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Such a tough case. Ravi certainly contributed to the gay kid's embarrassment and shame, etc., but he didn't make the kid kill himself. 10 years is pretty goddam stiff for that. Obviously, if this kid was at the breaking point of killing himself, then his emotional problems run vastly deeper than some teenage tormenting. The big question is how culpable is the roommate? One can envision a situation where someone had, say, a psychotic girlfriend who attempted to kill herself because her boyfriend cheated on her then talked about it on the internet. Is he in any way culpable in that situation (legally, not morally)? Not totally analogous, but some parallels exist. I don't have any clue what the right way to handle this is, but its s slippery slope if this guy gets a long jail term.
Slippery slope indeed. He didn't make Clementi kill himself. He also didn't just tweet about witnessing Clementi in a sexual act with another man. Ravi started his disparagement before school even began. He pulled a Magnum P.I. on Clementi and made judgements about him before the two had met or even had a conversation. I think that is the part that will nail Ravi. He was actively discriminatory and bigoted against his future roommate, and then when they actually became roommates he violated Clementi's privacy - repeatedly.
I'm with you b_b. I don't know how to handle this one either, but it sure looks ugly from a distance.
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Yeah. My problem is that he probably endured a lot of emotional stress for many years. His parents are associated with an evangelical mega-church. Many of those organizations are openly anti-gay. Do they share some of the culpability? I think a culture that allows churches and politicians to be adamantly and proudly anti-gay is a lot more of the cause than one asshole kid being an asshole. To me, this seems like a case that needs to be prosecuted only because of the political implications of not prosecuting it, and I think that's sad. Invasion of privacy is bad. Bullying is bad. Neither can make one kill oneself. Anyway I don't believe in hate crime legislation for the most part. Thought crimes aren't crimes. Only acts are crimes regardless against whom they're perpetrated.