R. Kelly and
Diddy have enjoyed the
protection of huge swaths of the public,
often prolonging the
prosecution of the weak laws that are
supposed to protect victims.
Victims of sexual violence end up getting
shunned, while the
perpetrators are allowed to walk freely
among us without
consequences.
We
need to find our moral bearings because the
depravity of these
sociopaths affects us all. Authoritarians
often fail to see others as
human or citizens. Their abuse of power
dehumanizes society,
justifying capitalist contradictions like
homelessness, hunger, mass
incarceration, and police violence. Nazism
and Zionism give us vivid
examples of how quickly inhumanity can be
normalized on a mass scale.
The
deviant duo of Epstein and Maxwell recruited
and groomed thousands of
children who were drugged, sexually
assaulted, and tortured - their
young bodies a playground for rich elites.
Although not yet proven,
common sense should tell us that the little
ones probably endured
venereal diseases, unwanted pregnancies, and
even death. They, and
hundreds of thousands of children trapped in
similar networks across
the globe, are crying out for help from
empathetic adults. The
explosion of internet pornography has
created a demand for children’s
bodies, but our horror and unified response
have not kept up with the
demand. The human trafficking and modern
slavery industry brings in a
reported $500 billion annually; it won’t go
down without a colossal
fight.
Under
MAGA, our democracy is visibly being ripped
to shreds, but it’s our
morality that defines true civility. To
overcome the darkness and
despair in this country, we need new
governance systems that
prioritize the basic needs of people and
that value human development
and civic participation. This country can
rise out of the social,
political, and economic rubble stronger and
more civilized. The care
and security of our most vulnerable will
light the way.
