It’s obviously and trivially true that Maxine Carr had no involvement in the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman.
After Ian Huntley killed the girls, he told Ms Carr that he wasn’t the murderer. However, he claimed he was worried the police would find out about his previous convictions, and then try and fit him up [*]. So he persuaded her to lie to the police in order to protect him.
Her lies didn’t have any impact on the girls, who were already dead. They wasted a lot of police time. The delay also made life worse for the girls’ families, although not dramatically so (given that it was already about as bad as it could possibly be).
Wasting police time and adding to the suffering of murdered children’s relatives are not good things; it’s also vital for the integrity of the justice system that people who deliberately conceal facts from the police are punished. As a result, Ms Carr deserved, and got, a reasonable amount of jail time.
However, she’s obviously not guilty of anything murder-related: she’s guilty of lying to protect her boyfriend, because she was too dim to realise what a bad man he was. So why the fuck do weird chavvy mobs view her as a dreadful witch who should be burnt at the stake?
I don’t believe in any kind of vigilante justice – but when the vigilantes beat up actual child molesters (or even people who they believe to be child molesters but who aren’t), that at least makes some kind of twisted sense. When the vicious mob picks out someone who *they know hasn’t done very much*, that’s just incomprehensible.
[*] Indeed, there are still nutters out there who believe this is what happened.
Because she’s a woman, of course …
btw, "pikey" in some contexts is a racial epithet aimed at Gypsies, so I would be cautious in its use since a) the gypsies aren’t actually responsible for this one and b) they’re having a pretty tough time of things at the moment, all in.
Do you think they do know that she hasn’t done very much? You give idiots more credit than I do.
Come to think of it, this sort of thing reminds me very much of the aftermath of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination.
Yeah, not entirely sure why you chose ‘pikey’. I doubt travellers had anything to do with this. Though give the tories a little bit of time, and I’m sure they’ll tell us why it is their fault actually.
I recall a recent episode of Question Time when the panel where asked whether or not Maxine Carr deserved anonymity. To be fair, every single one of them pointed out exactly the same points you’ve just illustrated. But it’s a woman in the audience who sticks in the mind. There was such a violent hatred in her voice when she spoke about Carr and how she hoped "that evil woman" would be hounded and "get what’s coming to her".
She really didn’t seem to have the capacity even to grasp the fact that Maxine Carr "hasn’t done much". It reminded me a little of the two minute hate from 1984 for some reason.
Sorry, ‘pikey’ stuff is me being brain-dead. When I was a kid, ‘pikey’ was the word we used for Kevs and Barrys; I didn’t find out about the gypsy connotations until later on. Have now changed it to ‘chavvy’, which was what I meant in the first place.
She’s a celebrity, maybe they all just wanted an autograph.
She’s a celebrity, maybe they all just wanted an autograph.
I’m sure all would be forgiven if she did Celebrity Wife Swap.
This is an easy one: guilt by association. Her name is for ever associated with wrong-doings connected to the Soham murders. These were undeniably terrible things, and this is more than enough to damn her for people who’s hobbies involve taking the moral high-ground, taking matters into their own hands, and who do not enjoy or are not capable of thinking very hard.
Also the Soham murders where in august 2002, and in november of the same year Myra Hindley died, leaving a convenient vacancy for a witch-monster-hate-figure. I think Maxine Carr can count herself pretty unlucky on this count as well.
One more thought: the tabloid press have covered this story with even less objectivity or rationality than usual, which also might explain the mobs’ preoccupation with her. You’ve got to feel sorry for her I think.
Doesn’t ‘chav’ also have a racial-epithet-aimed-at-Gypsies side (charver, and all that)? Still, probably deader than the ones in ‘pikey’.
An excellent point, though.
John B, the weblinks to your story are twaddle. You link to a highly dodgy website by an American anti-semite called Joe Vialls & The Times article you quote was a copy from the Birmingham Mercury, I hate to tell you but I know that maxine hashad no connexion with the Midlands, the Mercury was just fabricating it!
Of course the Yank guy’s dodgy (I had him more down as a general racist than specifically an antisemite, given that the article’s about how he thinks the Soham murders were done by the blacks, but whatever). That’s why I called him a nutter.
Meanwhile, although I don’t trust the media unreservedly, I trust articles that have been published in the Times and not refuted more than random assertions made by anonymous people in my comments section. Perhaps you could provide some kind of evidence that the Times story is incorrect?
Did anybody catch the Greenpeace activists at Land Rover on the news tonite? The entered the building and chained themselves to vehicles thus halting production. Having just lost Rover I expect carworkers in the Midlands are worried enough with out these idiots causing them problems. I know the environment is an important issue but Land Rover have been working with Greenpeace for the last ten years. I think Greenpeace should be made to pay Land Rovers wages bill for today. What does anyone else think?
i’m appalled by the reaction to maxine carr. it reminds me of the witchfinder general. a reflection on the easily manipulated proles.