Jack Lessenberry Facing Multiple Sexual Harassment Allegations Quits MetroTimes

[Evelyn]

He’s also out at Michigan Radio:

http://michiganradio.org/post/jack-l...nt-allegations

[Colombian Dan]

Now it's Morgan Freeman's turn.... How the left consume their young and old alike.......the purge continues,...
https://edition.cnn.com/2018/05/24/e...ons/index.html

[Wesley Mouch]

This "Wesley Mooch" writes like he was Lessenberry's wing man

That would be proof that unlike the left, I do not pay heed to tribalism, and Mr. Lessenberry's politics are abhorrent.

I am proud to be his 'wingman' however as regards his right to innocence until proven guilty. Accusations years later don't impress me. Too easy to be politically motivated manipulation.

If these accusations are true, then shame on the victims, and shame on WSU who must have known -- because they could have read 'rate my professor'. And shame on everyone else who lets bad behavior fester instead of addressing it.

So are we to believe that these claims are valid [[dozens on RMP), and nobody bothered to complain to WSU administration? Or that they did and WSU admin did nothing? Explain that to me, please.

Proud wingman of traditional justice, Mouch.

[Bham1982]

Now it's Morgan Freeman's turn.... How the left consume their young and old alike.......the purge continues,...
https://edition.cnn.com/2018/05/24/e...ons/index.html

Has nothing to do with the "Left". All decent people want women to not be victims of assault. Predators obviously encompass all types and viewpoints.

[bust]

I like what Michelle Goldberg wrote about sexual harassment in the broader context of politics.

Franken Is Leaving and Trump Is Still Here
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/07/o...nt-resign.html

It's interesting to note which workplaces have held sexual harassers to account, and which have not.

I'll quote Goldberg, since most people don't have a subscription to the Times:

“...the ["me too"] revolution is smaller than it first appears. So far, it has been mostly confined to liberal-leaning sectors like entertainment, the media, academia, Silicon Valley and the Democratic Party. It hasn't rocked the Republicans, corporate America or Wall Street — with some exceptions — because these realms are less responsive to feminist pressure.”

Her main point: despite the “astonishing number of powerful and famous men who have recently been fired or disgraced”, the only victims with new recourse to speak out are those “whose harassers are either personally or professionally susceptible to shame.”

In other words, conservatives [[what a ridiculously misapplied term for their ideology) have thus far done little to nothing to self-reflect and improve.

Goldberg:

“Certainly, Fox News has jettisoned men exposed for egregious misconduct, like Roger Ailes and Bill O’Reilly. But the Fox Business anchor Charles Payne is back on the air despite a lawsuit from the former Fox pundit Scottie Nell Hughes, who claims that he raped her. Republicans are not lining up to demand the resignation of Blake Farenthold, the Texas congressman who recently agreed to pay back $84,000 in public money he used to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit by a former employee.”

Don't forget how the Republican party, all the way up to the President, rallied around accused child molester Roy Moore of Alabama. Nor how Trump rewarded Roger Ailes with a job working for his election campaign promptly after Fox realized they could no longer ignore the overwhelming evidence he had been harassing women for decades.

Now Bill O'Reilly is in advanced talks to make a comeback on cable news. Unsurprisingly, it will be on Newsmax, the station owned by Trump confidant Chris Ruddy.

Then of course, there's the president himself, who faces 19 allegations of sexual misconduct, has paid off porn stars for extramarital affairs, has bragged about molesting women, and who among his countless other vulgarities agreed his own daughter is "a piece of ass."

It's worse than ironic the "toxic headwinds" conservatives complain about are in reference to those facing a small minority of harassers who are being held accountable for their abuse of power, not those that have subjected women to discrimination and harassment since oh, forever. Whether or not they personally harass women themselves, they perpetuate the environment that allows harassment to continue. If when it's "his word against hers" his is the one that always prevails...

That said, I agree every accusation must withstand scrutiny. An accusation is not proof of guilt. But the standard should not be the same as in a court of law. No one goes to jail. Enough smoke is reasonable evidence of a fire, even after the fire.

And conservatives are usually the first to champion "at-will" employment arrangements that allow an employer to terminate an employee for any reason or no reason at all. Will a conservative please explain how a job is a privilege, not an entitlement, unless you're facing credible accusations of misbehavior clearly out of line with the [[official) standard of professional conduct?

Perhaps we should also look carefully at those who most vociferously attempt to refute the accusations, especially those not party to them. What motivates these supposed champions of justice and liberty to so vigorously doubt?

Case in point:

If these accusations are true, then shame on the victims...

What the F-ing F?!? Adding insult to injury, much worse.

Here's a theory:

Why Do People Blame the Victim?
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/b...ame-the-victim

How strange to demand evidence of sexual harassment so strong to eliminate even a court-of-law standard of reasonable doubt, while on the other hand authoring so many words here in support of New York's stop-and-frisk policy, which targeted black and latino youths who overwhelmingly showed no evidence of wrongdoing at all. It reached epidemic proportions before it was declared unconstitutional. The logic conflicts. Can both be attributed to victim-blaming pathology?

I think that analysis is too kind.

Victim-blaming and victim-shaming compounds the offense. And it discourages victims from coming forward.

More voices that were silent [[or silenced) on this topic have recently been heard. But so many voices that deserve to be heard are still silent.

Victims have been silenced for far too long. There is no excuse for that to continue.

It is time for everyone, not just liberals, to address a severe problem that clearly exists.

[aj3647]

Now it's Morgan Freeman's turn.... How the left consume their young and old alike.......the purge continues,...
https://edition.cnn.com/2018/05/24/e...ons/index.html

What exactly is "the Left" doing here? Some women made accusations against Freeman. As far as I'm aware, he's suffered no criminal or professional punishment as of yet for any of this. And what would be the Left's political motivation for wanting to "purge" Morgan Freeman?

