Me Too

Nobody seems to be talking about Bill Cosby so much anymore. Harvey Weinstein's sexual abuses were so grotesque that if I were a woman, I'd prefer to be drugged. It's a given that men are dogs and pigs but, my God, the description of Weinstein's conduct was shocking to me- then I talked to my wife. In my naivete, I never realized this ugly conduct happens all the time. Melody was and is an attractive girl, which means practically every man she's ever known has hit on her since she was sixteen, including a cop and a former teacher. She's seen it all- flashers, gropers, masturbaters, heavy breathers, and aggressive advances from acquaintances and co-workers both young and old. And these encounters were just as common with her female  friends. Everyone had a tale to tell. Some of her stories were too harrowing to repeat. Fortunately, she escaped these incidences unharmed. The thirty women who accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual abuse over twenty years weren't so lucky. Weinstein's victims include a who's who of Hollywood actresses- Gwyneth Paltrow, Ashley Judd, Angelina Jolie, and Rose McGowan, who refused a million dollar hush money offer and called out Hollywood talent agencies as being "guilty of human trafficking." It only took one brave woman telling her story to the New York Times to open Pandora's Box, so to speak. Weinstein initially denied engaging in non-consensual sex, but his unspeakable behavior was common knowledge at Miramax, the company Weinstein founded. He has reached seven settlements with other victims. Weinstein's predatory conduct was appalling because it was so disgusting. He invited women to his quarters and reappeared in a bathrobe, exposing himself. Ashley Judd was asked to watch him shower. Other unassuming targets were told that watching him masturbate would help their careers. Weinstein has been accused of giving alcohol to a minor, rape, and assault. The bloated, bearded swine blamed his behavior on coming of age in the sixties, when the rules were different. No they weren't. Only in Hollywood could a dirtbag feel so entitled and powerful that women would surrender to his nascent charm. After all, he had the power to make or break an actress' career, and if rebuffed, he would go out of his way to punish them. After the Weinstein allegations, fifty-nine more men in politics and entertainment have been accused of abhorrent sexual behavior, and the list is growing every day.

For twenty years, viewers spent their mornings with Matt Lauer. After discovering that he had a button under his desk to lock a woman in his office and pull the old Harvey Weinstein bathrobe routine, I feel duped. It's like if Dick Van Dyke were arrested in a child pornography sting. Same goes for Charlie Rose, fired by CBS, PBS, and Bloomberg for making lewd phone calls and incidences of groping. Thoughtful and soft-spoken political analyst Mark Halpern, co-author of Game Change, masturbated behind his desk while meeting with a female colleague. The hot comic Louis C.K., writer and director of the classic movie Pootie Tang, did bits about masturbation in his stand-up act. Now we know he wasn't kidding. Accused of exposing himself and asking women to watch him masturbate, his upcoming comedy special and a new movie release have been cancelled. The list goes on: Kevin Spacey, Jeffrey Tambor, Dustin Hoffman, Garrison Keillor for God's sake. Bill O'Reilly paid out thirteen million dollars to five women. Former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson successfully sued Fox Chairman and CEO Roger Ailes for twenty million dollars for "unwanted sexual advances." Before explaining himself, Ailes took the easy way out and died earlier this year. Of course there's accused child predator and our new Senator from Alabama, Roy Moore, cruising teen hangouts to make new friends. He claims all five of his accusers of lying.

We have obviously reached a tipping point in male-female relationships. The old dinosaurs are going down and the push is finally on for women to be believed. But must we blindly believe all woman? Case in point is Senator Al Franken and his accuser, radio personality Leeann Tweeden. On a 2006 USO tour in Afghanistan, when Franken was still a comedian, Tweeden said Franken forcibly kissed and groped her. She later wrote Franken, "grabbed my breasts while I was sleeping and had someone take a photo of you doing it, knowing I would see it later and be ashamed." Franken immediately apologized and called for an ethics investigation into himself, which was smart because it could force Tweeden to testify under oath. The photo mentioned was childish and sophomoric but contradicts Tweeden's account. She is asleep in a cargo plane wearing a flack jacket while Franken's hands are hovering over her chest while he smiles for the camera- obviously a joke- a stupid one but a joke just the same. Tweeden accepted Franken's apology before the YouTube videos of the tour surfaced. Check them out and watch Tweeden grind on country singer Mark Wills and grab his butt. It was for the troops. I'll bet Rita Hayworth did similar shtick with Bob Hope. Turns out Tweeden was an employee of Fox Sports, a regular on Sean Hannity's nightly propaganda broadcast, and a Trump supporter. Sounds like a hit job on Al Franken to me, yet some are demanding his resignation. Which brings us to the most blatantly hypocritical pot and kettle dilemma. Over the past two decades, taxpayers have paid seventeen million dollars for hush money and to settle congressional sexual harassment charges for two hundred sixty-four congressional staffers and other legislative employees. A boatload of men are currently searching through their memory banks and the feeling of a new enlightenment has dawned. Now, when is Donald Trump going to sue those twenty women who accused him of boorish sexual behavior like he promised?