Making Cosby The Victim

As more women come forth to claim they were victims of sexual predation by comedian Bill Cosby, more questions are raised about the timing of the accusations, the actions of the man and the abuses of the power he held that allowed the incidents to continue. Several issues come to this editors mind regarding the story, many of which are being well discussed by the talking heads we allow to represent our collective conscience, and some which are not. As a preface it should be mentioned that however damning the reports appear, and they do appear damning, we live in a country that supposedly holds one innocent until proven guilty, and if we allow our intellects to remain in force we should honor that belief until evidence and the courts have proven things out one way or another,

As to the questions pondered by this editor, one of curiosity is the almost universal allegation that victims were drugged prior to the reported assaults. This factor could cut many ways. Were victims lucid enough after the drugging to fully recall the assault? Why was it Mr. Cosby allegedly used the drugs? Men in his position surely have ample opportunities without having to resort to rufinol.

But the most revealing aspect of the revelations is the, once again, either abuse of the power of celebrity or the abuse of the celebrity. For a moment we should all bear in mind that either case is possible and indeed either case is probable. The famous, the wealthy, the conspicuous are all potential victims of the inconspicuous, the poor and the powerless for the same reason that banks were the favored target of Willie Sutton, because “That’s where the money is.” Few unhappy poor are sued, but the rich, powerful and famous are in and out of court all the time.

Once the blood was in the water it seems the camps began to form and those defending the man tried to shout down those vilifying him with no more evidence than what our ratings starved media changelings splashed across the screens. Unfortunately both camps forgot a simple idea that’s been around a long time, that everyone is capable of bad behavior and that judgement comes to us all. Hopefully clarity will come soon and we can stop the lynch mob mentality and let the issue play out fairly.