Prince Andrew taken back into the fold this weekend.

[Wishiwasinmalta]

AIBU or will the popularity of the RF drop like a lead balloon if they keep on doing this?

@Bakeacaketoday
you clearly aren’t aware that there is no ‘age of consent’ in sex slavery/trafficking cases.

trafficked women groomed from an early age and economically deprived cannot consent regardless of age

if you’re trying to make the case that a disempowered 17 year old, from an abusive background, groomed since the age of 14, trafficked across international borders by a multi-millionaire and offered up to Royalty should have just said ‘no’ you are laughably naive or entirely disingenuous.

or maybe you don’t think 30-odd year old men have any responsibility to check the autonomy of 17 year old girls offered to them for sex by their convicted child sex offender friends?

You are showing a lack of understanding.
The legal principle for someone charged of a crime and appearing in court is innocent till proven guilty. We should not send people to prison until they have been proven in a court of law to be guilty.

As parents you do not operate on that principle. Jimmy Saville was never proven guilty so legally is still innocent. But you would be foolish if he had still been alive to let your kids anywhere near him knowing what we now know.

No it came from the Queens private purse. Money from the estates. Not public money.

Andrew has never been pulled up on criminal charges. It was a civil case not a criminal case.

He wasn't at either the Albert Hall or the Cenotaph, so excluded as a working Royal. So not in the fold at all.

And this year it must have really stung, as it's 40 years since the Falklands War

I'm not surprised that he sought out a different, lower key remembrance event. This year has particular resonance for him, and I think it's ok for him to remember his fallen comrades away from the national events

Sorry I’m not sure of your point?

where did I say he exclusively did, and how does that undermine the rationale for Andrew’s ‘innocent’ friendship with a convicted felon?

And Virginia Giuffre took the money. The Queen didn't for her to and I seem to remember that she said she would not take money to drop the case. She also said Alan Dershowitz was one of the men who abused her but now she thinks she was wrong.

Not the most reliable witness.

What do you think OP?

You'd probably consider me to be an "older" person lol.

I have not heard ONE person, old, young or in-between, make any racist comment about MM. Must be the circles you are in. In fact, I didn't even realise to begin with that she was mixed race, and far less I cared! Just thought she was pretty and elegant.

But there was never a criminal trial. So regardless of the Queen paying, he was never going to be convicted.

Seriously, the lack of understanding on these threads is incredible.

@ancientgran Reliable enough witness to pay out at least £12 million to though?

Schrodingers witness - Totally unreliable and making it all up, but still reliable enough to make a massive payout to.

Andrew gave the payout when the court had ruled that various evidence could not be kept out of court proceedings. The risk he would be found guilty was too high for him.

I hate these little plopping & fishing expeditions.

The sex trafficking wasn't a crime at the time.

I'll repeat - this is someone who has not been charged with anything, has not been convicted of anything and who has not even from what we can deduce VG is saying done anything he could be convicted of.

JE was not convicted at the time either.

@Glitteratitar You are failing to understand that it is only because who Andrew is that criminal charges were dropped. He refused to be interviewed and the government would not compel him.

We don't actually know it was £12million. One thing we do know if that Alan Dershowitz was one brave man who refused to back down. What an awful thing to do to someone, to accuse them of such a terrible crime. He isn't a young man, the strain could have killed him but you know she was confused.

He's not been convicted and was never going to be - it was a civil case.

And now, his accuser has acknowledged being a liar. Nice.

No criminal charges were ever laid.

And VG did not allege rape

she took the money because they offerred it - many victims of crime settle out of court because the trauma of a criminal case is horrendous. Especially in sex abuse cases

I wonder why they offered £12million when he had an ‘air-tight’ pizza express alibi?

seems a waste of tax payers money doesn’t it @ancientgran ?

but then we possibly have different moral standards. I think the son of the monarch choosing to befriend and support a convicted child sex offender is problematic regardless of what he actually did. And I think mummy using tax payers money to cover for his poor life choices is problematic.

perhaps you think that sort of behaviour is totally fine for a monarchy?

As to the AD case - oh yes, nothing fishy about that sudden settlement/statement. Not at all! 😂

When were criminal charges ever filed? Please show me that.

I am definitely an older person and I agree with this . I have NEVER heard anyone of any age make a racist comment about MM .
Plenty of negative comments about the engagement interview ( cringe) , engagement dress , Tom Brady interview , OW interview etc etc but not race .

Where has his accuser been acknowledged as being a liar@Canthave2manycats
please provide evidence?

we know FOR DEFINITE that she was sex trafficked and groomed, and that Andrew willing associated himself with a convicted child sex offender. Perhaps that’s below your threshold for moral discomfort?

I personally think that autonomous choice by an adult and privileged man in public office, is a greater concern than a likely pressurised/out of court settlement from a proven victim of sexual trafficking.

Do you read any newspapers?

cos there was a fair bit of ‘straight outta Compton’ bullshit in the press

He wasn’t involved in Remembrance Sunday and the OP has deliberately set out to mislead people by omitting to mention the occasion he was at was a family gathering and nothing else.

100% - it was their behaviour that people were critical of, nothing to do with her face - but it gave a 'convenient' stick to beat people with, horrible racists!!

Two words, @FurAndFeathers - Alan Dershowitz...

i was responding to the claim about older people being g openly racist .

Oh behave 🙄