Another man behaving badly in Hollywood this time, Harvey Weinstein. What a shocker

[oberliner]

There are so many things about the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment revelations that are distressing and familiar that I hardly know where to start.

But let me try.

Weinstein is a 65-year-old married movie mogul who has been accused of sexually harassing women who work for him or have wanted to work for him over a period of nearly three decades. He is a man who can make and break careers, whose power has sometimes seemed infinite, whose temper is volcanic, and whose deft touch with stories and marketing has resulted in numerous Oscars.

In a blockbuster New York Times story published Thursday, reporters Jodi Kantor and Meghan Twohey interviewed Weinstein employees and actresses who said the producer invited them into his plush hotel rooms on the pretext of discussing work, then would ask for naked massages, make unwanted physical advances or request that they watch him shower.

http://www.latimes.com/local/abcarian/la-me-abcarian-weinstein-harassment-20171006-story.html

[ret5hd]

1. Well, heck...who wouldn't wanna watch this shower:

[WinkyDink]

25. He must be the origin of the term "LUMPENproletariat"!

[Blue_true]

45. That does not make you have an orgasm?

Excuse me, I feel an orgasm of puking coming on.

[HopeAgain]

2. They need to require settlements for harassment be reported

To the EEOC. These confidentiality settlement clauses allow the offenders with resources to repeatedly re-offend.

[WinkyDink]

3. His casting-couch is not at all a secret.

[oberliner]

4. Neither was Cosby's

Or the countless others.

Yet they still are protected for years and/or decades from any consequences.

[WinkyDink]

24. Yep. Soul- and body-selling for fame and $$$.

[oberliner]

26. Alternatively - powerful men taking advantage of young people

Who are do not always have the wherewithal to resist.

[Blue_true]

47. That is the most disgusting aspect of it all.

I am single. If a single woman offers herself to me, I may take up the offer, but she has to make it on her clearheaded own and then I will consider it based upon a lot of criteria. To force someone into sex when a power imbalance exists is immoral, IMO.

[oberliner]

51. Agreed

And the sad thing is just how common such behavior is among the rich and powerful.

[RandiFan1290]

5. I don't see anyone trying to defend him

Unlike the disgusting right wingers that defend their pedophile president.

[oberliner]

6. Just Lisa Bloom

For some reason.

[obamanut2012]

7. She is his attorney

[RandiFan1290]

8. lol

[oberliner]

10. Gloria Allred on Daughter Lisa Bloom Working for Harvey Weinstein: I Would Have Declined

“Had I been asked by Mr. Weinstein to represent him, I would have declined, because I do not represent individuals accused of sex harassment,” Allred said a statement Thursday released just after a bombshell New York Times story had settled at least eight cases of sexual harassment spanning decades.

...

“While I would not represent Mr. Weinstein, I would consider representing anyone who accused Mr. Weinstein of sexual harassment, even if it meant that my daughter was the opposing counsel,” said Allred.

https://www.thewrap.com/gloria-allred-daughter-lisa-bloom-working-harvey-weinstein-declined/

[oberliner]

9. It is odd that she is choosing to represent someone who may be accused of sexual impropriety

Bloom is famous for defending victims of sexual harassment and assault.

[Blue_Adept]

14. She's not representing him

She's advising him and trying to make sure that he doesn't do the things others have done to people like her clients in the past, such as digging up dirt on them and trying to ruin them in the public square.

She's really walking a fine line here and her GMA interview made that clear. I don't think she's going to be successful at it and may hinder her own reputation by it. But it does give her something useful in that she gets to see the other side some and that can help in how to handle her own cases better.

[oberliner]

15. Yes, she is

In a statement, Lisa Bloom, another attorney representing Weinstein, said that he had asked her to perform a “comprehensive review of his company’s policies and practices regarding women in the workplace.” Bloom is well-known for representing women in high-profile sexual harassment cases, including model Janice Dickinson in a matter against Cosby. Weinstein Co. is developing a television project based on Bloom’s book “Suspicion Nation.”

http://www.latimes.com/business/hollywood/la-fi-ct-harvey-weinstein-exits-20171005-story.html

[Kingofalldems]

17. So what is your point? No one here is defending him.

[oberliner]

18. The poster above said that Lisa Bloom is not representing him, but she is

So I was correcting that erroneous claim.

[Kingofalldems]

20. Big deal---lawyers represent people.

Looks like we have one harasser---the right has scores of them.

[oberliner]

27. Lisa Bloom is not just any lawyer

She is famous for defending victims of sexual harassment and assault. Her mother, Gloria Allred, who has a similar claim to fame, has said she would never have agreed to represent Weinstein.

[Blue_Adept]

21. She said plainly today on GMA with George Stephanopolous that she is NOT his attorney

He has someone else actively defending him as an attorney. She made it clear that she's advising him only and NOT serving as the attorney.

So I'll take what she said outright.

I went through the video again and I may have conflated part of it as there's multiple lawyers involved. Still, the way she's playing this is very dangerous and I'm not sure she's playing full on lawyer in this with the things she said in that interview.

[hardluck]

23. She did not say that

She stated that she was advising him but not defending him in an active litigation. She is still representing him as his his attorney and is providing him advice and counsel which is the role of an attorney.

