When Saying ‘Yes’ Is Easier Than Saying ‘No’

Article here. Excerpt:

'For years, my female friends and I have spoken, with knowing nods, about a sexual interaction we call “the place of no return.” It is a kind of sexual nuance that most women instinctively understand: the situation you thought you wanted, or maybe you actually never wanted, but somehow here you are and it’s happening and you desperately want out, but you know that at this point exiting the situation would be more difficult than simply lying there and waiting for it to be over. In other words: saying yes when we really mean no.
...
There are other names for this kind of sex: gray zone sex, in reference to that murky gray area of consent; begrudgingly consensual sex, because, you know, you don’t really want to do it but it’s probably easier to just get it over with; lukewarm sex, because you’re kind of “meh” about it; and, of course, bad sex, where the “bad” refers not to the perceived pleasure of it, but to the way you feel in the aftermath.'

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After Weinstein: 45 Men Accused of Sexual Misconduct and Their Fall From Power

The NYT is keeping a list. Not comprehensive but something. Excerpt:

'In early October, Harvey Weinstein, the Hollywood producer, was fired from his namesake company after multiple women came forward to accuse him of rape and sexual assault.

In what appears to be a seismic shift in what behavior is tolerated in the workplace, a cascade of high-profile men, many in the entertainment and news media industries, have since been fired or forced to resign after accusations of sexual misconduct that ranged from inappropriate comments to rape. This page will be updated periodically.

45 Firings and Resignations

The men in the list below have been fired, resigned or experienced similar professional fallout.'

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Matt Damon is right about sexual misconduct

Article here. Excerpt:

MATT DAMON IS RIGHT. There is a big difference between patting someone on the rear and rape or child molestation.

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Meet the Women Worried about #MeToo

Article here. Excerpt:

'I am concerned that we are throwing knee-touching into the same basket as rape, which does a grievous disservice to mere knee-touchers and rape victims both. I am concerned that we are increasingly wont to confuse genuine abuse of power in the workplace with often distant memories of men who have made failed – ‘unwanted’ – passes. In the complicated dance of courtship, someone has to make a move, and the way one conventionally discovers if one’s attraction is returned is to brave some gentle physical contact and perhaps accept rebuff. Were I still a young woman looking for a partner, I would not wish to live in world where a man had to secure a countersigned contract in triplicate before he kissed me.

I am concerned that we are casting women as irremediably scarred by even minor, casual advances, and as incapable of competently and sensitively handling the commonplace instances in which men are drawn to them sexually and the feeling doesn’t happen to be mutual.

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Canada: Well-regarded Boxing Coach cleared of Sex Assault charges

Article here. Excerpt:

'Leo Marsh was once knocked out so hard in the ring that the first word he woke up to was: "Eight."
...
Last week, the boxing coach and member of the Canadian Boxing Hall of Fame was found not guilty of sexual assault and sexual exploitation laid in Dec 2015.

In an exclusive interview with CBC News, Marsh explained, "For the first time in two years I can be who I am and not be afraid of what people would think of me. I'm 65 years old. I have a bad heart. And I spent my whole life building up a name that my children could be proud of.

"I'm watching this person who has lived a normal life," Lee said. "Who has been volunteering for nearly five decades, teaching kids how to box. Watched his reputation go down in flames and watched his life just dismantle itself, waiting for the trial to happen."
...
Marsh believes the complainant was pushed into making the allegations by a pair of adults who had a grudge against him.

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Woman Accused of Lodging False Rape Accusations When College Player Stopped Texting Her

Article here. Excerpt:

'A football player for the University of Oklahoma was accused of rape and slapped with an emergency protective order this month, however, after police began an investigation; it appears that the charges were false and lodged by the woman after the player rejected her.

The Sooner’s starting running back, Rodney Anderson, found himself accused of rape after first meeting a woman named Courtney Thornton at a bar on November 16. Thornton alleged that Anderson took her back to her apartment, and then raped her. The 23-year-old Thornton applied for an order of protection on December 4 when news broke of the accusations.
...
However, after an investigation, police say that the woman’s story fell apart. The charges were deemed unprovable, according to the DA.

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In sex assault laws, definition of consent varies widely

Story here. Submitter's comments are in the first comment. Excerpt:

'For two months now, as accusations of sexual misconduct have piled up against Harvey Weinstein, the disgraced mogul has responded over and over again: “Any allegations of nonconsensual sex are unequivocally denied.”

Consent is a concept central to law on sexual assault, and will likely be an issue in potential legal cases against Weinstein, who is under investigation by police in four cities, and others accused in the current so-called “reckoning.”

But the definition of consent — namely, how it is expressed — is a matter of intense debate: Is it a definite “yes,” or the mere absence of “no”? Can it be revoked? Do power dynamics come into play? Legally, the definition varies widely across the nation.

