@blatham,
I've no doubt that there have been plenty of women who were not believed or dismissed when they reported sexual assaults and it has led to underreporting. it's terrible. The crime is horribly violent and at one time resulted in death penalties.
However...there must be a "but" because if there isn't we will have a situation where a single unfounded accusation can destroy someone's life.
The "but" is that in 2012 75,000 men and women (far more men than women) were convicted of criminal sexual assault. This may be a fraction of the actual cases but it shows that there are women and men who do report these crimes.
The "but" is that there are verifiable cases where false accusations have ruined men's lives
Neither gender can be presumed to always tell the truth about any topic. To do otherwise is insane.
It takes courage to report these crimes, when they happen, and maybe more than I would have but what other answer is there?
I applaud the so-called "Me Too" movement for starting to cast aside longtime barriers to women coming forward. I would hope all women might be willing to do so. There have been a great many pigs revealed and their ideology is not defining but, in some cases, it has been protective.
There wasn't some cabal of 6 or 7 old conservative white men protecting Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, Al Franken etc etc. They didn't protect Bill Clinton. This is not an ideological issue and to cast as such, as you have, is, frankly, disgraceful.
Dr. Ford needs to be heard in accordance with well-established rules of fairness that do not deprive Judge Kavanaugh of any of his rights.
What is happening, in this case, is a travesty. It is sickening.