Whatever happened to basic morality?

THIS newspaper always has, and always will, respect the jury system of justice. It is not perfect, but it is better than the alternatives practised in many other countries. There has been much criticism, particularly on social media, of the verdict yesterday in the trial of four rugby players in Belfast, two of whom were on trial for rape. All were acquitted of all charges.

It is not for us to second-guess why the jury found as it did. They are the people who have been in court every day for almost nine weeks, and they heard every single piece of evidence, while most of those commenting did not.

There are, however, many issues raised by this trial. Had it been conducted in this jurisdiction, the accused never would have been publicly named unless found guilty. Because the process is different in Northern Ireland, we saw a light shone on a culture most will have found repugnant. In their behaviour and their private messages to each other, these men showed no regard for any of the women they discussed, and their attitudes to sex and alcohol illustrated a culture of excess, completely absent of what used to be a key attribute for those in the public eye – propriety.

The reality is that we know this is the culture this group, in particular, perpetuates. We need to ask if rugby-playing schools, clubs and the IRFU are giving these boys and young men the impression that because they are special on the field, they also are special off it too, and that normal rules of chivalry and decency simply don’t apply to them?

When the sport is throwing huge amounts of money at these young men and making them famous, it must also ensure they are educated in basic morality and manners, and well prepared for life.

We also must look at the role of hardcore pornography in this culture. Young boys now are exposed to more explicit sexual imagery than any previous generation, and much of that material shows women as subservient, always available, and there solely for the sexual gratification of men, often more than one at a time. It is little wonder these players would see nothing unusual in a so-called threesome or, in their private messages, refer to women as ‘sluts’ when that is the way they see them portrayed.

As a society, and at government level, we have utterly failed to address the harm exposure to pornography is causing.

Nothing will change until we show the moral courage to stop children being exposed to it.