John Mekki
Banned
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- 535
I was wondering, why so much attention to the Amanda Knox/Raffaele Sollecito case?
Post your reply.
Post your reply.
Why so much attention to the Amanda Knox/Raffaele Sollecito case
- Thread starter John Mekki
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RoseMontague
Published Author
There is not a choice for all of the above and then some, or a Planet X option. If you get a chance see if you can track down my series, History of The Groundhog Day Massacre in Six Shots. If not, I am planning another series for Groundhog Day 2013.
RoseMontague
Published Author
The actual posts in the threads including humor, FC, and FMF total in the neighborhood of 100,000 with more than 2 million views. I don't know that the AK is Hot reason really covers that much attention. Perhaps it is because Raffaele is cute. These options are missing from the poll as well.
Rolfe
Adult human female
People enjoy puzzles, and a puzzle where the (original) officially-sanctioned answer was obviously wrong is a red rag to a bull.
Rolfe.
Rolfe.
joesixpack
Illuminator
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2005
- Messages
- 4,531
I don't actually have any more than a vague idea as to who these people are and the crime they were accused of. I can draw no meaningful distinction between myself and those who are very interested in the case other than that. I'm not certain why it would be interesting, but that doesn't mean it wouldn't be, only that it doesn't interest me.
I answered the survey because it was in the sidebar on the forum homepage (I answered "other")
I answered the survey because it was in the sidebar on the forum homepage (I answered "other")
I was surprised to see this, or rather something similar, wasn't an option. It's because she's a rather good looking girl.
Darth Rotor
Salted Sith Cynic
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- 38,527
The standard answer used to be: because she's hot, is dear little Foxy Knoxy.
Sadly, you don't have that as a choice on the poll.
The case began in 2007, and for me was quite close to home as at the time my daughter was about to go to college and was considering programs that might lead to foreign study.
What happened to Meredith, and for that matter Amanda, is a parent's nightmare.
Sadly, you don't have that as a choice on the poll.
The case began in 2007, and for me was quite close to home as at the time my daughter was about to go to college and was considering programs that might lead to foreign study.
What happened to Meredith, and for that matter Amanda, is a parent's nightmare.
Strawberry
Master Poster
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Cases where there is a controversy about guilt or innocence will always garner more attention than cases where most agree about the issue.
Come to think of it, any thread about any subject on which there is disagreement and firmly entrenched views on either side will rage on and on, while threads where there is broad agreement rarely go over two or three pages.
Come to think of it, any thread about any subject on which there is disagreement and firmly entrenched views on either side will rage on and on, while threads where there is broad agreement rarely go over two or three pages.
Bill Williams
Penultimate Amazing
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I go with this one. The Kerchers rank a little above the Knox/Mellas's on this... but it has been an unimaginable nightmare for both, not to mention the principals at trial.
In seriousness, wrongful convictions are a huge problem.
Skeptical Greg
Agave Wine Connoisseur
Blood, murder, sex, romance. mystery, overly ambitious if not corrupt judicial system.. All the elements of a juicy story with much controversy and everyone choosing sides...
If the forums had been around during the OJ trial, the threads would still be active today..
Oh, and did anyone mention that Amanda Knox is hot ?
If the forums had been around during the OJ trial, the threads would still be active today..
Oh, and did anyone mention that Amanda Knox is hot ?
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The Knox case also touches on many areas where public belief conflicts with actual science. False confessions, the reliability of DNA evidence, determining guilt from facial expressions or behavioral clues, reliability of eyewitness accounts. These make it a wonderful case for skeptical discussion.
Chris_Halkides
Penultimate Amazing
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- 12,560
study abroad but be careful
I agree with Rolfe, Kestrel, and Darth Rotor. I am sometimes in a position of discussing students' plans to study abroad, and this case, along with the Dartmouth student in Spain, figure into those conversations. The Lindy Chamberlain case started out as a family who tragically lost an infant to a wild animal, yet from what I can gather, it became national news in Australia. The Duke lacrosse case started out as an ill-judged party, but the New York Times had over one hundred articles on it. Why some cases catch the public's imagination and not others is hard for me to say.
I chose option one because skeptics here and elsewhere found fault with the case where fault truly lay. I hope the next case like it runs to one thousand pages also, if that's what it takes to ferret out a false conviction.
I agree with Rolfe, Kestrel, and Darth Rotor. I am sometimes in a position of discussing students' plans to study abroad, and this case, along with the Dartmouth student in Spain, figure into those conversations. The Lindy Chamberlain case started out as a family who tragically lost an infant to a wild animal, yet from what I can gather, it became national news in Australia. The Duke lacrosse case started out as an ill-judged party, but the New York Times had over one hundred articles on it. Why some cases catch the public's imagination and not others is hard for me to say.
I chose option one because skeptics here and elsewhere found fault with the case where fault truly lay. I hope the next case like it runs to one thousand pages also, if that's what it takes to ferret out a false conviction.
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Rolfe
Adult human female
Well, the Lockerbie threads are currently pretty quiet, despite dynamite revelations and unfinished research into the SCCRC report (among other things). Principally due to a lack of critical mass of posters contributing.
Just sayin'....
Rolfe.
RoseMontague
Published Author
Reminds me of an old promise I made. Is there a resource of indexed documents and links available? Just send me a PM when you can.
RoseMontague
Published Author
You convinced me, both on the case and now for my vote. Good on you.
Antony
Graduate Poster
Added to that is indignation at an obviously wrong conviction; it is at least gratifying that there should be such a variety of people eager to add their voices to the blogosphere against an injustice.
