Admittedly, this blog has been rather silent in recent months as life has caused me to retrace certain paths and regain some pieces of myself that I thought were lost to my own experiences. As I've managed to gain clarity and remain thankful for newfound wisdom, I have seemingly regained time to jot down a few thoughts and, once again, begin to bombard you with my opinions and dare you to see things through eyes other than your own.
To that, I say in advance, "Say less... you're welcomed".
THE PERFECTION OF PUBLIC DECEPTION
Today's headlines seem to be saturated with opinions concerning the ongoing Sean Combs trial and it's attempts to relay guilt or innocence to the masses. As I watch moments of review from differing media sources, I am amused that no one has stepped back far enough to realize that Comb's defense lawyers are willful participants in the public dismantling of Combs while pretending to defend him against unclear accusations and muddled truths.
Please allow me to offer my vantage point....
Cassie Ventura is, indeed, the star witness.
Delaying the trial until Cassie has been solidified into a new image of innocence was an absolutely brilliant move on behalf of Federal prosecutors. The image of a pretty, pregnant, soft spoken young woman provokes the perfect image of a damsel in distress. Her willingness to come forward while trying to regain a picture perfect resemblance of life with her new relationship in full bloom offers a dark contrast to the ten years of horror she has spent as a drugged out sex slave suffering from Stockholm syndrome. While many see her testimony as an epic fail, I see it as a stroke of genius as the prosecution has lain a foundation that will triumph over anything that the defense will offer.
Ventura's niave innocence and maternal beauty is picturesque and it is further underlined by her inability to respond maturely to the court. Her lingual development appears stunted and would lead the jury to believe that she is no more than a mindless, impressionable child who was cruelly manipulated by her abuser. By answering detailed questions through tears or childish laughter, the prosecution masterfully paints a picture of an underdeveloped psyche that has been trapped in a woman's body. Her immature and slow responses serve to trap any onlookers to believe that she has trouble with verbalizing her feelings, relaying discomfort, or even make any type of intelligent statement of defiance that would be taken seriously by Combs.
By comparison, Combs' presence in the courtroom is formidable. He is dressed casually; as if he is shrugging his shoulders at the justice system and will rise above this inconvenience His smug, casual appearance can be seen as arrogant and condescending; furthering an air of being untouchable. After all, he is a corporate mogul who understands the languages of multimillion dollar contracts, NDAs, and he weilds the intelligence and breath of knowledge needed to maintain a business empire known around the world.
Cassie was prepared perfectly as the star witness because her civil case has already been won. By settling with her in just one day for an undisclosed amount of money, Combs has already admitted guilt. By having Ventura to go in great depth about the sexual and physical abuse she has endured, she proves that Combs can be a transformative manipulator who is not to be trusted. Her continued presence in the courtroom will serve as a resounding alarm of what Combs is truly capable of repeating if he is ever offered freedom. So, he must be found guilty of something in order to allow innocence like hers to flourish in healthy and fruitful relationships.
Indeed, the contrasts between the two of them is a supreme victory for the prosecution. Her one word, childish responses and doe-eyed innocence feeds directly into painting Combs as a predator. Knowing this, the attorneys were purposefully targeted in their askings. They did not ask her to detail any crimes concerning racketeering or prostitution in an effort to preserve her blind allegiance to Combs. This further deepens the belief of an underlying, child-like compliance and will leave many jurors feeling as if she would be oblivious to even understanding the complexity of any legal terminology. Even when asked why she did not escape, Ventura responded like a school girl in love; hoping that she would, one day, please her oppressor. As the star witness and main victim of Combs' ongoing crimes, Ventura opened the jurors eyes to be empathetic to each person who would follow her onto the stand. She also lends creditability to others who would fall victim to this Stockholm syndrome in the years that followed her trappings.
Every witness who takes the stand after Ventura will serve only to take the jury further into this mental abyss. The jurors will transfer the duality of Combs' personal and business relationships in the same manner. They will see each witness as being innocent and niave to the intentions of this supreme manipulator. They will use his template for destruction as an ongoing theme with each new encounter. It is amazingly intelligent how the prosecuting attorneys opened this case with their strongest and most believable personality.
I cant help but think that Combs' own attorneys are secretly rooting for the other side. They suggested that he dress casually. They have encouraged his family to appear in court, but didnt advise them to shy away from the luxurious drapings of living a lifestyle that is far out of the reach of many others in the courtroom. The visual that is painted will serve as a reminder that Combs, if proven innocent, will only return to being the same mongrel mogul that history has revealed him to be. Even if Combs can maintain his demeanor during the trial, the jurors will be discredited and take into accountability every groan, smirk, and air of privilege that is ushered into the room by his family.
The prosecution already has a win given to them by having Combs' family. Their presence overshadows the humble persona that Combs is attempting to relay to jurors. When Combs' own daughters excused themselves from the courtroom after hearing the list of sexual crimes in great detail, it rang out as an injustice that was too great to bear from his own support team. This should have been seen as crippling and, if they were truly protecting Combs, his attorneys should have prepared the family prior to trial or ask that they only appear in court when called. If used more strategically, his family could have been used to show Combs in a better light, but this single oversight in optics could prove detrimental to Combs' foundation.
The mere presence of his family also ring true to his willful deceptions. If his children should be asked to take the stand on his behalf, the jurors will take note that Combs has groomed his daughters for success; they are poised, well spoken, and worldly. They will, unwittingly, respond to questions eloquently and in full, concise sentences. They will speak of collegiate aspirations and being led away from ever entering the entertainment industry by their own father. They will offer such a stark contrast to the innocence of Ventura that the jurors will only see the obvious trappings of a predator when they look at the 54-year old father of seven who is nestled comfortably amid a flanking of seven powerful attorneys in overpriced designer suits.
And, during a time of economic stress, Combs' public relations team has offered another decisive chip of arrogance for the jury to consider. By paying passersby $20 an hour to wear Sean John T-shirts the read, ""Free Diddy" just outside the court doors, they are only feeding into the idea that money and power are tools for manipulating poor people to,literally, sell their bodies for momentary gain. By printing these shirts and making them available through Combs' own label, they only reinforce the idea that Combs is profiting through continually exploiting the innocence of others. This was a badly executed show of supporting May serve as, yet, another win for the prosecution.
In this courtroom brawl, so many battles are being fought at the same time. It is a classic battle of poor versus rich and how power is used to make people do things they would not normally do. It is a chance to persecute privilege and power and send a signal to those in power to remain humble or be judged for their constant manipulations of others. Although Combs is but one of many, he may just be the sacrificial lamb at this time. Everything seems to point to an obvious slaughter being played out right in front of our eyes.
And remember, more charges can be weighed against Combs at any time. Many others in the entertainment industry who want to avoid public humiliation may come forward and speak against their old friend and support the underlying theme of Stockholm syndrome. And, Ventura can always be recalled to the stand in order to remind the jury of innocence lost. After all, the victim is often the hero in so many tales.
But alas, this is just ONE Man's Opinion... what is yours?
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