Piggs Defend Filner!

[bearishgurl]

[quote=paulflorez]Filner should resign. Even if he didn’t do any of the things people accused him of doing, he didn’t handle his response well. When you stand up to established power brokers in the city, you’re going to make enemies and they will do things to hurt you or simply give you enough rope to hurt yourself. Once he admitted acting inappropriately, he lost my support…[/quote]

paulflorez, I agree that Filner did not handle his response well. He should have chained multiple counsel to his ankle very early on (upon the first allegation leveled against him) and had his counsel speak for him at all times. He should have done this even if he had to pay their initial retainer out of his pocket. A CA public official, whether elected or appointed has a right to taxpayer-paid counsel when or if they are accused criminally or civilly of behavior which occurred while in the line of duty.

I looked again carefully at the “to-and-fro” e-mail messages between City fiscal employees over this (petty, in the big picture) issue of the mayor’s office lacking receipts for roughly $3K of expenditures over a 3-4 month period. They are unusually polite and professional (when their writers have likely known each other for many years, if not decades) and their language appeared to be carefully “couched” to each other to make it appear as if the mayor’s office had committed some kind of crime. If truth be told, the City Attorney’s office could have very well put the writers up to this stunt in order to “create” a paper trail for their “witch hunt.” I believe the City attorney’s office OR the writer(s) (with the CA’s permission), “leaked” the msgs to the press. I believe this because of what Goldsmith said on the Roger H show today. He even appeared to me to be mildly amused when Roger played the devil’s advocate and asked, “Well, what if he doesn’t step down? He doesn’t have to, you know,” or something like that. This stunt was as transparent as a pane of glass to me.

I’m disappointed that Goldsmith has morphed from a no-nonsense civil judge in East County to a political animal virtually overnight.

If Filner’s attorney(s) ever get a chance to depose or cross-examine the writers of these e-mail msgs it’s going to get REALLY UGLY for them and everyone else they end up implicating when backed into a corner, IMHO. Being an ex-bureaucrat myself, I’ve seen a LOT in my day and am ever-cognizant that the character of a witness/deponent who is testifying is ALWAYS fair game, ESP gubment witnesses. Some of these longtime City employees (rank not necessarily important) and the City’s “power brokers” could very well be one and the same person. We must remember that these witnesses “histories” with the rest of the players in this saga go back a l-o-o-ong way, much of it memorialized in black and white, only to be dredged now up by those in the Filner camp possessing l-o-o-ong memories. Don’t for a minute think it won’t happen.

’nuff said. If this thing morphs into court in another month or so, it looks like more than just Filner will be forced to step down or “retire” … it’s all the same thing.

It’s such a dirty shame that City is so political that it can’t get anything else done right now .. but given its entrenched players, not the least bit surprising … at least not to me.

[bearishgurl]

I keep seeing pots and kettles calling out each other whilst falling from the same rack :=0

[bearishgurl]

The ever-present Allred is giving Taylor Baldwin an interview on the Filner fiasco at 3:50 pm today.

http://www.utsandiego.com/tv/watch-live/

And the Hedgecock show (w/Allred and Goldsmith) repeats itself at 6 pm this evening. The Filner segment begins approx 30 mins in.

[CA renter]

[quote=spdrun]^^^

Big difference between being a groper like Feelner and merely trying to pick people up.

For the record, I see NOTHING wrong with attempting (and/or succeeding in) “picking up” someone within a professional relationship or dating one’s boss, client, underling, or cow-orker. So long as everyone is over the age of consent and doesn’t express aversion, it’s none of anyone’s god-damned business.[/quote]

Right, and the true “groping” incidents were wrong. But many of the complaints seem to center around things like Filner’s saying that they were attractive, or asking if they were married, etc. While strange and awkward, these things are not sexual harassment, IMHO. Yes, Filner is creepy and he should step down, but the number of people and the types of complaints being filed makes the timing suspicious. This should have come out during the campaign.

