Let me preface this with the statement that I do not like politician Peter Slipper and I have no sympathy for his predicament.
But, and isn't there always one. This is about case I know of that is yet to be resolved and it would be inappropriate to fill in who, where and when, but clearly it is a workplace situation.
The accuser is young, cute, gay and attractive, and also in the situation of being the newbie. The accused is older, respected, gay and anything but a newbie and in a position of power.
The accuser accuses the accused of sexual harassment. The accused is suspended from work. This is as it should be.
Apparently the accused did make sexually suggestive comments to to accuser. No one who knows the accused would be surprised by this. No one who knows the accused would take any notice of suggestive comments. I have done the same. But I pick my mark. I only do it when I know the person well enough. It is such great fun to make a straight guy blush with embarrassment when you suggest you want to ??? I suppose at the end of the day they could call me for sexual harassment, but as I say, I pick my marks very carefully. As times have changed, I do it very rarely now. Perhaps an example will help.
'Nick, I have a problem.'
'What's that Andrew?'
'When I am pleasuring myself I think of you and workmate Peter together, but I can't work out who is doing whom. It kinda works seeing you on top, but hey, I think I would like to see you on the bottom. C'mon Nick, tell me which you position you'd rather be in?'
Nick's face turns to a shade of red. He is so sweet and I like him heaps. What a pity he is straight. He laughs and tells me I am sick.
'Sick I might be Nick, but then I didn't have a threesome with my girlfriend and our mutual dyke friend, (V, you met her) did I. And it was you who asked me about what sort of lubricant to use when you wanted to add some less than vanilla experiences to your time with your girlfriend'
A silly grin and more embarrassment. Yet, had Nick recorded this banter, and turned nasty, I could be in the position of the above accused. He said nothing but grinned and smiled.
I don't like to think of myself as too smart, but I think I am a bit smarter than the accused who may well have had a much less explicit conversation, with someone he trusted, just because the accuser was also gay.
From what I can work out, the accuser had an ulterior motive to get out of where he was and into a more desirable place. He encouraged flirtatious conversation with the accused and at some point recorded some chat on his phone as proof of sexual harassment. In summary, the accused was set up. In further summary, the accused was in a position of power over the accuser and the accused is old enough and been around enough to not fall for such a situation. Whatever the outcome, the accused's career is ruined and the accuser may well be victorious but his card will be marked.
Now, imagine if the accused was of the age he is, say 50 plus and the accuser was female, say mid twenties. Now that is much more serious, but should it be? Generally yes because situations like the above are common to gay men. Older gay man comes on heavily to a younger gay man. Younger gay man brushes off the older gay man. So long as older gay man takes no for an answer, no offence is committed. If the older gay man continues to come on to the younger gay man, sometimes he will be successful, but the younger gay man might have to be firmer to reject him or he might succumb. That is just how it works in gay world. The lesson learnt from above is that gay world does not work in the workplace. But just to reinforce, the accuser had been a flight attendant too, so clearly we are not talking about a poor innocent young gay boy being hit on by and older gay man.
What has this to do with Peter Slipper?
Absolutely nothing, but if you added alcohol into the mix described above, and the accuser was ideologically opposed to the accused....well, all I can think is that there is no queen like a stupid old queen who has been around long enough to know better.
Slipper may well have been set up, but ultimately, it is his fault. What I wonder is how high up the Liberal Party hierarchy was the authorisation for a plant on Slipper.
I am very doubtful about clicking publish on this one, but after eight years of keeping myself clean, what the heck.