Our Society Allows Child Rapists to Walk Free and it Places an Impossible Burden on the Innocent

Hello Friends,I can’t believe it’s already been a week since this conversation. I’m scheduled to again chat with Nick Paro later today. In this episode we had a chance to sit down with Robert Danna whom I’ve come to really appreciate here on Substack.I’ve been reflecting a lot on this talk. In it, I discuss an incident a few years ago where I was part of a search party that found the body of a raped and murdered 11 year old girl. That’s an event that I’ve written about a number of times, but the pain never goes away.What are you supposed to do with pain like that?Our emotions ebb and flow like the tide. On the day of this recording, I had been hit by too many pieces of bad news all at once and I broke down. I’m not going to apologize for that however. We live in a society where child rapists are revered while the people whose lives they ruin are pushed to the fringes. Why do we heap so much pressure upon the innocent? Why are we so disinclined to practice accountability?We’ve all adopted this kind of survival mentality where we try not to notice the injustices taking place in plain view. That helps us get through the day but at the expense of sacrificing our whole lives. Every now and then, I think it’s vital to rip the veil away and allow ourselves to feel the full force of the pain of injustice.You should respond with tears and frustration and anger when an innocent child is abused and her life is ended too soon. It does us no good to pretend as if that doesn’t hurt. It SHOULD hurt! It should hurt so much that we find a commitment to decency and demand that evildoers are held accountable.We have to find the fortitude and the courage to become unapologetic defenders of decency. Our nation lacks integrity and we have to change that. This burden has fallen to us. It’s an obligation we can’t escape.I was tired after this talk. I’ve been tired a lot in 2025. I’m glad I took a week to reflect before posting this. I hope you all recognize something fundamentally human in my response.We are not powerless. We can make a better world for our children. We WILL. WE MUST.Thank you The Bathrobe Guy (Robes) 👘, Beth Cruz, LeftieProf, MLR, Musings on Interesting Times, and many others for tuning into my live video with Nick Paro and Robert Danna! Join me for my next live video in the app.You all make this newsletter happen! Thanks for your sponsorship! I have payment tiers starting at as little as twenty dollars a year.Upgrade at 30% offUpgrade at 40% offUpgrade at 50% offUpgrade at 60% offI’m so happy you’re here, and I’m looking forward to sharing more thoughts with you tomorrow.My CoSchedule referral linkHere’s my referral link to my preferred headline analyzer tool. If you sign up through this, it’s another way to support this newsletter (thank you).I'd Rather Be Writing is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to I'd Rather Be Writing at walterrhein.substack.com/subscribe