HARASS: No, Bill wasn't first

“Follow the Harassment” by Dave Tolle gave me a good belly laugh on a Friday morning. I am not sure why he thinks harassment of females by American politicians started with Bill Clinton. It is amusing to think politics is the source of all female harassment and Bill the origin.

George Washington did “it” with his female slaves; FDR did “it” with multiple females; the charming Kennedy men were notorious womanizers. Predation of females crosses all parties, all religions, all ages and does not discriminate. Power is an aphrodisiac for both sides. Clinton merely used his position of power like the rest, not a novel precedent for a president. Only the involved parties know if they were part of a couple, as opposed to a predator and victim. Pheromones are real, but not always mutual, as we are finding out hourly.

The curtain has been pulled back on a deep seeded culture of open and clandestine harassment, misconduct and sadly rape by males on females and it is not unique to the USA. It is a time to reflect on YOUR role, male and female alike, in the ongoing and previously accepted suborning of females to male objectification and humiliation. The tip of the iceberg is all we see in the news and it is not a red or blue issue — it is societal and historic.

LYNN FLEMING

Coeur d’Alene