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Your Views: Men interact with women at their own risk

Letter here. Jump the paywall by Googling the first paragraph text. Excerpt:

'He squeezed a handful of flesh. Now Sen. Al Franken is history. But what does that mean—a handful of flesh? Squeezing one’s waist? A shoulder? An arm?

A simple accusation and one’s entire life can be ruined. Simple as that.

During a recent group discussion, I told a woman participant I am afraid of her. Surprised, she said, “Afraid of me?” I explained, not just her, any woman today, adding, I am afraid to ride an elevator with a woman today unless there are others present. I will get off first.'

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The #MeToo Movement has thrown due process out the window

Letter here.

'In her recent letter to the Tribune (“A witch hunt”), writer Dorie Chaille Tiseth hit the nail on the head. I, too, have been shocked by the rapidity and fury with which the #MeToo movement has swirled across the country, upending lives and leaving us stunned.

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UK: Police attract derision by calling under-the-mistletoe kissing tantamount to rape

Article here. Excerpt:

'A police force has been ridiculed for warning people to get consent before they 'bump into that special someone under the mistletoe' — or else they could be committing 'rape'.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) posted the 'nonsense' message yesterday, drawing hundreds of mocking comments attacking the force for 'trivialising' rape.

The force, which has 159,000 Twitter followers, posted: 'If you bump into that special someone under the mistletoe tonight, remember that without consent it is rape #SeasonsGreetings.'

And it wasn't long before the warning was shared hundreds of time across the social media platform.'

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In 2018, we need to make more of an effort to keep misandry out of feminism

Article here. Excerpt:

'Whether misandry as a concept actually exists or not, is up for debate. Like reverse racism, these kinds of social constructs negate the idea that prejudice necessarily needs a position of power from which to work. Racism involves one race being in a more privileged position than another. Sexism, the same.

But when you’ve got educated, funny women happy – proud even – to say out loud that they ‘hate men’, we’ve got to reevaluate exactly what we’re allowing people to get away with.
...
They do all come from men…but that doesn’t mean that every man is to blame. Keyboard losers are a tiny percentage of the population.

Mocking and berating men isn’t the way to show that feminism is about equality and intelligent debate.

The conversation should be inviting, it should be placing the importance on men as equal parents, equal mental health sufferers and survivors, on being as emotionally vulnerable and switched on as us.'

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"How to raise boys not predators"

Article here. Excerpt:

'I have been torn about whether or not to write this piece. It felt redundant. And it would sound naive of me to say that it never occurred to me that I would have to pen something so explicit, but it isn’t naivete. It has simply been a profound (and deliberate) unwillingness to consider how bad things have been and how all of us have played some role in perpetuating this behavior. So with that said, this is my attempt to provide clear and simple tips for raising sons.
...
Don’t assume boys are innately predatory. They are not. It’s on us to make sure that they stay that way.'

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Feminism site Medusa Magazine shuts down after founder admits it was pure satire

Article here. Excerpt:

'What appeared to be a far-left feminism magazine has shut down after its creator revealed that the entire project was a joke filled with over-the-top satire packaged as liberal talking points designed to mock legitimate feminists and their supporters.

Medusa Magazine has been cited by several major sources but, “It has always been and will always be satire,” the site’s anonymous creator posted in a blog explaining why the site would shut down.

Medusa’s unnamed creator continued: “We are shutting down our rather hilarious project because we can no longer compete with our competition. We have come to realize that our competition is not other satirical websites, but rather the people we are trying to satirize.”

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UK: Rape trial collapse over undisclosed sex messages blamed on police funding cuts

Article here. Excerpt:

'Police funding cuts have been partly blamed for the collapse of a rape trial amid fears over potential miscarriages of justice.

A judge threw out the charges against 22-year-old Liam Allan after lawyers discovered messages showing the claimant wanted and enjoyed the sex she later claimed was non-consensual.

Mr Allan had been on bail for almost two years by the time the discovery was made, three days into his trial at Croydon Crown Court.

The messages had been obtained by police when they downloaded the contents of the woman’s phone, but investigators later told the lawyers they contained nothing relevant.
...
Mr Allan was charged with six counts of rape and six of sexual assault after the woman reported him to police, claiming their relationship was unhappy and abusive, and she did not want sex.

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"The View" co-host has her own sexual assault skeletons

Joy Behar, co-host of the daily talk show "The View", a frequent critic of men sexually harassing women (in particular, of Donald Trump), apparently has her own issues. A picture was recently uncovered showing her clearly grabbing Robin Williams' crotch in a supposed moment of levity. Snopes has confirmed the photo as authentic. Snopes, you will note, tries to wave off Behar's behavior as tolerable if not acceptable since she was not in a "position of power" relative to Williams. So, that makes it right? From the Snopes page:

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