As domestic politics in the United States deteriorate ever more into hateful obstructionism and animosity, an old tool of denunciating the political opponent has reemerged. Accusations of sexual harassment abound to an inflationary degree, and it's time to do something about it.
During the recent presidential campaign, schemers raised allegations of sexual misconduct to denounce then-presidential nominee Donald Trump; now, they use the same tool against a candidate who runs for a Republican seat in the US Senate. A sexual harassment hit-job has been launched against Judge Roy Moore of Alabama, carried out by a woman who has been a political activist and was allegedly harassed by Moore some four decades ago when she was supposedly still underage. In the meantime, it turns out that she has forged an entry into a high school yearbook. Even a Democrat came under fire, Senator Al Franken, but he appears to be a particular case. The way he resigned his Senate seat makes one assume that it is sanctimoniously sacrificed for the Democratic Party to have leverage in the future against Republican candidates or even the President himself.
All of a sudden, and years if not decades after alleged incidents took place, at convenient points in time during campaigns and just weeks before elections, accusations are made public, mere statements denounce candidates, and barely any or none evidence support the claims. With word against word, reputations are tainted, and careers, if not destroyed, then often severely damaged.
How often have I, decades ago, as a young military officer, petted a recruit on his shoulder, trying to cheer him up in situations of distress and exhaustion? Or later in my career embraced a secretary or colleague when she (or he) had just learned of a severe blow of fate? How easily could one of these guys today, given ill-will, ideological resentment, and getting paid enough money, go public and accuse me of inappropriate advancements or even sexual harassment if I were to run for public office? Any of these situations, taken out of context, could harm my reputation severely, even though any of these situations, in proper perspective, would testify to morality and personal leadership skills.
There is no doubt that the perpetrators of harassment and inappropriate behavior should be held accountable. However, there must be limits to when victims may raise accusations of alleged or actual harassment. This unfortunate and pernicious trend of sexual harassment accusations in private and political spheres must end.
If we honestly envisage beneficial and prosperous gender-coexistence, I propose the observation of the following three courses of action:
Firstly, both males and females have to find that sense of humor and understanding again that, inside the confines of cultured tact, helps deal with the erotically charged atmosphere that naturally and almost always subconsciously plays out between the sexes, even and particularly also in non-sexual situations. In the humorless age of political correctness and undiscriminating sexual equality, people seem to have unlearned the decent and thoughtful way of dealing with this phenomenon.
Secondly, as I have argued in the cases of Bill Clinton and Anthony Weiner, people have got to realize that the sexual persona of a man stands outside his moral character. If a guy, for whatever reason, goes too far in his advancement and, short of violent behavior and physical harm, says or does something inappropriate, it should not destroy his career or ruin his life. In other words, a sexual misstep does not necessarily mean that this person could not be trustworthy as a politician or employee, as a friend or business associate, or even as a Hollywood magnate.
Thirdly, legislative authorities ought to constitute a statute of limitations for reporting non-criminal sexual advancements and harassment. If violated, sanctions and penalties apply to prevent denunciations and the premature conviction of alleged perpetrators in the court of public opinion. Still, harsher penalties must await those whose allegations turn out to be unfounded or even fabricated. I suggest introducing a one-year statute of limitations, three years at the most, from the time of the incident or from reaching the age of maturity to be appropriate.
Like so many other issues about the arrangement of human coexistence, we can appropriately deal with the topic of sexual harassment only on the grounds of suitable cultural awareness and proper education, precisely what liberal feminism and the impositions of the progressive Left of recent years rendered nearly impossible.
It is time to rediscover a differentiated stance on sexual equality and let healthy levels of sensitivity, chivalry, mutual respect, and civility return to how males and females deal with each other. Restraint on the part of men in their advancements and an elegant rejection on the part of women grows naturally out of proper socialization and education, both of which help to instill a moral sense of virtue and reciprocal courtesy.