You need to stop watching Fox News and reading Breitbart, it's turning your brain into mush.

So are we to believe that these claims are valid [[dozens on RMP), and nobody bothered to complain to WSU administration? Or that they did and WSU admin did nothing? Explain that to me, please.

Yes. Why is that so hard to believe? Two words: Larry Nassar. Women spoke up...and were ignored. Time and time again. You can find plenty of examples of large organizations and institutions doing the exact same thing.

And yes, many victims don't formally report for a variety of reasons, which includes fear of retribution or a belief that the system will simply ignore them [[which it often does) or for fear of being labeled a trouble maker or a liar or a slut. In the military, only about 40% of female sex assault victims and just 10% of male victims ever report a sexual assault. It's not easy to make accusations against those in power when the system is designed to protect THEM, not you.

[Towne Cluber]

Much like Charles Pugh, Kwame Kilpatrick, and John Conyers--Jack Lessenberry's predatory behavior has been well-known around town for years.

[Wesley Mouch]

Has nothing to do with the "Left". All decent people want women to not be victims of assault. Predators obviously encompass all types and viewpoints.

Very true. Sad it is.

AFAIK, in this case they remain allegations. So I assume he is innocent until proven guilty -- regardless of his strong left-leaning politics.

But Bham... its OK to enjoy for just a brief moment the irony of a ardent Obama & H. Clinton supporter being painted as evil now by the left.

[Evelyn]

Question: I seem to recall a thread about Lessenberry’s behavior, but a thread that was posted on here way back— around 2005 or so. Is this ringing any bells for anyone else?

[aj3647]

Very true. Sad it is.

AFAIK, in this case they remain allegations. So I assume he is innocent until proven guilty -- regardless of his strong left-leaning politics.

But Bham... its OK to enjoy for just a brief moment the irony of a ardent Obama & H. Clinton supporter being painted as evil now by the left.

Why do his political beliefs matter? If he's a predator, then why wouldn't liberals turn on him? Not everyone in the world feels the need to defend sex predators just because they share the same political leanings, even if that is your MO. Liberals hold their own accountable [[Conyers, Franken) while conservatives like you elevate your sex predators to Hero status [[O'Reilly, Trump, etc.)

[Bham1982]

But Bham... its OK to enjoy for just a brief moment the irony of a ardent Obama & H. Clinton supporter being painted as evil now by the left.

That isn't "irony", Obama and Clinton aren't the "Left", and there's nothing ideological about women not wanting to be harassed or assaulted.

[Zacha341]

^^^ How's about that! I think there's something idealogical about not thinking you'd ever get caught! Now Morgan Freedman is in the mix too!

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ne...-story-1115316

[Eastside...]

....as a man, with vast personal & professional experience...who has gained empathy & bitter wisdom through experience... ....when I encounter another guy of similar experience...who speaks disparagingly of me too...I instinctively feel the speaker to be a sexist & sociopath...with zero personal or professional credibility.
If I encounter another gentleman, with less experience...who is also critical of me too......I'll dismiss it as immaturity.

[JBMcB]

... and he's got a new gig. That was fast.

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/bu...-am/680983002/

[Wesley Mouch]

Why do his political beliefs matter? If he's a predator, then why wouldn't liberals turn on him? Not everyone in the world feels the need to defend sex predators just because they share the same political leanings, even if that is your MO. Liberals hold their own accountable [[Conyers, Franken) while conservatives like you elevate your sex predators to Hero status [[O'Reilly, Trump, etc.)

Never mind. The comment was that I support his presumption of innocence even though *I* don't agree with his politics.

I don't think anybody is being elevated to heros. But when even the religious right can overlook sexual improprieties. More important to get somebody who will act in your interest most of the time.

Certainly the fringes on both left and right are OK with purges of infidels. But I certainly think that a broader left-leaning population puts absolute adherence to the woman and gay rights movement above most everything else. While much of the right-leaning population are more practical.

[Evelyn]

Headline from today’s Detroit News: “WSU: Lessenberry harassed students; would have been fired”

https://eu.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2018/07/18/report-jack-lessenberry-would-have-been-fired-harassment/798337002/

[Evelyn]

Welp, the story actually got worse:

http://www.deadlinedetroit.com/artic...s#.W1D8t9hKiCQ

Any Wayne State grads on here who knew him?

[Zacha341]

Goodness, when did he find time to grade?

[Hypestyles]

http://www.deadlinedetroit.com/artic...ses_radio_show

Looks as if Mr. Lessenberry has been let go from his radio show at 910 AM. I had never listened to it myself, if only because I never really knew about it, much less what time of day it was on. Curious. I think he still has a blog site. https://lessenberryink.com/

[Zacha341]

I listen to and enjoy Superstation 910AM and for a while they had a carousel of folks come and go. I did not get a chance to catch his show. Perhaps an odd time frame?

[Lowell]

I was scanning the waves a couple of months back and picked up his show thinking 'that voice sounds familiar'. I was surprised that he had found a new home after all the allegations. I listened for a while but the pace of the show was very sleepy, like someone whose heart wasn't really in it. That is not that station's motif and most likely he got dumped for low numbers.

I notice he posted a pissy response on Deadline Detroit full of threatening arrogance, made ironic by beginning with "I hesitate to engage with Deadline Detroit in any way..."

[CassTechGrad]

Ray Charles

Hit the road Jack and don't you come back
No more, no more, no more, no more
Hit the road Jack and don't you come back
No more
What'd you say?