Carey,
I've following this discussion and theoretically agree with you. In a perfect world, fact would be fact and fiction would be fiction. We don't live in that perfect world.
We do live in a world where the majority of people know and understand that many truthful accounts are presented as fiction. The writer/producer wants to be able to "embellish" where they like.
Personally, I don't put much weight on this movie, or any documentary based on fact, shutting down the industry. Or making any significant difference. It's just not going to happen that way. There's too much politics involved. Most people will watch it (even a factual documentary), say "how terrible" or "the kid must have deserved it", then go back to their apathetic lives. This is not the basket to put our eggs into.
It's not realistic, from my perspective to expect so much of this one piece of entertainment. Yes, entertainment, it's a movie, provocative, but a movie.
I visited a message board and read young people's thoughts and interests about this movie. They don't have a clue what it's about. They don't know about WWASP or how many of these places actually exist. They are interested in other aspects of the movie and will see it because they appreciate the producer.
And, it's not the producer's responsibility to depict the truth and expose all the horrors of WWASP. I find it admirable that they will honor the teens who have died and that they provide links at the movie webpage. That alone will raise a few eyebrows and may cause people to do a little surfing to find out more. Surely those who do will stumble upon this message board, or a similar one. THEN, they can read real life accounts.
As to the testimony. No one can predict how that will go. Your fears are valid to the point that the judge may be ignorant. Let's hope for the best. Personally, I can't imagine why someone involved in a lawsuit would purposely take any action that would harm the case, further that their attorney would allow such.
If you are beating around the bush trying to expose that there are some shady dealings then perhaps you should just speak your imaginings. I get the feeling that you may be privy to inside information that you are only hinting about, or posing questions about in hopes that someone else will do the research to prove your imaginings.
I highly respect you. When I read that you broke your kids out of Dundee, I saved the article, even posted it here. You became one of my heroes (and still are) and stood out as a brave example to other parents. My hope for you is that you are able to put this on the back burner and wait to see what the final outcome is, put your attention elsewhere. Or investigate, dig deeper and present some facts that support your imaginings. (I don't mean imaginings in a negative way- we all imagine possibilities, everyday) Honestly, I still remain a bit confused and have a couple of times questioned why you were so consumed with this issue and the fact that it will be fictional.
The point that we live in a world that is less than perfect has been established, and that this movie will not be the "saving grace" for those still incarcerated. No sense to continue beating a dead horse. My greatest fear is that you, one of the staunchest allies in this effort, will loose credibility because you are so defensive about this issue.
With genuine respect,
Deborah
