All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[Tami]

Questioning Tara Reade’s story doesn’t make one a rape apologist: On Joe Biden and #MeToo

Over almost three decades prosecuting criminals, I’ve been threatened, had a Santeria curse put on me, and been called a “fu--ing a--hole” on more occasions than I can count. But until my column for USA Today last week, “Why I’m skeptical about Reade’s sexual assault claim against Biden,” I’d never been called a “rape apologist.”

The murder, sexual assault, robbery and child pornography cases I dedicated my career to prosecuting have always put me firmly on the side of the victim. Protecting good people from bad ones was what motivated me to work for the Justice Department and decline the lucrative temptation of private practice. And placing my work for DOJ above my personal life was the never-ending argument that drove my partner of nine years to threaten to leave me.

So I was disturbed by the fallout emails, tweets and articles casting me as a perpetrator by the left for publicly airing apparent flaws in Tara Reade’s allegation of sexual assault against former Vice President Joe Biden. In order to be a “rape apologist,” I would have to believe a woman was raped, and then deny the assault — or offer an excuse on behalf of the man who assaulted her. I could never do either.

Most sexual assaults happen in private. Only the accused and the accuser know for certain if an assault occurred. But that does not stop people from convincing themselves that if they can see an assault in their mind’s eye, it’s as good as videotape evidence. It’s not. There are times when reasonable people can arrive at different conclusions, based on the available evidence.

The #MeToo movement that began in 2017 was born of legitimate anger over a century’s worth of ignoring and excusing men’s sexual assaults against women. But somewhere along the way, a righteous movement morphed into a command that every allegation of sexual assault be believed without hesitation. Any effort to investigate the facts is perceived as an attack on women and brings a swift public crushing.

There’s a danger in blind acceptance of every sexual assault allegation. An example of that risk played out last weekend when Eva Murry, the niece of failed Republican Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell, charged Joe Biden with making a sexually explicit comment about her breasts when she was 14. Murry said that the harassment happened when the two met at Delaware’s annual First State Gridiron Dinner & Show in 2008.

It should not be this way. Knee-jerk acceptance of uninvestigated sexual assault allegations can ruin innocent men. More important, from #MeToo’s perspective, it only takes one publicized false allegation to undercut years of the movement’s progress and throw into question legitimate allegations of sexual assault for years to come.

In order for the #MeToo movement to remain viable for the long-haul, it must recalibrate. Statistics show that the vast majority of sexual assault allegations are truthful. This means believing women who say they have been assaulted is a reasonable default. But that cannot be where things end.

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Alyssa Milano On Why She Still Supports Joe Biden & How She Would Advise Him About Tara Reade Allegations – Guest Column

Editors’ Note: Actress and activist Alyssa Milano has been a leader of the #MeToo movement, as her 2017 tweet calling on women to share their stories of sexual harassment and assault helped create a national conversation. Milano also endorsed Joe Biden in this year’s presidential election, having interviewed him for her podcast last year shortly after he got into the presidential race.

Tara Reade’s allegation against Biden, in which she claimed that he pinned her against a wall in a Senate building and sexually assaulted her, has been denied by the Biden campaign as something that “absolutely did not happen.” Milano addressed the allegations on Andy Cohen’s radio show earlier this month, telling him that “we have to sort of societally change that mindset to believing women, but that does not mean at the expense of not giving men their due process and investigating situations. It’s got to be fair in both directions.” That drew criticism, including from Reade, while Milano again addressed the accusations after new reports of two women who say that Reade told them about aspects of her claim in the 1990s.

[babyblob]

So after reading about all of these people getting Corona at the White house and the claims that Trump has been tested and it came back negative. After downplaying the threat all of these months I am sure that even if he tests positive he will go on with things as normal and risk infecting everyone so he does not look bad.

[PaulBullion]

So after reading about all of these people getting Corona at the White house and the claims that Trump has been tested and it came back negative. After downplaying the threat all of these months I am sure that even if he tests positive he will go on with things as normal and risk infecting everyone so he does not look bad.

For all we know, he could be the super spreader who's infected all of them. Because you know he doesn't wash his hands.

[The Cool Thatguy]

So after reading about all of these people getting Corona at the White house and the claims that Trump has been tested and it came back negative. After downplaying the threat all of these months I am sure that even if he tests positive he will go on with things as normal and risk infecting everyone so he does not look bad.

