Monday, September 28, 2009

She would, wouldn't she

Washington Post's Anne Applebaum --

But [Roman] Polanski is 76. To put him on trial or keep him in jail does not serve society in general or his victim in particular. Nor does it prove the doggedness and earnestness of the American legal system. If he weren't famous, I bet no one would bother with him at all.

AP* -- Meanwhile, Poland and France intend to make a joint appeal to Switzerland and the United States to have Polanski released from his detention, Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski told the Polish news agency PAP. Sikorski said he and French counterpart Bernard Kouchner also plan to ask Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to offer Polanski clemency.

The Polish foreign minister is Mr Anne Applebaum.

[post prompted by thread at Crooked Timber]

UPDATE: See also Patterico. We're at the point where a Washington Post media issues reporter might be useful. Incidentally, judging from the Patterico thread, the connection is viewed as something that happens in the liberal elite. It's worth checking out Sikorski's pre-ministerial CV before coming to that conclusion.

*A similar quote appears in the Washington Post.

FINAL UPDATE: Applebaum responds --

"I have disclosed that [husband is Polish minister] before, more than once. Also, when I wrote the blog I had no idea that my husband, who is in Africa, would, or could do anything about it, as Polanski is not a Polish citizen. I am not responsible for his decisions and he is not responsible for mine."

Would a reader consider knowing about the connection to be potentially useful information in evaluating the opinion expressed? Probably.

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