Matt Patricia's #metoo Moment

For those who don’t follow the NFL, the new coach of the Detroit Lions, Matt Patricia, found himself explaining this week how he was indicted for aggravated sexual assault in 1996. This event and how it is being handled adds more proof that the #metoo “movement” is dead. It also continues to expose just how messed up liberal thinking is. Observe.

Here’s what happened: In 1996, an unidentified woman claimed that two football players from a New York engineering school burst into her hotel room while she was on Spring Break in Texas and they took turns raping her. She called the cops and named Matt Patricia as one of the two. He was arrested that night and then released. She was treated at a hospital. Four months later he was indicted. When the woman said she didn’t want to go through a trial, the charges were dropped.

Patricia became an engineer and then entered coaching. Eventually, he became the Patriot’s defensive coordinator. In this last offseason, he was hired as the head coach of the Lions. He didn’t tell them about the arrest. Now the news has come out after someone tipped a Detroit newspaper.

#metoo Is Dead

Had this news come out three or four months ago, we know how things would have turned out for Patricia. The accusation would have hit the news. Every Hollywood starlet would have tweeted about it. The Lions would have fired Patricia the day the news hit and would have issued a statement condemning him and saying they have zero tolerance for this... and they aren't going to stick around to see if the allegations are true.

Patricia then would have (1) disappeared from public (early #metoo period), (2) denied everything but talked about how important it is that all women be believed (James Franco #metoo period), or (3) denied it (end of #metoo period). Meanwhile, self-righteous journalists would have told us how Patricia had no right to due process and that all women must be believed.

But that’s not what happened. Patricia denied it. The Lions stuck by him. The NFL said nothing. At the same time, the liberal sports media started talking about due process and actually said that Patricia must be seen as innocent until proven guilty. Wow. They pointed out that the case was dismissed and there was no evidence offered and that this poor young man was only 21 at the time... can we really hold this against him the rest of his life? At the beginning of the #metoo movement, none of that mattered. All that mattered was that the male had been accused. Even in the second period (the Franco period), there was only a reluctant acknowledgement of due process and always with pages of hang-wringing about how vital it was that all women be believed and the accused be punished regardless. What happened here was exactly as sexual harassment and assault were treated before the #metoo movement came into being.

Said differently, after all the whining and gnashing of teeth about a changed world, we ended up right back where we were before this started.

Liberals Are Stupid

All that said above, this issue has once again shown how stupid liberals can be. Here are some examples.

(1) At the same time one sports talker host made it clear that Patricia deserves due process, he also said, "But we can't just assume he's innocent just because he says so and because no victim has come forward. This is a he-said-she-said situation and we will never know what really happened."

First, this is not he-said-she-said, if there was a rape, there should be evidence. When she reported the rape and then went to the hospital, they automatically do what is called a “rape kit.” This includes photos, swabs and a physical examination. If this was a rape, there should be evidence of bruises, forcible intercourse, and DNA. The absence of that is proof.

Secondly, an indictment is not proof of anything. The jury had enough evidence to indict on her allegation alone. Indictments are meaningless.

Third, when someone alleges something, they need to offer some proof. If you want an example to explain how stupid it is to assume otherwise, consider the application of the same false logic this guy used to me claiming that Bill Clinton raped me. "Gee, we can't just assume Bill's innocent just because he says so and because Andy didn't offer any proof. This is a he-said-he-said situation and we will never know what really happened." That's stupid. We know that didn't happen, so my allegation is worthless.

(2) All the internet parrots are now repeating that "there are five witnesses!" These are: a nurse, a doctor, a police detective, a police officer, and a friend of the alleged victim. Gee, that sounds bad. Five victims can't all be lying, right? Here's the thing... every one of these "witnesses" will merely repeat what she reported to them. Not one of them saw anything independent of what she told them. In essence, they are reading her story five times. None of that is evidence of anything except that she made an allegation.

(3) "[H]is decision to address the situation publicly with a general denial but no specifics opens the door to a search for more." Not really. The media is a bunch of bottom feeders who glorify in dragging people down. They were going after this story regardless... don't pretend he forced you to act like vultures.

(4) "If it’s a false accusation, Patricia actually should welcome the opportunity for the facts to come out now." Ha! How does he disprove a negative? How do you prove that something didn't happen? Especially when the media has already decided that where there is an allegation it is impossible to accept a denial as true? Any bit of proof Patricia offers will be torn apart by the media using mis-logic, supposition and a desire for sensationalism. He's best off leaving the media with nothing more to churn the story.