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Rep. Polis states he didn't really mean it, but then says he sort of did
Submitted by Mastodon on Wed, 2015-09-16 00:31
Essay here. Excerpt:
'I mis-spoke.
During a subcommittee hearing last week about sexual assault on college campuses, I committed a major gaffe during the back-and-forth exchange with a witness who was advocating for removing the authority of colleges to adjudicate sexual assault cases that happen on their campuses. My words did not convey my beliefs nor the policies I now or have ever supported.
...
To most people who don't know much about this issue, it makes sense to solely adjudicate these cases in our criminal justice system, just like we do other crimes. The witness mentioned above who I was questioning was arguing for just such an approach.
However, this is a deeply dangerous idea that demonstrates a cursory and superficial understanding of the issue. Ask any sexual assault advocate and they'll tell you the same thing.
There are very important reasons why colleges and universities currently have jurisdiction over assaults that occur on their campuses, and why the process is separate from the criminal justice system. In my effort to defend this practice, I went too far, and I regret that my remarks have detracted from the substance of this debate and have reflected poorly on the good work being done by college offices across the country that investigate these cases, including two in my own backyard in Colorado (University of Colorado at Boulder and Colorado State University).
Decades of research and case histories show how woefully inadequate the criminal justice system can be for survivors of sexual assault. For starters, rape survivors are unlikely to report cases to police, citing things like not thinking it's important enough, not wanting others to know, not having proof, fearing retaliation, and being uncertain about whether what happened constitutes assault . According to a recent Department of Justice study, only 20 percent of campus sexual assault survivors report the assault to police.'
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Comments
One word
weasel
'nuff said.
Creating a hostile environment for men
Polis obviously wants to create a hostile environment for men--to encourage them to quit school. So much for equal protection under Title IX.
His argument is simple: it's much easier to find a man guilty if the standard of proof is lowered and the accused is unable to present a defense. He just assumes the accused are always guilty. And they are: they're guilty of being male.
As to his statement that if there's a 20% percent chance the man is guilty, he should be expelled, wouldn't it follow that if there's a 20% chance the man is guilty, there's an 80% chance the woman is making a false accusation? If there's an 80% chance she's guilty, shouldn't she be expelled for making a false accusation?
I don't believe he
I don't believe he "mis-spoke." His statements were too well thought-out and too many details. I think he thought he was going to be praised for his 'tough stance' on campus rape, yet thankfully he was highly criticized.
Not once during his back-peddling ramblings did he apologize to men.
Hopefully he will be voted out soon.
Liberal district
Unfortunately, he's in the Boulder congressional district which always elects a Democrat as it's so liberal. The only hope would be to oust him in the primaries.