We’ve often noted how the terms “domestic violence” and “violence against women” have expanded to the point where they can be used against practically any man. In divorce and custody cases, unscrupulous female litigants often get men thrown out of their own homes on domestic violence restraining orders based simply on alleged “verbal abuse” or on the woman claiming she feels afraid.
Mandatory arrest policies lead police to arrest people on domestic violence calls that involve little or no discernible domestic violence, and the primary aggressor laws of two dozen states instruct police to arrest the man even when the man wasn’t the aggressor. Men can be portrayed as domestic abusers in family court over alleged “emotional abuse.”
Two recent examples of this highlight the willingness of leading feminists and their sympathizers to cite practically anything as an example of “violence against women.”
Recently the National Organization for Women launched a highly-publicized effort to get CBS to pull an anti-abortion Super Bowl ad that former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow and his mother Pam did on behalf of the conservative Christian group Focus on the Family. CBS ran the ad anyway, though it ended up having little to do with abortion. Instead, it was what the Los Angeles Times called a “lighthearted take on a mother-son relationship.” According to the Times:
In the ad, Pam Tebow holds a baby photo of Tim, now 22.
“I call him my miracle baby,” she says. “He almost didn’t make it into this world. . . . you know, with all our family’s been through, we have to be tough.”
Suddenly, she appears to be tackled and flies off-screen.
“Timmy!” she scolds, popping back up. “I’m trying to tell our story here!”
Tim joins her and apologizes. “You still worry about me, Mom?”
“Well, yeah,” says Pam Tebow. “You’re not nearly as tough as I am.”
The tagline, “Celebrate Family. Celebrate Life,” directs viewers to the website of the sponsor, Focus on the Family, the Colorado-based evangelical Christian organization…
Believe it or not, NOW president Terry O’Neill actually says that this playful mother-son ad glorified violence against women:
I am blown away at the celebration of the violence against women in it. That’s what comes across to me even more strongly than the anti-abortion message. I myself am a survivor of domestic violence, and I don’t find it charming. I think CBS should be ashamed of itself.
To write a Letter to the Editor about this, write to letters@latimes.com.
The other example concerns liberal TV host Keith Olbermann’s reporting on Republican Scott Brown’s recent upset victory in the Massachusetts Senate race. Olbermann called Brown a string of uncomplimentary things, culminating in alleging that Brown is a “supporter of violence against women.” The evidence? Some idiot in the crowd at one of Brown’s rallies made a dumb remark, a remark which Brown clearly did not hear, and because Brown did not condemn the remark, that means he’s a “supporter of violence against women.” Olbermann also called Brown “sexist.”
Fellow liberal TV host Jon Stewart appropriately criticized Olbermann for this and Olbermann, to his credit, said to Stewart, “You know what, you’re right. I have been a little over the top lately. Point taken. Sorry.” However, he didn’t apologize to Brown, and he didn’t specifically retract this inflammatory accusation.