Current Events > Let's get something straight about sexual assault, guys.

(+) Yeah! (+)

When a woman doesn't report or admit to a sexual assault as soon as it happens, that is not in itself suspicious. Even if it's years later. Even decades later.

This persistant myth that a woman "suddenly coming forward despite never mentioning it before - she must be up to something" - has been studied and cataloged and debunked for literally decades now. You do any reading into any of the basic literature on the subject and even if you are not a psychologist or a criminologist or an experienced cop with 40 years on the field, you'll be able to figure out that there are lots of very straightforward reasons why a woman might be victim to an assault, say nothing, and then try to prosecute or go public years later. Yes, this includes celebrity cases. With Bill Cosby, Donald Trump, Bill Clinton - the suspicion should never be on why the women didn't come forward 30 years ago.

And as an aside, if you're going to consider every potential conspiracy theory with more fairness than the alleged victim's statement, and at the same time you're going to consider every potential conspiracy theory with as much credibility as you can muster, is your goal really about being "impartial"?
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Shut the fuck up
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Ok?

I mean I agree with you, but I'm just wondering what brought about this public service announcement.
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Lorenzo_2003 posted...

Ok?

I mean I agree with you, but I'm just wondering what brought about this public service announcement.

Because it's something I've been seeing a lot of on CE lately, and seems like a lot of people here are of the opinion that Bill Cosby's alleged victims were suspicious because of this.
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pinky0926 posted...

Lorenzo_2003 posted...

Ok?

I mean I agree with you, but I'm just wondering what brought about this public service announcement.

Because it's something I've been seeing a lot of on CE lately, and seems like a lot of people here are of the opinion that Bill Cosby's alleged victims were suspicious because of this.

Ahh, Ok, fair point. The Bill Cosby case is very suspicious and controversial to some people, while being an open and shut clear case of abuse to others.
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I mean, I completely agree but unlike normal cases in celebrity cases the alleged victims do have a lot more to earn than normal (money, 15 seconds of fame, etc.).

So yes, the victims in celebrity cases do deserve to be under more scrutiny because plenty will likely come out of the woodworks and lie for personal gain, moreso than a normal case.
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It's one thing to wait a while. It's another to never come forward at all until Trump is about to win the election.
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pinky0926 posted...

This persistant myth that a woman "suddenly coming forward

She should if she wants justice. Waiting until all possible evidence is long gone isn't going to do any good. Furthermore, it opens them up to libel/slander suits later if they do decide to come forward.
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Eevee-Trainer posted...

I mean, I completely agree but unlike normal cases in celebrity cases the alleged victims do have a lot more to earn than normal (money, 15 seconds of fame, etc.).

So yes, the victims in celebrity cases do deserve to be under more scrutiny because plenty will likely come out of the woodworks and lie for personal gain, moreso than a normal case.

That is also why it lends more credibility to why they wouldn't come forward in the first place, at the same time.

Imagine - hypothetically - being a budding young black actress in the 70s (i.e. a complete nobody) and Bill Cosby (the most famous black man in hollywood) rapes you. To give a simile, if you were a navy private (seamen, I think they're called) and the Fleet Admiral raped you, would you be in a hurry to court martial him? Or maybe if 100 other seamen came forward and you weren't in the navy anymore, and the Fleet Admiral retired - maybe then you'd feel a bit more empowered.

Just saying. This alone is neither a suspicion nor a proof.
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Anarchy_Juiblex posted...

pinky0926 posted...

This persistant myth that a woman "suddenly coming forward

She should if she wants justice. Waiting until all possible evidence is long gone isn't going to do any good. Furthermore, it opens them up to libel/slander suits later if they do decide to come forward.

It's a pity though that as soon as she does come forward her life becomes unimaginably worse. I mean you've just been raped, so now you're going to go through a court case that will take years and drag your name through the mud and ensure you'll never get a job in hollywood? Rape survivors tend to want peace more than justice given the choice.
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