Harassment and politics
Re: Tory leader Brown denies ‘ troubling allegations,’ Jan. 25; Within hours his career was over, Jan. 26 I believe in the fundamental decency of the socially awkward Patrick Brown, who is innocent until proven guilty, and certainly before even being charged of any wrongdoing in a court of law. I do not believe in a kangaroo court of anonymously sourced, politically motivated hit pieces, with enough holes in their narratives to drive a proverbial truck through them.
The PCs have blundered badly abandoning their leader at a moment’s notice and without providing any pathway to his eventual exculpation, having accepted unproven, defamatory allegations as fact. If it’s unprincipled, cynical expediency you’re after, Wynne’s Liberals are far better at this. Indeed, “dirty tricks” political operatives working quietly in the background on behalf of some hostile faction may have been the architects of Patrick Brown’s sudden and brutally effective takedown, which those around him immediately ratified by abandoning him to twist in the wind by himself.
If unsubstantiated sexual allegations hadn’t done the trick, no doubt a hit piece featuring Brown’s alleged collusion with Russia might have followed, since it is virtually impossible to disprove something that never actually happened but maybe, just maybe, might have.
This is why our legal system was designed to protect the accused, and not those likely bearing false witness while hiding behind a mask of unaccountable anonymity. Edward Ozog, Brantford, Ont. The most egregious aspect of this whole episode is how “sexual misconduct” has seen its definition be steadily transformed over recent years. While many woman want romance, love, marriage, children and security, our rules for what is allowable in dating are becoming so strict that the very nature of dating is becoming sanitized to meet the shifting understanding of “sexual misconduct.”
If a man cannot even compliment a woman on her appearance without first checking the most up-to-date rule book for acceptable words and actions, then I guess that we can ‘ kiss goodbye’ to any spontaneity in romance and run the risk the men will choose to avoid the hidden landmines that may lead them to marriage and a family.
Will every man need to carry with him a contract on his smartphone, which he will feel obligated to use in order to obtain an agreement from his date to offer a kiss goodnight? Will the contract specify if the kiss can be on the lips, cheek or an extended hand?
I thank my lucky stars that I am a happily married man who found his mate decades ago before any of the things that pass for political correctness today. Gene Balfour, Fenelon Falls, Ont. Regardless of the outcome of the allegations, this is a muchneeded opportunity for the PCs to come up with a leader who is genuinely conservative, who is not an enforcer for “political correctness,” and who will provide a credible alternative to the Liberals rather than simply ape their leftist inclinations.
Let’s get moving, there’s not much time! I can’t argue Patrick Brown’s guilt, as I’m not privy to the details of the allegations against him, nor am I one of the women who made a decision to step forward. I’m neither an expert on due process, nor can I make a single argument in defence of the accusers that wouldn’t be turned on its head, for better or worse.
I can, however, argue that every man in the world IS now vulnerable — and it’s about time.
Those who stand accused of sexual assault? They don’t require the deliberate creation of a safe space — they already have one: it’s the world you and I live in.
The justice system? It wasn’t created to protect women, or anyone who didn’t have a say when it was created. It was crafted by powerful, affluent, white men who have shaped generations of disparity for anyone who wasn’t also powerful and affluent and white and male.
So yes, every man in the world is now vulnerable. They are accountable for their actions, experiencing consequences for their behaviour, and living a private nightmare on a very public stage. They are experiencing first hand the systemic vulnerability they have helped build and sustain.