[spdrun]

Why is that strange or awkward at all? Plenty of good relationships have started at the office, despite the American superstition that it’s somehow wrong to date at work. I’ve had a client’s business manager (i.e. person who signed my business’s checks) ask me out; I said yes but also made sure that she knew her boss wouldn’t get special consideration when we dated, two different relationships.

But anyway, if it had been just that, it would have been unlikely to be an issue — the groping and general fact that he acted like a pig started the whole thing.

[njtosd]

Politicians should be held to a higher level of conduct than the average Joe. The mayor has significant influence over all residents of San Diego. Because of that, s/he has a much higher likelihood of seeming coercive.

I personally wonder whether Filner may be showing signs of dementia. I agree that the most recent victim seems an odd choice – it makes more sense if he is in the early stages of dementia. This type is not Alzheimers, but frontal lobe. These people slowly lose their “civilization,” and ultimately do things like disrobe in public and engage in (very) sexually inappropriate activities. It starts early and can progress slowly, and in the early stages is hard to distinguish from run of the mill bad behavior. That would be bad for the city – if it’s the result of a disease I wonder whether the city would be on the hook financially.

[spdrun]

Groping was wrong, but he had every right to ask whomever he wanted for a date, compliment whomever he wanted, etc. Just because someone is in a position of power does NOT require them to stop being human. You spend 1/3 of your waking life at work — G-d fucking forbid you’d meet someone that you’re interested in. (And in fact, policies prohibiting relationships at work regardless of position have been held to be a violation of human rights in many states.)

Publicity-whore Allred and her army of hypersensitive minions are as bad as Filner himself — both exemplify the worst of American hypocrisy.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=bearishgurl]Boxer and now Feinstein? now appear to be grandstanding for Filner’s resignation and Boxer has undoubtedly spent hundreds of hours with Filner over the years and knows him WELL. She has decided to take this stand … not on any proven facts but because she is embarrassed for he CA Dem party of which she is a longtime member and doesn’t want any flies swarming around HER starched cuffs. Her stance is all about HER credibility and the DEMS ability to maintain their stronghold on the CA electorate in the future. Neither politician has any percipient knowledge whatsoever about the events Feelner is accused of and in fact neither of them reside or work in SD County.[/quote]

Sorry, I didn’t mean Feinstein (fmr Mayor of SF) was calling for Filner’s resignation. I meant Nancy Pelosi (D) SF, CA (fmr Speaker of the House and now House Minority Leader who knows Filner VERY WELL) is now calling for his resignation, along with Barbara Boxer.

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/aug/07/countdown-those-asking-filner-to-resign/#&panel1-1

Again, Pelosi has no percipient knowledge of Filner’s “indiscretions” in SD as she has never resided there nor represented any constituencies there. In taking this stand, it is obvious that she, along with Boxer, are “towing the party line” for “public relations” reasons.

And by the way, I “used to be” a longtime registered Democrat.

Piggs, we need to ask ourselves how Filner got re-elected four times to Congress in the 50th and 51st Districts while seemingly never having any issues with “coming onto” or “groping” women he came into contact with on official duties. At least not any issues which were made public.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Filner

-Could it be that women residing in the Washington DC area, in general, have thicker skin (or are possibly far less litigious than women in SD are)?

-Or did he recently experience a trauma which changed his personality?

-OR, more likely, IMHO, did he (unknowingly) enter into a hotbed of entrenched political dysfunction when he ran for and won the mayoral seat for the City of SD??

Methinks that the 1st scenario (1/3) and the 3rd scenario (2/3) played their parts in the position City and Filner find themselves in today.

I just feel that it’s very unfortunate for SD on many levels that this public maelstrom went down the way it did.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=bearishgurl]The ever-present Allred is giving Taylor Baldwin an interview on the Filner fiasco at 3:50 pm today.

http://www.utsandiego.com/tv/watch-live/

And the Hedgecock show (w/Allred and Goldsmith) repeats itself at 6 pm this evening. The Filner segment begins approx 30 mins in.[/quote]

I watched the Baldwin/Allred clip. In it, Allred repeatedly brags that she has won multi-million-dollar awards and “confidential settlements” for her sexual harrassment and gender-discrimination “victim” clients.

