RAPE, RAPE

Roman Polanski, the famous movie director, has just been arrested in Switzerland and is now awaiting extradition to the United States. Polanski pled guilty in 1977 to statutory rape. 43 at the time, he gave a 13-year-old girl a Quaalude and champagne, then raped her. He fled to France before he was sentenced and has been on the lam for some 32 years.

France’s government has condemned the arrest and key Hollywood figures have rushed to Polanski’s defense. Of course, the French don’t see a 43-year-old man having sex with a 13-year-old girl as anything to get excited about. And we would expect nothing less from Hollywood with its reputation for wild sex parties and rampant drug use. But some of the remarks made in Polanski’s defense are simply outrageous. Rape is being redefined.

Whoopie Goldberg, while a guest on The View talk show, said: "I know it wasn't rape-rape. It was something else but I don't believe it was rape-rape. He went to jail and and when they let him out he was like, 'You know what, this guy's going to give me a hundred years in jail. I'm not staying.' So that's why he left."

Polanski was married to actress Sharon Tate at the time she was murdered by the Charles Manson Family in 1969. Debra Tate, her sister, speaking on the NBC Today show, defended Polanski: "There's rape and then there's rape," she said. "It was determined that Roman did not forcibly have sex with this woman. It was a consensual matter."

Consensual? Even if the victim had been 23 instead of 13, this was not a consensual sex act. It was an out and out forcible rape. Here are the facts of the rape that took place during a party at Jack Nicholson’s home:

After plying her with Quaalude and champagne, Roman Polanski instructed his victim to get into a jacuzzi naked, refused to take her home when she begged to go, began kissing her even though she said no and asked him to stop; performed cunnilingus on her as she said no and asked him to stop; put his penis in her vagina as she said no and asked him to stop; asked if he could penetrate her anally, to which she replied, "No," then went ahead and did it anyway, until he had an orgasm.

Goldberg, Debra Tate, and other Hollywood luminaries should not be allowed to get away with redefining rape in an attempt to help a child rapist. “Rape, rape” and “There's rape and then there's rape" – how ridiculous and outrageous! Our prisons are full of middle-aged men who were convicted of having consensual sex with underage girls.

Even though his victim has forgiven him and does not want to see him prosecuted, Polanski should be extradited to the United States and made to pay for the forcible rape of a child.