I wonder just how many of us are regretting something we did at age 17?Is this the way the world now turns?I have no idea about this particular incident, but it seems as if nearly everybody in the public eye has a skeleton in the closet which is being brought out into the open. Probably lots of us not in the public eye are very pleased that our skeletons are still well closeted. Would we really want some of the things we did as teenagers make a difference to our future 30 years on?I think the past should be buried unless of course it is something that the statute of limitations still can be taken into account.
No one should draw a conclusion that this accuser is telling the truth or lying unless they were there as witnesses. In fact, it implies a certain degree of prejudice -- whether sociopolitical or simply gender affirmation -- to draw a conclusion by what is read on the internet or heard in the mass media. There are friends of the accuser who believe her to be an outstanding and honest person. Likewise, there are friends of the accused who believe that he is an outstanding and honest person. I do have problems with publicly convicting a then-teenage boy for supposedly groping a classmate at an alleged alcohol-fueled teenage party 36 years ago when the facts, memories and even time frame of the alleged incident has been lost to the decades. Sadly, some people want it to be true and others want it to be untrue. Most of those individuals are motivated by preexisting political and social prejudices. Those are the worst types of jurors in the Court of Public Opinion. Perhaps people should watch 12 Angry Men in order to remember just how flippant judicial prejudices and reactionary assumptions can make justice everything but blind.
Teen Sex Movs Diana
The first question is her judgement at the time - why was she in a house with three young men who were drinking. Generations of young people put them selves in questionable positions on a regular basis. No comment on her behavior leading up to what ever incident took place. It is like the stories you see on soap operas and teen age movies coming of age. Given her eventual list of credentials it does not appear that she has suffered as result of her youthful indiscretions. The fact that she is a psychology major says it all = brains all over the place.
Somewhere, I read the only name mentioned was "Kavanaugh". Makes me wonder if this is a simple matter of confusion over a correct person. "Kavanaugh" is not that rare a name in any American community. It could have been someone else.If Ms. Ford was inebriated, even slightly, it may be possible that people are incorrectly identified. If she never mentioned this to anyone - not to her parents or to any peer back then, who's to say she has not been blaming the wrong person?While I do not doubt something traumatic happened to Ms. Ford as a teen, because few people bring this kind of attention to themselves, over a fabrication, I doubt the SCOTUS nominee was involved, based on everything documented about him, even by those that wrote of knowing him in his youth. There will need to be reasonable and detailed answers to numerous questions, before I regard this as a credible accusation.Perhaps he was fingered, due to other reasons, the most obvious being a grudge over her parent's foreclosure at the hand of Mr. Kavanaugh's mother's ruling. Also, notoriety could still be a reason. In this area, Ms. Ford would be heralded as a heroine, just for being a stumbling block to anyone nominated by President Trump, a la, Diana's first sentence. Same thing for Anna Eshoo and Senator DiFi.Their base would applaud them, and they are playing to that. Not knowing anymore than the rest of the country, Diana tells us she has a new heroine. No matter how unsubstantiated the claim, Ms. Ford is seen as credible and a heroine to be supported.Thankfully, that's not the case not for most Americans in other parts of the country that ask questions, wanting answers before drawing conclusions that big.That appears to be why DiFi sat on the news for so long, even though she had her own chance to question Kavanaugh herself. If she was acting in good faith, she would have taken that opportunity then. But in this area, an 11th hour road block, thrown at people with whom there is disagreement, is seen as a fine tactic. For those of us that are impartial, those looking for the good of the country, and want to see a SCOTUS that will interpret the Constitution, not create legislation from the bench, we need to see how this all plays out.Will Ms. Ford testify on Monday? Will she remember all the details she forgot? There are too many to mention. Most clergy abuse survivors remember everything, to the last detail, and most women remember everything. Everything.
There is so much in all this that makes me wonder about where society is going.A 17 year old who was drunk, a 15 year old who may or may not have been drunk who may or may have incorrectly remembered details of her possible first sexual encounter including the fantasizing of the memory over the years without even the slightest doubt that this was the same individual. There was a time when wild oats being sown by both male and female teens were the expected norm. As many females as males were aggressively exploring their sexuality with fabrication, boasting, innuendo and peer pressure. Youthful indiscretions probably happened by both teenage boys and teenage girls with encouragement from friends and society in general.The truth may be far from what is remembered on either side. Since both have now moved on and appear to have achieved much success in life, can we not accept that the past in this case has not made significant downsides to either party, if in fact Kavanaugh was the actual individual in this particular memory? I for one am getting the feeling that there is a movement of scandal digging in any and every public individual's past. This is not progress but in fact a form of blackmail at worst and attention seeking for possible financial gain at the very least. I have no respect for anyone who tries to malign the character of anyone else after so much time for no reason other than to destroy the reputation of that other person for their own five minutes of fame. I doubt very much the publicized motivation of the revelation or indeed the actual accuracy of the memory itself.Society should not accept these types of scandal revelations every time they rear their ugly heads. It is akin to cyber bullying of the worst kind.
I must agree with Resident. I don't know where society is going either. When holding a 15 year old girl down and putting your hand over her mouth is excused as a "youthful indiscretion", we have a serious problem.Resident makes several pronouncements in the last posting about how memory on either side cannot be trusted, and then goes on to ask: "can we not accept that the past in this case has not made significant downsides to either party, if in fact Kavanaugh was the actual individual in this particular memory? ".I have an answer. NO. We cannot.I will never tell my daughter that if another kid holds her down while his friend looks on that it is OK, and she should forget it. Nor would I tell her that if enough years pass by that the original act was OK, and that anybody who did that but fails to admit it remains suitable to sit on the highest court or any other position of high public trust.Your comment that "I have no respect for anyone who tries to malign the character of anyone else after so much time for no reason other than to destroy the reputation of that other person for their own five minutes of fame. I doubt very much the publicized motivation of the revelation or indeed the actual accuracy of the memory itself." is frankly indefensible. There is zero evidence that Dr Ford has any such motivations, and plenty of evidence that she had every reason to believe that she would be attacked. And indeed, many comments reflect exactly that attack. I am weary of excuses such as referring to holding down a 15 year old girl with your hand over her mouth to stop her from screaming while trying to pull her clothes off as "youthful indiscretion". It is not. And it is not "bad behavior".By the way, I am a man, and while I am not proud of everything I did as teenager, I understood even at that age that behavior of that kind was far past a line of morality and acceptability. I hope women hold all the Senators who excuse this behavior responsible at the ballot box.You indicate that, assuming this incident did happen, then time alone and the fact that both parties are now "successful" should mean we just move on and do nothing. Why??? If it did happen, then while Mr Kavanaugh may have since "moved on" and is no longer a threat to do such things again, the fact remains that he has made no effort at amends, no attempt to apologize, and is willing to destroy the reputation of Dr Ford in order to satisfy his need for power. That is what it would mean "if it is true that it happened", and that fact alone makes him a totally inappropriate choice for a justice of the supreme court.Lastly, I find it very revealing that Dr Ford's recollection includes Kavanaugh's friend in the room. You see, if somebody were going to make something up, then why would they include a witness who would then deny involvement? It would make far more sense to fabricate a story without a witness so it is your word against the alleged perpetrator. And again, none of you can explain how it is she somehow went back in time and discussed this with her therapist years ago. However, given all of these rationalizations for Kavanaugh's alleged behavior, I don't think most of the people arguing about it being so long ago or it being youthful indiscretion truly believe he didn't do it. I think many of them know that he did, but are seeking reasons to explain why it is excusable. It is not.
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