strategies, aka what now?

["L. Bird" <pkeets@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

It sounds like you guys have done a great job of analysis today.  And thank 
you, Jon, for your confidence that I can suggest something to do.  I dunno, 
of course, but in the long run I think Pete needs to become a world-famous 
advocate against child porn (like Bono's and his causes).

I agree with most of what you've come up with today.  Yes, yesterday's news 
was VERY weak as far a proof goes, but I think Pete knows the UK papers, and 
this press release was picked up and made a statement (and some points) for 
him.  It appears that only the entertainment news picked it up in the US, as 
the US press is presently absorbed with The Bush War, and not given to that 
kind of tit for tat melodrama anyhow.  (Has anybody seen mention on CNN?)  
However, the entertainment news probably reached the music industry, which 
is good.

The reactions on the various lists to the news last night was interesting.  
I gather that those who can read between the lines of the UK papers took the 
round-about statement on the police investigation as admission of Pete's 
innocence.  Here's a translation of it from alt.music.who, courtesy of 
Devin:

> > But it is believed officers have found no evidence he looked at child
filth - other than on the occasions he admitted viewing sites to research a 
book and campaign against porn.

> This is journalist code, it translates to, "Our sources down at the cop 
> shop tell us...."  If you spend enough time around newspaper folks, you 
> learn to recognize when they're writing something between the lines.  
> Remember how you knew that Robert Blake was a suspect in his wife's murder 
> even though no reporter actually said so in those words, but somehow you 
> just knew from the way they phrased it?  This is one of those, this 
> reporter has been told by somebody in a position to presumably know that 
> they took Pete's computer(s) apart track by track, cylinder by cylinder, 
> cluster by cluster, and didn't find the evidence they were looking for.  
> Let's hope it actually turns out that way.

The announcement that Pete's questioning had been postponed dampened the 
celebrations a little, but it may turn out that this (presumable) leak is 
all we will hear from the police.  They may just keep postponing Pete's 
questioning to keep their investigation open until the issue fades from the 
papers and is forgotten (they hope).

Pete can keep the issue alive for a little while with press releases from 
his website on clearing his name, but evenually this will grow stale, too, 
and the tabloids will be off baying after the next scandal.  I'm not sure 
what kind of position Pete is in to talk about things right now, but when 
he's free to talk, I think he should start off with a major campaign against 
child porn.  He should get interviews where ever possible to talk about the 
whole thing and give his side of the story just casually as he talks about 
the changes needed in the policy on child porn.  Now that the admission is 
out in the open and duly investigated, he should be free to lobby for the 
cause, and to add this to The Who's list of charities.

Comments?


keets


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