Don't forget Horatio Alger. He was kicked out of his Unitarian church for molesting boys.
Regarding Roman Polanski, I refuse to watch any of his movies because of what he did and his refusal to face up to it. I also believe that his ability to continue and make profitable movies is what led a large number of movie industry people to sign that reprehensible petition against his arrest in Switzerland.

i will try to decribe/how our lifeS karma
the good/and bad/we*chose to willingly DO/unto other
all goes/to heaven/and the bitter fruits fall into hell

so how does that affect me/much DEPENDS ON HOW MUCH OF ME/IS LEFT when i leave behind the material/side of me[ie/the soul weights up to 9 grams/an 85 kilo man/discards\ eighty-four plus kilos/that few grams of you live on[in the realms described in the previous link/

so how low/has the most of your lifes enerfgies[fruits]/sank

like i have made commentary/that resides in the lower bits of hell
i need get down to there to restore the value/of the bitter fruits that in that realm do dwell

the link/defines but one realm/there are at leadt 8 more
this is the realm/of beliefs/and the fruits that went wrong

the godless will enjoy the two
facedNESS OF THESE churches/in hell*;)
for there these virtues of the haters rightfully belong

what of rolfs works hang in that church?
he at death needs go at least that far down/to clean the stain he put on his soul/but in time/we aLL DO

one day we wILL MEET
THINK/ABOUT\THAT.and you both can read each others minds/what thoughts will repluse/him\expell him from heaven/to where those thoughts belong/

we all going down/it depends on us helpng other recover
that rewrites the wrong bitter fruit/that brung us down

but lest we forget/to get grace/we need give grace/then find out how that felt

give first
then get what you beget/none if us seen nuthin yet...

give mercy/to gain mercy
give pain to get pain/more of the same shall be a given/
i have defended/thus wil thus be defended/but who have i offended

phew mainly just me
the we/him who calls himself me/reveals himself to be
by forgiving the bit players we write our own play
thanks stan/have a nice way/ta0/karmic stay*

An interesting case for the defence of a serial sex offender, who exploited his fame and "cuddliness" to worm his fingers inside the knickers of young girls.

But I'm not quite so sure that I would be so keen to base such a defence entirely on the quality of "the heritage he left behind in art and entertainment."

The quality of which, I'm afraid, cannot remotely be compared to that of the other exemplars in the article. To put Rolf Harris in the same category as Richard Wagner, for example, is beyond ludicrous.

His "entertainment" was targetted at the young. A more accurate assessment would therefore be to measure his talents against, say, the Wiggles.

Thin gruel indeed.

The reaction against Harris is not surprising and should be expected.
It is a feeling of betrayal and the portaying of himself as a really
friendly and outgoing personality.
It appears from reports that it was all a big front.

It is the public disappointment that is so widespread and felt equally
amongst all and is so intense that there is no alternative but to wipe his presence away.

Maybe 20 years after his death and the passing of many who feel betrayed
his work may be reconsidered.

' I am no fan of paedophiles or of those who sexually assault women or adolescents. I do, however, think that we all have good and bad sides to our characters, and that, if we dismiss the artistic or other work of all those with known dark sides, we will end up shunning some of the great achievements of humanity. >

Absolutely. '

As no fan of the Catholic church I see no evidence of this prinicple being invoked despite the fact that they set up the first schools, hospitals etc.

There is no excuse or reasoning for child sexual abuse. The horror remains with one forever. What Harris did was worse than wrong. However, is the world to be punished by being denied his art work?? His paedophilia did not make him talented. The great men mentioned in other posts survived. Their greatness has survived not their fault.

What punishment is enough for a paedophile? To remove his art from the public domain will only place more value of it in years to come because of it's scarcity. What does it say about us, you and I, as a society that his crimes were ignored and he was allowed to prey on more children because those who knew would not speak up. For whatever reason those in authority refused to alert the world to the evils of Rolf Harris.

Having a disabled wife who relies on him, is not a reason for lessening his gaol time. He can afford to get professional help for his family. Let him rot in gaol. The damage he has done to innocent people, is immeasurable. I do not wish him evil as I am sure life will never be the same for him. Life has a way of surviving and for Harris, the good times are over.