I think the biggest problem right now is that this will further convince Trump that testing is useless. He doesn't seem to understand that testing needs to circle outward for everyone and not just for his @$$

[InformationGeek]

This is why people can't have nice things.

The owner of a Massachusetts ice cream parlor closed its doors just one day after reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic in response to how angry customers mistreated a teenage employee.

Mark Lawrence, who for 19 years has operated Polar Cave Ice Cream Parlour in Mashpee, a small town on Cape Cod, waited to reopen his shop under the state’s restaurant guidelines until Mother’s Day weekend.

But Friday’s grand reopening turned into a harsh lesson for the small business, according to Lawrence, who told FOX25 Boston that customers frustrated with having to wait longer for their ice cream after the shop grew busy took their anger out on his staff.

“One of my best workers quit yesterday at the end of her shift,” he said. “But the words she was called and the language, you wouldn’t even say in a men’s locker room. And to say it to a 17-year-old kid, they should be ashamed of themselves.”

[jetengine]

100 days later: How did Britain fail so badly in dealing with Covid-19?

The guardian put it best. Bojo can put as much spin on it as much as he wants but the virus doesnt care about his words.

Not helped by all the devolved nations actively counternanding his idiocy.

[Tami]

Under Trump, American exceptionalism means poverty, misery and death

No other nation has endured as much death from Covid-19 nor nearly as a high a death rate as has the United States.

With 4.25% of the world population, America has the tragic distinction of accounting for about 30% of pandemic deaths so far.

And it is the only advanced nation where the death rate is still climbing. Three thousand deaths per day are anticipated by 1 June.

No other nation has loosened lockdowns and other social-distancing measures while deaths are increasing, as the US is now doing.

No other advanced nation was as unprepared for the pandemic as was the US.

We now know Donald Trump and his administration were told by public health experts in mid-January that immediate action was required to stop the spread of Covid-19. But according to Dr Anthony Fauci, “there was a lot of pushback”. Trump didn’t act until 16 March.

[Malvolio]

Questioning Tara Reade’s story doesn’t make one a rape apologist: On Joe Biden and #MeToo







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Alyssa Milano On Why She Still Supports Joe Biden & How She Would Advise Him About Tara Reade Allegations – Guest Column

Like Bill Maher said the other night, it shouldn't have been #BelieveWomen; it should have been #TakeAllegationsSeriously.

[InformationGeek]

Trump is losing it today, cracking up and has retweeted, quote-tweeted and tweeted himself 52 times in an hour.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Under Trump, American exceptionalism means poverty, misery and death

And god help us all if Drano Don wins a second term. There’s still scores of Trumpanzees more than willing to ride and die with their god emperor, despite the nightmare he unleashed on the country with his incompetence and malfeasance.

[Ragged Maw]

Like Bill Maher said the other night, it shouldn't have been #BelieveWomen; it should have been #TakeAllegationsSeriously.

Oh god. So much this! We need smarter hashtags in this day and age.

[Kusanagi]

And god help us all if Drano Don wins a second term. There’s still scores of Trumpanzees more than willing to ride and die with their god emperor, despite the nightmare he unleashed on the country with his incompetence and malfeasance.

If we're being Optimistic and there's a vaccine in 2021, how can anyone look at Trump's record this year and want him in charge of the roll out? I think he'd be just as likely to say anti vaxers are good people, buy whatever conspiracy theory he stumbled on that week, or make no effort in making sure it didn't come with an exorbitant price tag.

[The Cool Thatguy]

If we're being Optimistic and there's a vaccine in 2021, how can anyone look at Trump's record this year and want him in charge of the roll out? I think he'd be just as likely to say anti vaxers are good people, buy whatever conspiracy theory he stumbled on that week, or make no effort in making sure it didn't come with an exorbitant price tag.

God, he'd probably just send the vaccine to his supporters and leave every state he lost in the election to die.

Which, lets be honest, is half the reason why he didn't take this seriously to begin with. It started in two states he'll never carry, so he couldn't be bothered

[Malvolio]

Trump is losing it today, cracking up and has retweeted, quote-tweeted and tweeted himself 52 times in an hour.

Oh yeah. I saw one that read simply, "OBAMAGATE" just like that, all caps. No further explanation. I mean, what is he even talking about?

[Tami]

Oh yeah. I saw one that read simply, "OBAMAGATE" just like that, all caps. No further explanation. I mean, what is he even talking about?

Sounds like he's trying to create a meme or something similar.