What is more difficult to understand is that there should be a substantial group of people, with dedicated websites, clamouring to sustain the original guilty verdict, and that there should remain a core of them continuing to do so long after their case has completely collapsed.
dudalb
Penultimate Amazing
People love to play Sherlock Holmes.
Charlie Wilkes
Illuminator
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- 4,177
My assessment... it all began with The Narrative, as presented by Italian law enforcement and the tabloid media:
Meredith Kercher was a polite, serious British woman of impeccable character. "Foxy Knoxy" is a spoiled, selfish American with an unlimited sense of entitlement and no respect for others. "Foxy Knoxy" hated Meredith because Meredith was all the things "Foxy Knoxy" herself could never be. But the one thing "Foxy Knoxy" was really good at was using her sexuality to manipulate and control men. Therefore, she persuaded Raffaele Sollecito and Rudy Guede to collaborate with her on a brutal murder, partly out of spite, partly just for kicks. And she might have gotten away with it, if not for the keen insight of the Italian authorities, who represent the best of Europe's enlightened and humanistic governing institutions.
In 2007, The Narrative resonated with many Europeans. It also rang true for educated liberals in America. From both sides of the Atlantic, people came together on the Internet to form a social network built around The Narrative.
The Narrative does not, however, line up with facts. Amanda Knox is actually a friendly, kind-hearted person who never harbored the slightest ill will toward Meredith. To those who know her, the idea that she would commit murder is absurd. A careful examination of the evidence shows that the case against her and Raffaele was false and contrived. Meredith was killed by Rudy Guede, a disturbed young man who hung out on the periphery of the student scene in Perugia. Unfortunately, the authorities only figured this out after they had staked their pride and reputations to a public accusation against the wrong people.
Thus, for five years now, a fierce debate has raged, pitting those who cannot let go of The Narrative against those who understand what really happened.
A couple of factors have compounded the weight of the discussion on JREF.
First, the discussion brought in a wave of new people, including myself, who at first were suspected of being "woos," because we allege a complex conspiracy to hide the truth. Unlike the truthers or the anti-vaxers, however, we can point to countless cases where similar conspiracies have really unfolded and have been extensively documented - the Dreyfus Affair, Lindy Chamberlain, the Birmingham Six, Hernandez and Cruz, the West Memphis Three, the Norfolk Four, and hundreds of innocent people convicted of crimes that never happened during America's "satanic panic" in the 1980s.
Second, after Amanda and Raffaele were convicted in 2009, it became possible to share the extensive portfolio of forensic data compiled by the police and handed to the defense as part of the discovery process. All of this material was given to me along with permission to use it as I saw fit, and I saw fit to make any of it (except images of Meredith's body) available to anyone with a sincere interest in the case.
Among other things, this included hundreds of crime scene photos, several hours of crime scene video, a battery of DNA test results, and a map showing the location and identity of every fingerprint recovered from the cottage where the murder took place. It was a vast trove of primary source material in the hands of people who enjoy nothing more than to analyze it and discuss what it means.
Meredith Kercher was a polite, serious British woman of impeccable character. "Foxy Knoxy" is a spoiled, selfish American with an unlimited sense of entitlement and no respect for others. "Foxy Knoxy" hated Meredith because Meredith was all the things "Foxy Knoxy" herself could never be. But the one thing "Foxy Knoxy" was really good at was using her sexuality to manipulate and control men. Therefore, she persuaded Raffaele Sollecito and Rudy Guede to collaborate with her on a brutal murder, partly out of spite, partly just for kicks. And she might have gotten away with it, if not for the keen insight of the Italian authorities, who represent the best of Europe's enlightened and humanistic governing institutions.
In 2007, The Narrative resonated with many Europeans. It also rang true for educated liberals in America. From both sides of the Atlantic, people came together on the Internet to form a social network built around The Narrative.
The Narrative does not, however, line up with facts. Amanda Knox is actually a friendly, kind-hearted person who never harbored the slightest ill will toward Meredith. To those who know her, the idea that she would commit murder is absurd. A careful examination of the evidence shows that the case against her and Raffaele was false and contrived. Meredith was killed by Rudy Guede, a disturbed young man who hung out on the periphery of the student scene in Perugia. Unfortunately, the authorities only figured this out after they had staked their pride and reputations to a public accusation against the wrong people.
Thus, for five years now, a fierce debate has raged, pitting those who cannot let go of The Narrative against those who understand what really happened.
A couple of factors have compounded the weight of the discussion on JREF.
First, the discussion brought in a wave of new people, including myself, who at first were suspected of being "woos," because we allege a complex conspiracy to hide the truth. Unlike the truthers or the anti-vaxers, however, we can point to countless cases where similar conspiracies have really unfolded and have been extensively documented - the Dreyfus Affair, Lindy Chamberlain, the Birmingham Six, Hernandez and Cruz, the West Memphis Three, the Norfolk Four, and hundreds of innocent people convicted of crimes that never happened during America's "satanic panic" in the 1980s.
Second, after Amanda and Raffaele were convicted in 2009, it became possible to share the extensive portfolio of forensic data compiled by the police and handed to the defense as part of the discovery process. All of this material was given to me along with permission to use it as I saw fit, and I saw fit to make any of it (except images of Meredith's body) available to anyone with a sincere interest in the case.
Among other things, this included hundreds of crime scene photos, several hours of crime scene video, a battery of DNA test results, and a map showing the location and identity of every fingerprint recovered from the cottage where the murder took place. It was a vast trove of primary source material in the hands of people who enjoy nothing more than to analyze it and discuss what it means.