Keeping Track
The sheer number of inappropriate sexual behavior allegations currently in play in America’s public forum has made it difficult to KEEP TRACK of them all. As a result, a very important fact about this phenomenon may not be as clear as it should be. In order to demonstrate the very important fact to which I refer, I’m going to divide the list of the accused into “Conservative” and “Liberal” categories.
So, let’s start off with the “Conservatives”:
1) Judge Roy Moore. Current candidate for the United States Senate. Accusers: 4
2) Bill O’Reilly. Conservative TV commentator on Fox. Accusers: 4
?3) George H.W. Bush. Former President. Some people feel that Mr. Bush belongs on this list, but I’m not certain that he really deserves it. For example, the recent “attack” occurred with him, at the age of 93, in a wheelchair with his wife and family present during a photo op. The people in the picture had their arms behind each other as often happens in group photos. With Mr. Bush IN A WHEEL CHAIR, and the woman standing immediately to his left, it would have been difficult for him to lift his arm above her derriere (which was at the height of Mr. Bush’s shoulder) to a more appropriate position on the woman’s back. Also, an accuser reporting an “assault” from 1992 said she was “surprised” by Mr. Bush, but described the incident as a “gentle squeeze”. So, it doesn’t seem to me that Bush senior is in the same category as many of the other accused in this essay. On balance, therefore, I think I would count Mr. Bush as a 1/2.
So, there you have it: on the conservative side, the tally is 2 and 1/2.
Now, for the “Liberals”.
Hmmm….WHERE TO BEGIN??
1) John Conyers, Democratic liberal Congressman. Accusers: 4
2) Al Franken, Democratic liberal Senator. Accusers: 4
3) Matt Lauer, NBC liberal TV host. (who, just a few months ago, grilled Bill O’reilly about accusations against him in an interview). Accusers: more than 1
4) Garrison Keillor, Democratic advocate author and radio commentator. Accusers: 1
5) Russel Simmons, “hip hop” record producer. Accusers: 2
6) Jeffery Tambor, actor. Accusers: 2
7) Matt Zimmerman, NBC Vice President. Accusers: more than 1.
8) Glenn Thrush, New York Times Journalist. Accusers: 4
9) Louis C. K., comedian and actor. Accusers: 5
10) Kevin Spacey, actor and producer. Accusers: multiple.
11) Brett Ratner, Hollywood producer. Accusers: 7
12) Michael Oreskes, National Public Radio and former New York Times news chairman. Accusers: 8
13) Charlie Rose, CBS TV host and liberal commentator. Accusers: 9
14) Mark Halperin, contributor to NBC and ultra liberal MSNBC. Accusers: 12
15) John Lasseter, Head of Pixar.
Accusers: more than 1.
16) Hamilton Fish, president of the liberal magazine The New Republic. Accusers: more than 1.
17) Rick Najera, director of CBS’s TV show “Diversity Showcase”. Accusers: more than 1
18) Leon Wieseltier, former editor of the liberal magazine The New Republic. Accusers: more than 2.
19) Andrew Kreisberg, TV producer. Accusers: 19!
20) Harvey Weinstein, Hollywood Producer. Accusers: more than 80!!
21) James Toback, Hollywood writer and director. Mr. Toback gets “best in show” with an astonishing total of 238!!!!! (As hard as this number is to believe, it was compiled by the LA Times).
22) Andy Dick, actor. Special mention goes to Mr. Dick, for the best response to various allegations. Her’s Mr. Dick, verbatim: “I didn’t grope anybody. I may have kissed them on the cheek to say goodbye and then licked them….” Well, OKAY THEN!
23) Bill Clinton, former President. And, NO list of sexual harassment would be complete without Mr. William Jefferson Clinton. It’s difficult to compile a comprehensive list for Mr. Clinton, as many potential accusers may have been cowed into silence by the remarkable success of the Clinton machine in discrediting and shaming accusers. A list of at least 4 stands pat, however: Juanita Broderick, Kathleen Wiley, Paula Jones and Gennifer Flowers. Accusers: at least 4.
I left a few additional names out of this listing because, as in the case of actor Steven Segal, for example, their political convictions are so bizarre that I couldn’t tell WHICH column to put them in!
And, in case the reader doubts the veracity of this compilation, the sources were:
An article titled “After Weinstein” by Sarah Almukhtar, Larry Buchanan and Michael Gold of the New York Times, posted on www.nytimes.com on 11/21/17.
AND:
“Since Weinstein” by Dan Corey of NBC, posted on www.nbcnews.com on 11/8/17. The reader is encouraged to read the articles for additional details.
SO, in the “Conservative” column we have a grand total of 2 and 1/2, and in the “Liberal” column we have a whopping 23!!!! There is, I believe, painful irony in the prevalence of RAMPANT sexual harassment perpetrated by a group of men that self righteously claim to be champions of women’s rights. IMAGINE THAT!