opinion

Ohio candidate extolls sexual history, claims to speak for 'all heterosexual males.' Fails.

Justice William O’Neill. We need to talk. On Friday, Nov. 17, 2017, you posted on your personal Facebook page the following status update:

"Now that the dogs of war are calling for the head of Senator Al Franken I believe it is time to speak up on behalf of all heterosexual males. As a candidate for Governor let me save my opponents some research time. In the last fifty years I was sexually intimate with approximately 50 very attractive females. It ranged from a gorgeous blonde who was my first true love and we made passionate love in the hayloft of her parents barn and ended with a drop dead gorgeous red head from Cleveland.

Now can we get back to discussing legalizing marijuana and opening the state hospital network to combat the opioid crisis. I am sooooo disappointed by this national feeding frenzy about sexual indiscretions decades ago.

Peace."

Excuse me? Did you just say legalizing medical marijuana was more important than holding powerful (much less pedestrian) men accountable for their reprehensible actions towards women?

I just re-read your post for the fifteenth time. Yes. That's what you said.

Was this intended as a joke? Because the "dogs of war" coming for Sen. Al Franken (and William Jefferson Clinton and Donald Trump and Roy Moore and Louis C.K. and Harvey Weinstein...shall I go on?) are deservedly calling out one of our culture's darkest tendencies: A willingness to sanction the assault and harassment of women by the protection of powerful men, regardless of their political affiliation.

Are your political aspirations and policy beliefs more important than women? Is toeing the party line more important to you than holding people accountable for their actions that were caught on camera?

Furthermore, are you so dense that you can't distinguish allegations of assault and harassment from a tawdry laundry list of your own personal sexual rendezvous?

If you were joking, it was inappropriate, stupid and showcased a profound lack of understanding of what it means to be a woman in America. An apology is owed to everyone who had to read that sorry excuse for a Facebook post.

If you were being serious, then you can do everyone in Ohio a favor and drop out of this race right now. You can also resign your position as a Supreme Court Judge of Ohio. You are paid to be the arbiter of justice. Can you really do that if your personal priorities are so deeply out of touch with the experiences of so many women?

Oh, you can still apologize. Not a fake non-apology, mind you. But a serious, soul-searching one where you stand up and do the right thing by the women of Ohio and of this country.

Perhaps you can go back to discussing the opioid epidemic and legalizing marijuana and the rest of your progressive policy concerns when you start behaving like a decent human being.

Until then, perhaps it's time to re-evaluate your ability to represent all of the citizens of Ohio. And perhaps it's time for more women to run for office, no matter their political affiliation.

Peace.

Katie Vogel is a member of The Enquirer's editorial board and is the Audience Engagement Editor for The Enquirer and the Media Network of Central Ohio.