Herman Cain: Innocent Until Proven Guilty

Few things will raise the heckles of the public and a ravenous media like allegations of sexual assault. The sexual abuse of a child is perhaps the only thing a politician (or anybody else) could be accused of that will do their career / campaign more harm. Because sexual harassment and abuse is a heinous crime, and those guilty should be punished to the full extent of the law. Those not guilty should be left alone, and those yet to be found guilty should be presumed innocent until we are told otherwise by a court-appointed judge and jury. Innocent until proven guilty – that is the way it should work. Sadly, the media does not always see it that way. One mention of sexual harassment and / or assault and the old “no smoke without fire” jibber jabber kicks in. That is not right, and it is not just. It is called “trial by media”, and it is not fair. Imagine what it would be like to be wrongly labeled with the “sexual offender” tag, and think hard about how little real proof there is against Cain right now. If Cain is found guilty, if evidence comes to light proving without a shadow of a doubt that he did what he is accused of, then the media should and will go to town. Until then, once again, INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY. My esteemed colleague John Thorpe has not been exactly silent on the issue, branding Cain a ”scumbag” yesterday. He also said that, “If you want to defend him, well, I don't see how you can live with yourself.” The point is, there is nothing yet to defend him against, unless you are his attorney. We simply do not know anything. If the four women (and counting) are indeed victims of sexual harassment or assault, then they deserve all of the help and support available and more. It is entirely possible that they are, But it is also possible that they are not. As of right now, they do not seem to be looking for financial gain from this mess, but that does not mean that they are being completely honest. They would not be the first women (or people) to lie for attention. But those women should not be judged before all of the facts are in either. Here in America, we have a legal system that, for the most part, works. If there is a case against Cain, he should be brought before that legal system. If not, then this will likely go away, as it should. But until we KNOW rather than BELIEVE that he is guilty, the vultures should lay off.