So Harvey Weinstein has been convicted of rape. I was surprised by the verdict. I thought he would be acquitted. Although perhaps tawdry and inconvenient, the encounters were basically transactional. But the jury saw it differently.
The Weinstein victims as a group. They come across as a large number of 30-40-something, former B-C-D-list actresses and models. Asia Argento, Rose McGowan, Ashley Judd, Selma Hayek et. al. Many of them I'd only barely heard of or not at all, don't have wikipedia entries.
There does not seem to be much represenation from those bigger names who still have viable Hollywood careers. Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, Emma Watson.
just the number is interesting in a way. wow so many, dozens of them it seems. A marxist might note the reserve army of under-employed, interchangeable models and actresses in New York and Hollywood. It gave the likes of Weinstein a lot of leverage to operate a casting couch. When the number of roles is less than the number of starlets and there is always someone else you can just give the work to.
the whole trial is kind of surreal in a way. the casting couch has been around for a century or more. it is as old as Hollywood. in that sense Weinstein is unlucky. what he did is just what movie moguls have been doing for decades, taking advantage of their position and power. trading access to potential future roles and a Hollywood career, to be part of a scene, for immediate encounters in the present. basically requiring them to put out in order to get in or stay in the game. there's nothing new there.
it reminds me a bit of the rock and roll reckoning with Hedley. something that was formerly accepted, part of the culture, is very suddenly no longer accepted. Weinstein had the bad luck to be partaking at the time the music suddenly stopped. that doesn't make what happened right, or is "unfair" to Weinstein, it's just notable that there is very likely nothing unusual or extreme about Weinstein's actions compared to others in his position for the last century.
perhaps with certain groups of men in certain positions, entertainment executives, star athletes, rock stars, race car drivers, powerful politicians, media celebrities, wealthy players, etc. possibly they are often propositioned or good looking women indicate to make themselves available to them. perhaps they could develop a sense of entitlement or make an assumption about a woman in their presence. perhaps become a bit careless, just assume from being propositioned frequently, seems totally normal in that life perhaps. not a good plan in these times
