This Whole “Presumption of Innocence” Thing is For Girls

Posted by Enrique on 03.27.2008

A new Ad Council campaign is directed at men, telling us to raise our sons to believe that violence against women is unacceptable is any circumstance. But what happens when a woman hits a man? As all heterosexual men know from experience, everything’s our fault. Even though studies show that women are just as likely to initiate domestic violence as men.



For our story this week, let's take a break from election coverage and focus on a topic that the MSM would prefer to ignore – how women are using their power to ruin the world. Unfortunately, female sexism is a very serious institutional problem in America, and it's about time something was done about it. Gentlemen – it's time for us to take back the night.

The story so far…

You may be familiar with the story of Kory McFarren, although if you are, you probably still don't recognize the name. Kory McFarren is the dude from Kansas whose girlfriend sat on the toilet for two years. It was nearly impossible to miss this story last week, since it had an incredible human interest angle, i.e., we humans are interested in reading about people doing freaky shit. If you're not familiar with the story, here's the executive version: Woman in her mid-30's with a severe social anxiety disorder won't leave bathroom for almost two years. Her boyfriend, with whom she's been involved since they were both teenagers, brings her food every day and asks her to come out of the bathroom. She doesn't come out, and boyfriend finally calls the authorities, who take her to the hospital to have the toilet seat surgically removed because she had developed open sores and the seat had become attached to her very body EWWWWW FUCK THAT CHRIST #^%#$. If you want the full story, Google "Wichita Toilet Butt" and you're in for hours of worthwhile reading, I assure you.

However, the story of these star-crossed lovers doesn't end there. How could it? Because the bizarre Wichita toilet woman attracted such wide media attention, the authorities decided to show they weren't sleeping on the job. According to the AP:

A man whose girlfriend authorities say spent nearly two years in a bathroom in their house, sitting on the toilet so long that the seat adhered to her body, has been charged with mistreatment of a dependent adult…

Ness County Attorney Craig Crosswhite said the mistreatment charge most closely fit the situation.

"I looked at the statutes and spoke to the attorney general's office," he said. "This was a very unusual set of circumstances, and this is the law that most closely applied to the situation."

In other words, this busybody County Attorney had to go through some effort to charge McFarren with a crime. But why charge him at all? How is McFarren's behavior criminal? We all make accommodations for the quirks of our loved ones, and we don't always know how to react when our loved one's quirks go apeshit. This poor bastard didn't know what to do when his only girlfriend since high school had a crazy spell. I don't know who I would call if my girlfriend/wife did something like that. I'd be embarrassed. In the end, McFarren did eventually call the authorities and got her medical attention. The fact that it took two years to make that call may be bad judgment, but why is it a crime?

Because he's a man. If some Unpleasant Peculiar Occurrence gets a lot of media coverage, a MAN must be held responsible. The assumption that McFarren committed a crime is so deeply embedded that the windbag County Attorney bragged to the press that he had to trump up a charge. If the Wichita toilet woman's live-in mate had been female, can you imagine anyone going so far to charge her? The implicit message is that when an adult woman develops a pathological toilet attachment, she shouldn't be held responsible – the nearest male is the one at fault. Persecute Prosecute him!

The same day I read that AP article, I happened to be listening to the radio at work, and I was mildly outraged by a new "domestic violence prevention" spot I heard from the Ad Council. The ad was part of a campaign called "Coaching Boys Into Men," sponsored by the New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence:



The U.S. Dept. Justice is taking a similar approach with its own ad campaign. Here's the language from one its recent posters (PDF here, your tax dollars at work), which closely resembles the language of the radio ad I heard:

"Violence against women is wrong, no matter how you look at it. Men play an important role in our nation's efforts to stop violence against women. All men have the opportunity to serve as role models for other men and boys in regard to the treatment of women and girls. Boys need to be taught at a young age that using violence against women is wrong and will not be tolerated. Men are in a unique position to communicate this message in a strong, compassionate, and meaningful way. Working in partnership, men and women together can make enormous strides toward changing attitudes and perceptions around domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking."

The reason that I'm mildly outraged by this whole "Coaching Boys Into Men" theme is that it rests on two profoundly sexist assumptions: 1) All men are potential rapists, and 2) Violence against women is wrong in all circumstances, even if the woman initiates it. As a man, the law views YOU as the aggressor, and if a woman assaults you, you must not take any action to defend yourself, because you have a unique burden of proof to live up to. It's always the man's fault. To really push the point, the NYOPDV website displays a handy list entitled "Ten Things You Can Teach Young Men About Ending Violence Against Women." As you can see, it's pretty rich, but let's skip to the end, because the final point is always the "go home" message:

"10. Remind young men that they are responsible for all of their choices and behaviors. Encourage young men to discuss and really think about their own behaviors. Nobody can "make" them be violent and there is never a justifiable reason to hurt, abuse, or threaten someone else."

(Emphasis in original.) The State of New York is unambiguously saying – don't come to us when your woman freaks out on you. If you're going through a messy divorce, and some things are said in anger that can't be taken back, don't expect fair treatment from the state. You will be held responsible, because you are a man. If a woman hits you, and you grab and hold her arms until she calms down, YOU are the one that will spend the night in jail. As a man, you are responsible for your choices, and there is never a justifiable reason to even raise your voice to a woman, because hurting a girl's feelings is a crime in this state.

To counter the State of New York's top ten list, here's a (shorter) list of my own:

1. Domestic violence legislation assumes that men are guilty. Modern domestic violence laws are an outgrowth of the orthodox feminist view that all men are batterers at heart. As anyone who has seen an episode of "Cops" knows, many states and municipalities have laws that require officers to make an arrest when they respond to a domestic disturbance. Sometimes, the officer has to make an arrest even if he/she didn't witness an assault, and regardless of whether the wife/girlfriend wants the man to be arrested. Do I even need to tell you how often these mandatory arrest laws are enforced against women? Apparently, "presumption of innocence" is for girls.

2. Women are just as likely to initiate domestic violence as men. Academic research has shown that men and women are equally likely to resort to violence. British psychologist John Archer, as well as Americans researchers Murray Strauss and Richard Gelles, have analyzed domestic violence data and found that overall rates of violence are the same for women and men. However, men are more likely to cause injuries to women, even though the rates of violence are the same. Without excusing true abusers who injure their female partners without justification, I can't help but notice that the law seems to treat men differently because we can take a punch. This is what our founders intended?

3. Abused men have almost no legal recourse. We have no idea how many men are in abusive relationships/marriages. Almost no men come forward because they're afraid of ridicule. Most people don't believe that a woman is capable of abuse. If a woman hits you, you're expected to "take it like a man." Men in abusive relationships don't have the option of hitting back, because they're the ones that will go to jail if they do. Men are just as likely to feel "trapped" in an abusive marriage as women, because they know they won't be as likely to get custody of their children if they try to leave. In addition, accusations of abuse can be used by women during divorce proceedings, and the burden of proof will be on the man to refute the charge. Good thing that women aren't ever needlessly vindictive. Am I right, fellas?

The ugly truth is that battered men are screwed. The system doesn't care about them, and most people think they're just wimps. Well, they're not wimps. They're victims of a perversion of feminist doctrine that says women should be equal to men…except when it comes to taking responsibility for the consequences of their actions. It's unjust, un-American, and we should repeal domestic violence laws that treat men as guilty until proven innocent. I don't suppose that will happen any time soon, so I guess all we can do is make sure a girl won't be our next President. It's all we've got left at this point.