Think of it this way. If she was not his attorney and not representing him then there would be no attorney-client privilege and she could be compelled to testify as to her communications with him. Also any of her writings would not be protected by the work product privilege. There is just no way that this is the case.

She’s providing the gilding on his fantastical store that he’s seeking to change. It’s a dangerous public game for her to play as I doubt he’ll change - people just don’t change their essence and his essence is of a misogynistic bully.

[oberliner]

29. No she didn't

She is one of her lawyers. He is paying her to represent him. She is part of his legal team.

[LanternWaste]

28. I get that correcting people is more fun than actual relevance

I get that correcting people can be more fun than actual relevance-- especially in grade school, but you've been taking it to a professional level lately. Nice work!

[oberliner]

30. Thank you

I'm glad somebody gets it!

[Blue_Adept]

22. Here's her interview from this morning

[oberliner]

31. The interview starts at around 4 minutes

She makes it clear that she is on his legal team (something George S also finds surprising).

[Blue_Adept]

12. she's not his attorney

She's advising him. She just had an amusing piece on GMA threading the needle of it by saying that she wanted to see what it was like on the other side and to try and advise someone on better ways to handle this - largely by not trying to shame or dig up dirt on the accusers, admit to the actions, and work to a better path forward.

Again, I'm not defending Weinstein, just discussing the details of how this is playing out.

[oberliner]

16. Yes, she is

See above.

[Blue_true]

48. She is a close friend of him and his wife. nt

[oberliner]

50. So she has probably known about his behavior all along

Which is even more distressing.

[Blue_true]

52. I like Lisa Bloom. I hope this is new to her and she is just trying to sort things out.

No all sexual claims are true, but Weinstein appears to have a history.

[bettyellen]

54. It wasn't new to anyone who heard of Weinstein. She had to know.

[AngryAmish]

11. Is Weinstein active in politics?

[Blue_Adept]

13. Yep. A big Dem booster at that.

[cwydro]

19. Yikes.

[gratuitous]

34. And for that reason, conservatives are baffled

They can't for the life of them figure out why we're not all rallying to Weinstein's defense. They think we're in thrall to some foreign potentate named Prince Ipple, who has bamboozled liberals everywhere.

[Watchfoxheadexplodes]

32. Heard cnn yacking about he has a beautiful wife

What does that have to do with anything?

[oberliner]

33. He is clearly a sexual predator

Who has used his power to engage in such conduct and to cover it up.

[Blue_true]

49. His wife is very good looking and she is a top dog in the fashion world.

But, that does not stop a husband from being a sexual predator. For the men, it is all about exercising power over someone who is not in a strong position to say no.

[bettyellen]

55. He gave her an entree into dressing- his young stars- during Oscar and Globe season...

Ironic to think about him exploiting both sides of the dress up for the Oscars thing.

[get the red out]

35. I keep seeing Rs say

That his actions are some kind of indictment of liberals, or mean liberals shouldn’t have had a problem with Trump’s history of sexual harassment, but this horrible Weinstein guy isn’t in a position to influence women’s rights nationally, but we have to put up with having to refute false equivalencies continuously.

[oberliner]

36. Check out this article

Democrats Begin Shunning Harvey Weinstein Campaign Donations

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10029680806

[Kingofalldems]

37. Looks like your are pushing this story hard. Why is that?

We have moved on from Weinstein--he will get what he deserves.

[oberliner]

39. Moved on?

The story just broke yesterday.

[Kingofalldems]

41. Not one prominent Dem is defending him and certainly no one here.

On the other hand GOP sexual harassment seems to be systemic. Perhaps you could post an OP about that.

[oberliner]

42. I would hope not

I've made another OP about Democrats returning money they received from him in campaign donations.

[BannonsLiver]

46. +1

[Kingofalldems]

38. Here's a partial list of republican sexual harassers/sexual misconduct:

Sen. Ensign, Mark Sanford, Larry Craig, David Vitter, Mark Foley, Packwood et al.

Then there is Fox News, with Ailes, O'Reilly, Gingrich et al.

The list goes on and on. Sad, don't you think?

[oberliner]

40. It's sickening

The list of prominent Republicans who have engaged in this sort of behavior is endless.

[tenderfoot]

43. Harvey Weinstein, as sleazy as he is doesn't affect most people's lives...

but for those he abused personally.

I'm glad he's being brought to justice - same goes for Bill Cosby - so quit trying to turn this into the partisan scandal right wingers are frothing at the mouth for.

[oberliner]

44. Almost every woman has their own "Harvey Weinstein"

And a story about being sexually harassed or worse.

The more we can give voice to those who stand up to the powerful men who are committing these heinous acts (usually with no consequences), the more we can take a step (albeit a small one) in a positive direction.

[BannonsLiver]

53. Nuance

Its possible to believe that Weinstein is a pig who deserves his comeuppance while also believing that attempts to make this the fault and responsibility of Dems by slimes like Chris Cilliza should be met with a firm "go F yourself, Chris."

Weinstein will no longer be a donor to Dems in all probability. Problem solved. The rest is up to the courts.