If Thomson Was Groped, Why Not Press Charges?

Locutus

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Whoever came up with the phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words" was a damn fool. For what can we actually glean from the photo of Toronto mayor Rob Ford and former mayoral candidate Sara Thomson at an event in Toronto last Thursday night? From my view, just two benign bits of information:

1. Ford's shirt is stained.
2. Thomson is smiling, widely.

Now, we can attempt to extrapolate from these bare details if we please -- Ford's shirt is dirty because in his drunken state, as alleged by Thomson, he spilled something on himself; Thomson's smiling countenance is hiding anger and shock and pain after being groped and propositioned, as the Toronto Star's Heather Mallick has suggested.

Then again, maybe Ford, who is:

not the most graceful of creatures

at the best of times, merely knocked over a harmless glass of water by accident. And perhaps Thomson's smile reflects a mischievous scheme she's been concocting in her head to accuse Ford of sexual and verbal assault just as soon as she could log on to Facebook and attach said photo.

It should go without saying that Thomson's allegations must be investigated -- even though she herself has bizarrely refused to press charges thus far. Sexual assault is always a contemptible offence, and should be punished harshly, but it is more so when the accused represents an entire city of people. If Ford did indeed grab Thomson's buttocks, he must be prosecuted and removed from his job. And if Thomson has made up the whole thing -- to add fuel to her next mayoral campaign or simply to frame her former opponent -- her political career will be ruined and she might very well be fired from her job. She has a lot to lose here, too.

more

Yoni Goldstein: If Thomson Was Groped, Why Not Press Charges?
 

karrie

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There's a difference between a social complaint and a criminal one.

I've been groped by strangers and even friends, at times it was unwanted, and never thought to take them to court. But that didn't stop me from complaining about them.
 

Goober

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Locutus

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Jun 18, 2007
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There's a difference between a social complaint and a criminal one.

I've been groped by strangers and even friends, at times it was unwanted, and never thought to take them to court. But that didn't stop me from complaining about them.


Maybe this loon isn't the best individual to proffer advice to women then eh. ;-)



“It’s a big waste of time to go through the legal procedures,” Thomson said. “Now, I looked at it and I realized I had no proof.”

Thomson made the comments during an early morning interview with DJs Roz and Mocha on local radio station KiSS 92.5.

When the DJs pressed Thomson for clarification on what she’d advise a female employee in a similar situation to do, she said she would encourage that woman to go to the authorities.

“My advice would be go to the police. And I know everyone is saying that: go to the police,” she said.
“I’ve been thinking about it. I’m never saying never.”

Thomson pointed out she puts herself at risk of being sued by making the public allegations against Ford.

Sarah Thomson explains why alleged Rob Ford incident wasn’t reported to police | Posted Toronto | National Post
 

CDNBear

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Oh it just gets better and better...

She insisted this has nothing to do with politics. “I have no gain out of this. If anything [people] will probably think, oh she overreacted, whatever. That will happen, and that does happen around issues around sexual assault.”

But of course not, lmao!...

“She said I’m going to set him up and I’m going to use the pictures against him in the next election because I’m going to be the Mayor of Toronto,” said Mr. Perrelli.

Councillor Greg Beros, another Richmond Hill city councillor, said he also heard Ms. Thomson discuss a plan to go upstairs and stage a photo. “I said Sarah, I don’t think that’s a very good idea,” said Mr. Beros. Ms. Thomson was not immediately available to respond.

This woman single handedly destroyed her own credibility.

Quotes courtesy of the National Post.
 

karrie

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lol... from the close of the NP's article, she says she doesn't know if she's ever taken cocaine or not, as she spent time on the street in her youth. wow. Just wow.
 

Sal

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whooooooosh, ..that is the sound of her career going up inflames

sniff....run another line of coke
 

CDNBear

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lol... from the close of the NP's article, she says she doesn't know if she's ever taken cocaine or not, as she spent time on the street in her youth. wow. Just wow.
This woman is a despicable _____!

BTW: Good to see you Karrie.

whooooooosh, ..that is the sound of her carreer going up inflames
I highly doubt it.

Toronto's loony left have a weird support base.

Beyond the usual "we know what's good for you" mantra, used to dismiss the overwhelming wishes of the constituents, they even praise past loony mayors for enacting bylaws that force the constituents to pay a bag tax that, get this, the grocery chains got to keep.

