Morality Police

Sexual assault is a serious crime. It's not something to be sneered at or brushed aside. But sexual assault requires a victim, and when that victim refuses to press charges, and the DA in the case announces there was never enough evidence to build a case anyway, then the accused is innocent, because there was no crime.

Regardless of what actually happened in that night-club bathroom, and who might have been paid off afterward, we must presume Ben Roethlisberger's innocence...if we wish to be protected by the laws of the land, we must respect when they exonerate others.


I am not a Steelers fan or a Ben apologist. I don't think he's exceptionally bright, and he doesn't always make good decisions. But I'm sick of the "where there's smoke, there's fire" finger-wagging of Generation Scold. Ben's going to be punished by either the NFL or the Steelers, and by all accounts he'll continue to apologize and take his punishment without complaint. He'll lose millions of dollars in game checks, and be publicly admonished by every talking head and sports talk-show host, and he hasn't even been charged with a crime, let alone convicted. Does this bother anyone else?

When famous athletes have sex with lots of women, even 20-year-olds in nightclub bathrooms, why should any of us be surprised? Why should we sit in judgement over them, demanding both public humiliation and financial loss? When 60% of the population is cheating on their spouse, how pathetic is it that we punish others for their promiscuity? How well would an average Joe resist the beautiful temptations that follow money and power, when most of us can't resist the mediocre charms of a dumpy co-worker or Facebook friend?

As far as I'm concerned, Ben should fuck every hot 20-year-old in the country if he can. As long as he's staying within the bounds of the law, there's no reason to avoid college bars at 2am. When liking pussy becomes a crime, they're going to have to build a lot more jails...but until then, Ben can be my QB anytime.