Landesman's NYT sex slavery article

[Chaz Longue]

Anybody else read Landesman's article on the worldwide sex slavery trade? He was also on Fresh Air Monday. Did anybody hear the interview?

I'm not even sure what sort of comment I can make. This is beyond my comprehension.

The article is on the Times site. Register for free and read it if you have the stomach for it - I'm not even sure I want to post it here ... It's rather disturbing.

Forgive me if I missed discussion of this in another thread...

DB

[stonemonkts]

I read it.

You'd think after a while young girls would catch on to the initial scam, simply by word of mouth??? (at least the ones who haven't been kidnapped).

NYT mag is good for a shocker like that every few months or so. Last one I recall was about forced canibilism in the Congo.

Doesn't help my misanthropy too much, is all I can say.

[Chris D]

There have been a lot of doubts raised about the veracity of the piece.

Start here for criticism.

[Chaz Longue]

Thanks Stonemonkts. I'm happy to report I missed the cannibalism piece.

Thanks Chris D. for posting the link to the Slate material. I'd be thrilled to find that the writer Landesman had overblown the story and was guilty of shoddy journalism.

Sadly, even if that's true - the stuff that has been confirmed (perps having gone to Jail and so on) does leave one feeling pretty bleak.

There was a pretty disturbing piece in National Geographic this Summer about the purported extent of what amounts to slavery in the agricultural sector worldwide - including the USA. But I can find no trace of that piece on the 'net.

[lynn]

Was this the slave trade that Bush was refering to in one of his big speeches? He needs to get cracking on this.

I heard the Fresh Air interview and it was sobering. How can people be so vile? I especially cringed at the story of the guy that had to pray before and after from the Bible. There's not enough room in hell for people like that.

[john williams]

This is even further beyond my comprehension

Warning: extremely disturbing.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1899609.stm

[Monte Smith]

Originally posted by JBW
This is even further beyond my comprehension

Warning: extremely disturbing.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1899609.stm

Christ the Redeemer, JBW. That is one harrowing article. I can only think: fucking primitives!

But you know, saying that, Joseph Conrad opened his brilliant novel Heart of Darkness on the Thames at Gravesend, near where the mutilated body of this poor child was found. Conrad reminded us that London, too, was once "one of the dark places of the earth." Yup. Civilized London.