What is Wrong With The Republican Party in Michigan?

That statement was made yesterday by a Cleveland judge as he sentenced admitted sex offender Michael Flory to the maximum of 5 years in prison, with 5 years of supervised parole afterwards, with the ability of 2 and a half more years in prison if he screws up, under the new Adam Walsh law lifetime membership as a registered sex offender, and almost 3 thousand dollars in restitution to his victim.

That statement was made after people like his victim, who despite everyone knowing who she is I will not say her name, her father, and I told the tale of how the admitted sex offender used his position within the party to blast his victim, to get his toadies and kool-aid drinking friends to say that she was a lying whore, who was only going after him for political gain. My first response to that is, how did that work out for her, does she have any more political power, anything resembling a political career anymore, the answer to both questions is no, but that probably makes his sycophants happy.

I am in the process of getting my hands on the transcripts, which go more than 60 pages and are, according to the court reporter, the longest sentencing that judge has ever done. Part of this is because the admitted sex offender made a political speech to the judge, whining about how he had brought shame upon himself and his family, how he was sorry for the pain he caused, and that he should be let go so he can play daddy to his child. He should have removed the pretense and instead of addressing the judge he just should had looked directly into the camera from Channel 19 news that was there. The other reasons for the length was the 3 speeches I eluded to earlier, and then the long oratory by the absolutely amazing ADA who completely blasted the admitted sex offender, and told the story of what really happened, the story that some people still don’t believe because of how good of a job the admitted sex offender did spinning his story after what happened happened. The last reason for the length was the verbal pasting the judge gave to the admitted sex offender before and after he sentenced him to five years in prison, and had him put in handcuffs, in front of his victim, his mother, his wife, and I.

Here is my understanding of the truth, which has been embargoed by myself until now because of the ongoing legal proceeding. July 8th was the awards dinner at the hotel; afterwards we went to the Warehouse District of Cleveland for a party by the Georgia delegation. The provided a few free drinks, but because she knew someone she got more, she got drunk, he drank, she got sick on herself, someone else, and was so out of it she dropped her phone into the toiler while puking. A friend tried to find someone to take her back to the hotel, and found the admitted sex offender and put them in a cab together. I have no doubt that he wasn’t out looking for it from her, but once he saw his opportunity he took advantage of it. He advanced on her in the cab, all the while she had just been sick on herself, and followed her up to the room and after she tried to be polite and say goodnight, he forced his way into the room and forced himself upon her. He orally, vaginally, and anally raped her. He did this to a menstruating woman, who in the middle of his rape had to be sick again, and while she was puking again, he followed her into the bathroom and raped her while she was puking. All the while he was holding her throat, pulling her hair, calling her a whore and a slut and saying he knew she wanted it and she loved it. When her roommate came back, he held her by the throat and made her tell the roommate to go away, which she did, out of fear, a fear I don’t know and I doubt almost anyone reading this will know until they stare death in the face. When he finished with her, he went to a party in the hotel, and when someone came to the door with a glass of water, which the admitted sex offender mistook for straight vodka, he said that he liked vodka because “It’s knocks the ladies out” and “I just left a girl wet who tasted like vodka, she didn’t know what hit her.”

My involvement began at 7:50 AM the next morning, when my rooms phone rang, I thought one of my roommates asked for a wake up call so I ignored it and went back to sleep, only to be awoke again a moment later saying she wanted to talk to me, she asked me to come up to her room, me, being tired and thinking I had an hour and 10 minutes left to sleep, responded with a curt, “Why” she asked me to come up and I again asked why, then she said, and I will remember these words as long as I live “I had unconsentual sex last night.” At that moment, I was awake. Someone asked me why she said that and not rape, and I am firm of the belief that she couldn’t say it, because that word brought with it so many connotations that she revered to innocuous medical language like that, as per her training as a nurse, she was used to. I went up to the room and she told me what happened, and here’s the part where I become the villain to the admitted sex offenders toadies and kool-aid drinkers. She was hesitant about reporting it, she said she didn’t want to go through what was to come, as most victims of rape, which is why so many aren’t reported, however I insisted she report it, that she was going to have to live with this either way, and how would she feel when this happened to someone else and knowing she could have stopped it, and that he did this evil thing to you and he should be put away. So yes, here is the part I want everyone to understand, it was MY suggestion that we call the cops, and it was MY insistence that got this process going. I was telling friends yesterday that I put a man in jail, and while most of the credit goes to her for going through the hell she has been through, I am partially right. I knew what had to be done, and I haven’t regretted it for a second.

We called the cops, who were a pair that would make Reno 911 proud, especially the one who didn’t take off his aviator sunglasses the whole time looking like Dangle. We went to the hospital, and then we stayed for the rest of the day, mostly because she didn’t want to burden me and the other person who came with us on missing out on things because this happened to her. I think she was in the denial phase of the grief process at that moment, as she tried to act like nothing had happened to everyone else, while inside I’m sure she was suffering. We have gone through a year together of ups and downs, of her process of integrating this into her life, and even though the biggest part of my job is over I’m sure I will always have a role to play, and it is something I am proud to do.

Now onto the headline I led with, what the judge meant when he said that is that he was shocked that the Republican Party in Michigan would believe the rapist over his victim, and would actively work to make sure his victim was marginalized. However it’s not like Saul Anuzis got on his daily e-mail and said everyone believe him over her, it was more subtle, and it was led by sycophants and others who were devoted to the admitted sex offender. It was led by people who have proven themselves to be bad people, people who would do things like release a rape victims name on his blog, and other completely disgusting acts. However these actions are just the symptoms of a larger problem, the problem of the fractioning and infighting and vitriol and sniping within the Party. Now I am all for a rigorous debate on the issues and where we want to go as a party leading into the next election, but the manner on which the party attacks its own disgusts me. I have always prided myself on my ability to be friends and foster relationships with people on all sides of this divide, but the point is coming where one of these friends is going to do something that is going to need response, and going to need repudiation, and it is my intention to speak the truth to all, friend and foe alike, because it is my personal belief that the truth is a lot more fun than anything I can make up.

I wanted this blog to be a place where I could stretch my intellectualism, and my intellectual conservatism, however we live in a time where intellectualism and serious discussion and debate is frowned upon opposed to the quick hit piece and a personal smear. So here is my promise for the future, I will never personally attack anyone, I will disagree with positions and methods, and if something is relevant I will share it, but we are all people doing what we think is right, and we need to stop hating each other for it, when we must see who the real enemies are…Democrats.