You said everything I wanted to say about this case in a much better way than I could have, Stahn my Man. I really wish Markie had read this post of yours before deciding to leave the board (yet again). You pointed out all the reasons why many (though not all) people in this community know better than to to react out of hand to such accusations before a thorough and objective investigation is conducted. There are many questions that need to be asked in cases like this, particularly how the boys felt about it, but those who are quick to condemn Sandusky do not seem to consider that the answer to this and other very important questions are considered irrelevant by the LEOs and media pundits. We have to make them relevant to us and ask them before we jump on the same bandwagon that everyone else does in an attempt to make ourselves look "presentable" and "sympathetic" to possible victims (in a real as opposed to simply legal sense) by engaging in rabid moral overcompensation.

Is there any chance you would like to work this post of yours into an essay for NewgonWiki, Stahn? It would be an honor to have it there, as it does not make any statement in favor of either guilt or innocence of Sandusky, but simply puts this type of case into proper perspective, and explains why the types of questions we ask here need to be asked and answered before we join the mob to lynch Sandusky.

I should also mention that back in the late '80s, a close friend of mine who is NOT an MAA was accused of sexually assaulting an 8-year-old girl who lived next door to him, whose family he was feuding with at the time (her father had a long criminal record, including for rape). This friend of mine is a good person who was never accused of anything like that before or since, and he is an excellent and caring father to a young girl whom I am proud to call a friend for so many years. No evidence was ever provided in defense of the accusations, and because of this, his lawyer was able to help him avoid getting jail time, but despite the lack of evidence he still had to do three years of probation and agree to receive rehabilitative counseling during that time. His counselor was dead set convinced he committed the crime despite the lack of evidence or lack of legal record on his part simply because he was accused of this type of crime. As soon as he learned there was a warrant out for his arrest, he honorably turned himself into the police station, and while he was both there and standing before the court, he felt that he was treated as if he was "guilty until proven guilty." That was the first time I ever heard that phrase, so I asked him if he actually meant, "guilty until proven innocent." He replied, "No, I meant guilty until proven guilty." Your use of that faux legal expression reminded me of my friend's nightmare so many years back.

During the entirety of my friend's probation he would totally freak out if an underage girl came anywhere near him, and he once screamed at me for a long period of time because when I was sitting in his car waiting for him to leave his father's house following an errand, to pass the time I was fiddling with a Transformer toy robot I had just bought, changing it from a car to a robot and back again, when this polite and sweet little girl approached the car and asked me what I had and if she could see the robot for a minute; I told her yes, and let her try to transform it for a few minutes until she gave it back and walked away.

My friend totally freaked on me about this, screaming to me things like, "What was the matter with you talking to that little girl? Do you know what we can get accused of?" I replied, "All she did was ask me to see the robot, and I let her tinker with it for a few, I didn't see the harm in it." And he screamed back, "You didn't see the harm in talking to some little girl you don't know!? What if she went back home and her mom asked her who she was talking to, and because she was too little to know what a robot was, she said something like, 'That guy over there let me play with his 'thing' for a bit,' and her mother got the wrong idea and called the police?! If that happened, no matter how silly the accusation, you and I would be totally fucked, and I don't need that right now!" I usually don't tolerate being yelled at like that, not even from a close friend, but considering what he went through, and considering how bad I felt to see him so messed up and terrified of little girls approaching him more than he would be if a rabid wolf did the same, I simply apologized and assured him I would never talk to a little girl around him again.

This is what happens to too many good people who are not even MAAs because of this hysteria, and I will never forget the sheer terror of a little girl that friend of mine had that day; this is why I ask questions whenever I hear of a case like this, and demand evidence, not just assumptions.