Posted on 01/02/2012 7:22:04 AM PST by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Texas Representative Ron Paul today stood by statements he made in his 1987 book arguing that someone who is a victim of sexual harassment in the workplace should bear some responsibility for resolving the problem and that society should not bear the burden of paying for the care of AIDS victims.
In his 1987 book “Freedom Under Siege: The US Constitution after 200-Plus Years,” Paul wrote about sexual harassment in the workplace, “Why don’t they quit once the so-called harassment starts? Obviously the morals of the harasser cannot be defended, but how can the harassee escape some responsibility for the problem?’’
In another passage, Paul wrote, “The individual suffering from AIDS certainly is a victim - frequently a victim of his own lifestyle - but this same individual victimizes innocent citizens by forcing them to pay for his care.”
On Fox News Sunday this morning, host Chris Wallace asked Paul, now a top contender in the Republican presidential race, whether he still agreed with those statements.
On the sexual harassment issue, Paul distinguished between verbal and physical harassment but said neither one warranted a federal law to prevent it.
“If it’s just because somebody told a joke to somebody who was offended, they don’t have a right to go to the federal government and have a policeman come in and put penalties on those individuals,” Paul said of verbal harassment. “They have to say maybe this is not a very good environment. They have the right to work there or not work there.”
Paul continued: “Because people are insulted by rude behavior, I don’t think we should make a federal case about it. I don’t think we need federal laws to deal with that. People should deal with that at home.”
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
Anyone ever hear of a victim making a sexual harassment claim to the union about a harassing union member and then suing them when they did not protect her from additional harassment? I never have and would not be surprised if the Federal and state laws are written or interpreted so that the unions are held harmless.
oh that is a great tip. You get it. Love it.
why didn’t you scream bloody murder when he locked the door
oh pwotect me pwotect me........
sheesh
You obviously didn't watch the FoxNews interview as he clearly stated that if anyone is assaulted in the workplace or anywhere else, they should call the police as it is a criminal offense. The Feds shouldn't have to write and enforce a new law when there is already a remedy on the books.
No I don’t watch much Ron Paul on TV. He’s a nut and is just as dangerous as BO.
What about other forms of bad behavior? The manager that demands excessive unpaid overtime? The screaming bully? There are lots of ways that the workplace can become unpleasant to work in, and men have always had to either put up with it, demand the unpleasantness cease, or get another job.
I’m alive and well today so I think I handled the insane sex harrassment of the 70s pretty well. I’m assuming that you are much younger than me and did not live through that period in the urban jungle of NYC. I could be wrong, of course.
One of my favorite musicals “How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying” features the immortal song “A Secretary is Not a Toy.” Sums up the entire rotten period.
yah there are lots of axels in the “workplace” people pulling phones out of walls, screaming. What fun
pardon
I was in High school in the 70s. However I do believe the “sexual revolution” only benefited men. And that our country has never recovered. these days everyone thinks sex is the be all end all and acts so crass
For less than $100, you can have an audio recorder that can hold over 8 hours of high-quality audio. Turn it on as you enter work, leave it on all day. If you have an incident, extract the relevant audio clip and send it to HR, cc to the boor.
The screaming bully is one of my pet peeves! And they never seem to lose their jobs - it’s always the bullied who head for the tall grass.
It’s one of the reasons I refuse to work in office environments. I work in the theatre where you have putzes too but a sly comeback can often stop them in their tracks.
More than a few smaller companies are going that route.
You don't have to like him.
I wouldn't vote for him either, but at least I know what he says and didn't say.
There's enough to disagree with him on that we don't need to make stuff up.
Wow! Everybody needs to go to this video and see this!
Thanks for linking - good job exposing the 2nd biggest nut job in American politics.
There must be laws that deal harshly with BOTH sides. In way too many cases, the harassee gets the free pass. And simply making the accusation can seriously impact a business, right or wrong.
But you better be aware of the state laws for recording conversations.
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