The depth of the idiocy these people have sunk to, is unfathomable.
 

Goober

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lol... from the close of the NP's article, she says she doesn't know if she's ever taken cocaine or not, as she spent time on the street in her youth. wow. Just wow.

I was following all the articles. Lots of contradictory statements on radio, reported in the papers. She even wanted to set Ford up. She is out there along the line of Planet X.
A real Space Cadet
 

Sal

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Sep 29, 2007
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This woman is a despicable _____!

BTW: Good to see you Karrie.

I highly doubt it.

Toronto's loony left have a weird support base.

Beyond the usual "we know what's good for you" mantra, used to dismiss the overwhelming wishes of the constituents, they even praise past loony mayors for enacting bylaws that force the constituents to pay a bag tax that, get this, the grocery chains got to keep.

The depth of the idiocy these people have sunk to, is unfathomable.
I think the nickel bag tax is everywhere now...lol...it is a bright new world. It is supposed to force people to go green...lmfao
 

CDNBear

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I think the nickel bag tax is everywhere now...lol...it is a bright new world. It is supposed to force people to go green...lmfao
Hey, I'm all for it, really I am, but I'm not into a municipality forcing people to pay a tax into large grocery chains coffers.

That's idiocy.
 

karrie

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Jan 6, 2007
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Hey, I'm all for it, really I am, but I'm not into a municipality forcing people to pay a tax into large grocery chains coffers.

That's idiocy.

I'd seen in some places the stores started donating it to charity, so rather than give $2 to the food bank, you'd be paying into it with your bags. Kind of negated the whole reasoning.
 

Goober

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Rob Ford, Sarah Thomson

With the war of words between Sarah Thomson and Mayor Rob Ford ratcheting up by the day, legal experts say the two politicians are treading on libellous territory.

Neither party has said they want to go to court to settle the dispute over what happened at a fundraiser hosted by a Jewish group Thursday night. But the battle lines have become increasingly entrenched since Ms. Thomson first alleged on social media that the mayor made a suggestive comment and grabbed her buttocks.

After Mr. Ford questioned whether she was “playing with a full deck” on his radio program Sunday, Ms. Thomson went on the offensive Monday, suggesting the mayor might have been on cocaine at the party — although she had no proof to bolster the claim.

The mayor made no further comment on the matter as he left City Hall Monday with a beach ball and his young children in tow.

“They are in a pissing match with each other,” said Howard Winkler, who has practiced defamation law for 27 years. “It’s almost as if they are inviting each other to sue. It may be a Mexican standoff in the end and neither will do anything.”

They are in a pissing match with each other

Indeed, taking this duel into the public arena of litigation could expose each side to a level of scrutiny that neither wants to endure, or even amplify the allegations, lawyers say.

Ms. Thomson, who said she stood by her words and was prepared to “stand up in court” if she had to, told reporters Monday that she looked up the symptoms she believes Mr. Ford displayed that night — erraticness and arrogance — and “it looked like it was cocaine use.”

“It could have been anything like that; I’m not sure what it is. I’ve also read that diabetes could have some odd effects. I’m not sure what was wrong with him, but there was definitely something wrong with him that night,” Ms. Thomson said.

Julian Porter, a lawyer with a specialty in defamation law, called the cocaine allegation “wild, unless she really has something to go on.”
 

karrie

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As odd as I find Ford and Thomson's behaviour, it is absolutely bizarre to me that the press is essentially saying 'neither of them are talking about lawsuits, so WE started calling lawyers FOR them.' Sheesh, talk about sensationalist journalism.
 

Goober

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As odd as I find Ford and Thomson's behaviour, it is absolutely bizarre to me that the press is essentially saying 'neither of them are talking about lawsuits, so WE started calling lawyers FOR them.' Sheesh, talk about sensationalist journalism.

Like cooks in the kitchen They are stirring the pot.
 

SLM

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As odd as I find Ford and Thomson's behaviour, it is absolutely bizarre to me that the press is essentially saying 'neither of them are talking about lawsuits, so WE started calling lawyers FOR them.' Sheesh, talk about sensationalist journalism.

The joke that is the political atmosphere in Canada just keeps getting wackier by the day. When there's more decorum between grade school children than between politicians, on and off the job, you know there's something seriously wrong.

And the media has been driving down the tabloid highway for many years now.