Let's let the justice system do its job before we draw any grand conclusions, shall we? If these charges are baseless, it will play itself out in court. If these charges are true, well welcome to the real world...one's sexual orientation or politics or supreme being of choice or the side they part their hair on has yet to make that person or that person's group of choice any less or any more prejudiced, corrupt, or just plain stupid than everyone else on the planet.

That's why it's called "human nature."

Just like with the Duke case BS must pile on with baseless speculation, race/gender cards and hoary old sterotypes, whilst ignoring all evidence to the contrary. Screw innocent until proven guilty.

Writes Adrienne So:

The danger here is that, regardless of whether the allegations prove to be true, some will draw broad conclusions about sexual orientation based on the scandal.

Sexual harassment cases get prominent news attention, but they do not seem to be common.

The only people who may let this one case be an excuse to be prejudiced against all lesbians are those who are already prejudiced against all lesbians, and those whose IQ's lie in the bottom 10% of the population (if there is in fact any difference between these two groups).

There is actually an upside for lesbians in general. Many people don't know any, or at least don't know they know any, lesbians, and think of them as "exotic" and mysterious -- and frankly don't know what to think about them, absent any personal experience they are aware of.

Looking on the bright side, this article only shows people that lesbians have foibles just like everyone else, and thus maybe they really are essentially like everyone else.

Adrienne So also writes:

But it's terribly sad that, whatever the case's outcome, Bleskachek's trailblazing reputation will suffer.

Assuming the investigation was done fairly -- and among all U.S. cities of its size, Minneapolis is quite likely to do such an investigation fairly -- why in the world would it be terribly sad that a sexual harasser is located and dealt with?

It is only those with an IQ below room temperature who think women have different talents from me. The only people who will take this fall from grace the wrong way are those who've been taking everything the wrong way from day 1, anyway.

There is no evidence I've ever heard that appears to show lesbians engage in an unusual amount of sexual harassment; they are a group like other groups with their share of good qualities and less good qualities. There will be plenty of chances for women to rise to the top of any field, just as many already have.

My guess is that male fIrefighters -- by natural selection -- probably have more testosterone (literally) than the average bear, which makes them ever so much more defensive about their maleness (especially when a woman wants in to their profession). Which is entirely reprehensible and inexcusable. But male youth gangs and sports teams, also probably brimming over with Vitamin T, are similarly known for their propensities for bad behavior.

So without excusing a thing, perhaps we should be lesss than surprised when male firefighters act like teenagers, harassing women who want in to their profession.

Maybe firefighters as a group, regardless of gender, have more testosterone than the average Smokey the Bear. I surely don't know,

but it's interesting to speculate about.

The sentence should have read " . . . have different talents from men. (Boldface added here only to highlight where the error was.)

The article is about women, doing sexual harrassment to other women. And xylu immediately starts in on the typical male-bashing.

Unreal.

Is it possible that the charges against her are true? Yes. Lesbians are as capable of carrying on inappropriate (supervisor/subordinate) work-place relationships as much as straight women, straight men and gay men.

It's also possible the charges are not true. Let's see what Minneapolis determines really happened. But let's also not man-bash or put lesbians on a pedestal onto which they don't necessarily belong. (And if it matters, I am a lesbian.)

That it's not men who are jerks, but people in positions of power who are jerks.