BILL COSBY IS A CONVICTED RAPIST

curmudgeoness said:

1) Yes, he is.

2) I find it fascinating that, as far as I can tell, all of the posters on this thread, with one or maybe two exceptions, are male.

3) The burden of proof is always on the prosecution in a criminal trial, hence the saying "innocent until proven guilty." Rape is pecuiar in that, during the trial, the victim's history often gets prosecuted alongside the alleged perpetrator. Imagine that someone was on trial for running an auto theft ring, and the defense argued that those people whose cars were stolen bear part of the blame, because they should have known better than to park them on the street in this part of town or another, or to be out driving late at night.

4) "What about innocent until proven guilty?!?" Yes, what about it, indeed? If you are charged with a crime and brought to trial, again, the burden is on the prosecution to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that you are guilty. Until they do so, you are presumed innocent.
That doesn't mean that the general public is required to withold its opinions, though -- and, given that nearly sixty women have accused Cosby of rape, I believe them (I also believe him, and his talk of Quaaludes and Spanish fly; I also believe that the pussy-grabber does indeed enjoy grabbing women by the genitals, and I believe that OJ killed Ron Brown and Nicole Simpson.)

This is similar to people screaming about the First Amendment -- a general misunderstanding of what a concept means. The First Amendment protects you from being thrown in jail for being a member of the Westboro Baptist Church or for posting disgusting, racist crap on Facebook; it does NOT protect you from losing your job for doing those things, and it doesn't protect you from having someone else alert your employer to your obnoxious behavior.

My thoughts, speaking as a woman:
A) Tina Fey made allusions to Cosby being a rapist waaaaay back when she hosted "Weekend Update" on SNL. The rumors were around for YEARS. They did not gain any traction until Hannibal Buress called out Cosby during his performance.
little a) What really bums me out is that there are open secrets like this about other famous, powerful men, and nobody is doing anything about it. Too many people want to believe that rich, famous, talented people somehow are above behaving badly; it's just not true. And I'm not talking about the rumors relating to our current president. Too many other people stand to lose money or prestige if the guilty person is brought down (Penn State, anyone?).

What about false accusations? Well, false accusations suck. The Duke lacrosse players were falsely accused of rape, and it did a lot of damage to their reputations. But if you think that there is a 1:1 correlation, one false claim for one legitimate accusation, I don't know what to tell you. Maybe you need to go find some female friends and ask them about their experiences with sexual assault and harassment; I think it will be an eye-opening experience for you.

C) Why don't women speak up? Um, seriously? Go back and read through this thread -- that's why. Too many questions: Are you a virgin? What were you wearing? Were you drinking? Why did you agree to get in a car with him? Where were your friends? Why were you out alone? Well, if he drugged you and you can't remember anything, how do you know you were raped? Are you sure you didn't send mixed signals? Did you fight back? Did you fight back HARD? Are you sure you aren't just trying to get back at him because he wasn't interested in you? Maybe you're jealous? Maybe you're just desperate for attention? It's just your word against his, and you say that you blacked out, so really we just have his word to go on, and he says it was consensual. Oh, come on, who'd want to rape someone who looks like you?!? Does he seem like the kind of guy who has to take what he wants by force? I bet women are throwing themselves at him all the time!

Etc. etc. etc.
Given the odds of arrest, the odds of getting to trial, the odds of a conviction, the grilling they will have to endure themselves, it's really no wonder that many women never even bother to report what happened.

well said

PJfanwillneverleave1 said:

dankind said:

PJfanwillneverleave1 said:

This thread is oddly out of place on AET.

Should be moved to AMT.

Harder to troll here, we know. But keep trying. 

Because everyone thinks of AET when they want to discuss rape.
Seriously, move it.

Cliffy6745 said:

pjhawks said:

Jason P said:

Bill Cosby is going to teach seminars on how to avoid sexual assault.

http://time.com/4829192/bill-cosby-teach-youth-avoid-sexual-assault/

lesson #1: don't take a drink from Bill Cosby

Um, if you read this it is actually about how to avoid sexual assault allegations, not sexual assault.  You cannot make this stuff up.

"The laws are changing, the statute of limitations for victims of sexual assault are being extended, so this is why people need to be educated on a brush against the shoulder," she said. "Because anything at this point can be considered sexual assault and it is a good thing to be educated about the laws."

brianlux said:

Jason P said:

Bill Cosby is going to teach seminars on how to avoid sexual assault.

http://time.com/4829192/bill-cosby-teach-youth-avoid-sexual-assault/

Is this due to a guilty conscience?  An attempt to clear his name?  A behind the scenes plea bargain?  Who knows.

On the one hand, if it prevents an unsuspecting person from falling prey to foul play, that's great, but who could sit and listen to him talk on this subject without a little hesitation or doubt or bias or downright suspicion of motivation?

Jason P said:

Bill Cosby is going to teach seminars on how to avoid sexual assault.

http://time.com/4829192/bill-cosby-teach-youth-avoid-sexual-assault/