Culture Warriors category archive
When Is “Sexual Harassment” Sexual Harassment? 0
The short answer, natch, is when the target feels harassed.
I expressed my opinion of the relationship between political leanings and sexual harassment a while ago: there is no relationship; the impulse to harass is independent of the voting booth (though there may be a relationship in how persons react to allegations of sexual harassment–I’ve not explored that, but it could be fruitful ground for a future post).
Now comes Gina Barreca with eight things to know about sexual harassment. I commend her article to your attention.
Afterthought:
Of course, the stink is stronger when the perpetrator has made a career of crowing about how virtuous and “Christian” he or she is; a healthy dollop of hypocrisy makes the goulash spicier.
Nonetheless, the perpetration, as distinct from the perpetrator, is no more reprehensible for that.
The New Pharisees 0
David Von Drehle does not mince words about Roy Moore. Here are a few of his words:
This self-righteous popinjay, running as a Republican for the U.S. Senate, has inspired mostly silence from the respectable pulpits of Alabama. It seems we Christians are well practiced at averting our eyes from the lurid sideshows beneath our big tent: the willfully ignorant Young Earth creationists, the cartoonish faith healers, the tearful televangelists caught with a hand in the till or a prostitute on the side.
Aside:
It’s been a long time since I saw “popinjay” in a sentence.
“Gimme That Roy Moore Religion” 0
Tony Norman tries to figure out Judge Roy Moore’s* religious creed.
Read it; I tried to pick a snippet, but it defied snippage.
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*It seems “Judge” is his adopted first name.
An Audience of One 0
Juanita Jean does the math.
Art Imitates Life Imitates Art Imitates Life . . . 0
If you want to understand how Roy Moore and others of his ilk are able to hold on to power and status, there may be no better place to start than chapter 19 of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, in which “the Duke and the Dauphin” are introduced to the narrative.
Image via Job’s Anger.
Aside:
If you have not read Mark Twain’s masterpiece, do so.
Many Southerners haven’t changed much since it was written.
No Ifs, Ands, or Buts
0
Dana Goetsch explores the craven, lick-spittle world of the “No Apology Apology.”
On Keeping One’s Hands to Oneself 0
The Baltimore Sun’s Tricia Bishop points out the sexual misconduct can be anywhere, as it knows no party, no industry, no social strata, no political or religious affiliation. She offers some advice for men befuddled as to what constitutes acceptable behavior. Here’s the gist:
Hoist on the Elmer Gantry 0
“In the Biblical Way” 0
Dick Polman has more on the Republican Party’s perverse response to purported perversion. A nugget:
Why? Because they say the Bible says so.
Follow the link for Polman’s analysis of the Republican Party’s novel interpretation of the scriptures.
Escape Clause 0
Elie Mystal reports. A snippet:
This week, we have as close as we’re going to get to contractual evidence that sexual harassment and assault is both contemplated and condoned when powerful men are involved.
No matter how many people are “outed” for their sexual misconduct (Louie CK, Mark Halperin, Donald Trump) there are people who resist the notion that this behavior is somehow authorized. There are people who refuse to accept that we have erected a system and society designed to allow men to victimize women they meet, and then protect those men from their accusers.Follow the link for Exhibit A.
A Matter of Lives 0
Writing in The Charlotte Observer, Tiffany Capers describes her own first #metoo moment, then moves a new topic to the discussion. Here’s an excerpt, in which she highlights some hypocrisy.
Do please read the rest.
Predators on the Prowl 0
Jessica Valenti suggests that predatory behavior, far from being penalized, is too often rewarded. A snippet:
For too long, we’ve lauded men’s domination and aggressiveness as a sign of leadership rather than possible red flags. When men talk over everyone else in a room, we call it confidence rather than entitlement. If they berate others in meetings, we call them powerful and passionate, not bullying. And when they treat women at work differently than they do men, we’re told that they’re not sexist – they’re just “old-school.”
The Court Is in Session 0
Elie Mystal suggests–well, to be precise, states outright–that Attorney-General Jeff Sessions is a “zealous theocrat.”
How Stuff Works, Dominance and Desire Dept. 0
I must say that, in none of the places I’ve worked–and by that I mean my own little corner of the company, not the company as a whole–have I heard of, let along witnessed, predatory sexual behavior such as that recently in the news.
Nonetheless, the recent news stories in no way surprise me.
I know that such conduct went on in parts of at least one company I worked for. It was early in my career, which started just as the Mad Men days were coming to a close. As one of my co-workers told me at the time, “No woman wants to be in the elevator with [Vice President X]. He thinks every woman in [Department Y] is a member of his harem.” I also recall that, when an accomplished and diligent woman in my department received a promotion, it was accompanied by a whispering campaign that she had “slept her way” into it (she didn’t).
Historiann argues that there much more going on workplaces which tolerate such behavior than sexual hanky-panky. Here’s a bit of her piece; follow the link for the rest.
Suffer the Children 0
Mike wonders why Republicans and their vocally self-proclained “Christian” supporters are willing to condemn children to sickness and death through their failure to renew CHIP. (Warning: Language.)