One question that people keep asking me, not that I am an more clued up than anyone else, is why on Earth Sir Keir Starmer was so stupid as to not dismiss out of hand the suggestion that Peter Mandelson become US ambassador, given his record of dodgy financial dealings and his close association with Paedophile Peter Mandelson. Whilst I cannot really throw any light on such matters, I do recall some advice my Dad gave me, when I was in my early teens. He said "Son, the most important lesson you can ever learn, is that if someone is behaving in a way that you cannot fathom, then there is either sex or money involved". The current scandal has both and in the most unsavoury of ways.
One of the more interesting things that you learn when you dig into politics is how much richer people seem to become when they hold public office. It also seems to do wonder for their libido's. There are many lessons to learn from the whole sorry Epstein business and most of them are very disturbing. It is clear that you can make a huge amount of money operating a peadophile procurement business for rich and powerful men. It is also clear that when you become a liability to the men who you've been supplying with children, you are disposed of. It is also abundently clear that many of the worlds most powerful men think that money gives them the right to become sex abusers. One of the darkest elements of the whole tawdry affair is that it also shows that no one in power gives a stuff about the victims of rich and powerful sex abusers.
I am in many ways what we might call quite old fashioned in my views. I have only ever really been interested in sex in a consensual relationship, where both parties like each other. The idea of giving a woman who doesn't like me cash to have sex with me is something I find most unappealing. When I was a teenager, I worked as a painter and decorator. I worked repainting the home that a local Madame used as brothel. I spent about four weeks tarting it up (forgive the pun). I got to know several of the girls who worked there. None did it because they liked the work. None of them had any respect for the punters, except for one guy. He was disabled and in a wheelchair. His brother used tp bring him once a month for a treat. The brother would bring biscuits and chat to the girls over a cup of tea, whilst his brother was being entertained. One of the girls told me that they were the only customers they had any respect for. They would make a special effort for him. The customers were all respectable men, policemen, bankers, GP's and JP's. When you work on a place, you almost become part of the furniture. The lady who ran the place was keen on a safe environment, no pimps, diserespectful customers were chucked out. But ultimately it was all a bit dehumanising and sad.
When I read about Epstein Island and the likes of Prince Andrew, I can't help but feel sick. Epstein clearly thought he had the perfect setup. He thought his rich and powerful clients would protect him. He was wrong. I suspect that in a few years, there will be a film about the whole sorry mess, rather like the film about the Profumo affair. There are millions of documents being released. The whole thing has already brought down a Prince and an ambassador. It is likely to bring down a Prime Minister and possibly a President. The more I read about Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, the more I am convinced that for them, it was all just a rather grubby money making scheme. Epstein ended up knowing too much and having too many names and dates in his little black book. I doubt anyone really believes he committed suicide. The web is full of theories, but I suspect the number of people who had an interest in seeing him gone was a rather long one. Will the truth ever come out? I suspect that it will be like the assassination of JFK. The problem is that there are so many players who it suited to see them gone that the truth will only ever really come out when we are all dead and gone.
The one question I have been pondering is this. How many other Jeffrey Epsteins are there out there. He had a lucrative little set up and presumably there is a vacancy for someone to do that sort of thing for the rich, powerful paedophiles who seem to run the world. The sad truth is that such people are all around us. Just because Epstein is dead, the men who he procured young girls for are still around, still with bulging wallets and sick desires. They will have learned the lessons of Epstein. The lesson I suspect they've learned is to be a lot more careful with the noncemasters they employ. My worry is that all that has happened is that it will be harder to catch them next time.
The sad truth is that Sex and Money - the root of all evil. It is also at the core of all the best stories. In about 10-15 years, I suspect an "Epstein Island" film will come out and rather like the JFK film, will raise a lot of speculation about the various players. What it won't do is tell us anything about the next Jeffrey Epstein and his clients. The only thing I can say I am really sure about is that the next Epstein is out there and doing rather well procuruing young girls and selling them to rich men. That is a very sad truth.