It is clear that this Filner debacle is all about money for her. I’m just wondering if she ever got the memo that the City of SD has been teetering on the edge of BK in recent years.

[CA renter]

[quote=spdrun]Why is that strange or awkward at all? Plenty of good relationships have started at the office, despite the American superstition that it’s somehow wrong to date at work. I’ve had a client’s business manager (i.e. person who signed my business’s checks) ask me out; I said yes but also made sure that she knew her boss wouldn’t get special consideration when we dated, two different relationships.

But anyway, if it had been just that, it would have been unlikely to be an issue — the groping and general fact that he acted like a pig started the whole thing.[/quote]

I should have clarified…flirting with people from work is not awkward or strange (though it is often a sign of bad judgement, IMO).

The manner in which he “flirted” was awkward.

[CA renter]

[quote=bearishgurl]
Piggs, we need to ask ourselves how Filner got re-elected four times to Congress in the 50th and 51st Districts while seemingly never having any issues with “coming onto” or “groping” women he came into contact with on official duties. At least not any issues which were made public.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Filner

-Could it be that women residing in the Washington DC area, in general, have thicker skin (or are possibly far less litigious than women in SD are)?

-Or did he recently experience a trauma which changed his personality?

-OR, more likely, IMHO, did he (unknowingly) enter into a hotbed of entrenched political dysfunction when he ran for and won the mayoral seat for the City of SD??

Methinks that the 1st scenario (1/3) and the 3rd scenario (2/3) played their parts in the position City and Filner find themselves in today.

I just feel that it’s very unfortunate for SD on many levels that this public maelstrom went down the way it did.[/quote]

This is what I find so suspicious. If these things have been going on for years, even when he was a congressman, why did they just come out now?

Of course, the issue of dementia is certainly a possibility if he’s only recently shown this type of behavior.

[spdrun]

I should have clarified…flirting with people from work is not awkward or strange (though it is often a sign of bad judgement, IMO).

The manner in which he “flirted” was awkward.

Agree about the manner being awkward, but not about it often being a sign of bad judgement. Bad judgement is discounting someone because you happen to share the same office — shows a lack of open-mindedness if you’re both interested.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=njtosd] . . . I personally wonder whether Filner may be showing signs of dementia. I agree that the most recent victim seems an odd choice – it makes more sense if he is in the early stages of dementia. This type is not Alzheimers, but frontal lobe. These people slowly lose their “civilization,” and ultimately do things like disrobe in public and engage in (very) sexually inappropriate activities. It starts early and can progress slowly, and in the early stages is hard to distinguish from run of the mill bad behavior. That would be bad for the city – if it’s the result of a disease I wonder whether the city would be on the hook financially.[/quote]

nj, this is an interesting theory which I never considered. Filner has been a lot of things in the past but “groper” and “pervert” don’t fit the bill.

And I don’t buy that he’s “unsocialized” and doesn’t know how to act.

[bearishgurl]

It appears that 90% of the Huffpost comment crowd (5 pgs worth) asked Pelosi to resign when she publicly came out yesterday stating that she was “never associated” (lol) with Filner and called for his resignation as Mayor of SD.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/15/nancy-pelosi-bob-filner_n_3764227.html

WHY? Primarily because she said absolutely nothing all the while the Lewinsky-Clinton affair was in full force.

This (in)action renders her both a hypocrite and a “jealous prune” who needs to retire ASAP.

See, I told you guys that voters of every stripe have l-o-o-ong memories :=]

[Reality]

Some of the pro union pieces of work on this blog have no shame. Filner admitted he acted inappropriately and even went for “treatment”. That by itself is enough to conclude he’s not mayor material.

16 women have come forward alleging actions by Filner ranging from creepy to probably illegal. Were the Filner apologists as supportive of Clarence Thomas when one woman alleged he’d acted inappropriately? Surely not and for obvious reasons.

[Author]

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