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It is disheartening to see most of western society approve the new reign of terror against alleged sexual delinquents and the termination of careers on the basis of bare accusations, all in the name of a new culture of gender equality. Gender equality is undoubtedly one of the greatest ideals of recent decades, but what is happening now is more akin to the excesses that all revolutions, even positive ones, tend to bring about and which are not conducive to enhancing equality. In fact, most excesses ultimately provoke an unpleasant reaction in the opposite direction. This is what we are risking now.

The first argument against ending careers on the basis of unproved accusations is a legal one. The rule of law is not compatible with punishment before trial. It is true that in certain cases of very dangerous people, prophylactic action is justified in the interest of safety, but this is very much the exception. In other cases,punishment before trial is a trend to be resisted, especially in a period when accusations spread like wildfire on the internet and cannot be fully erased even by subsequent acquittal. The presence of multiple accusers does not change this, as we cannot exclude copycat accusations or cabals, even if they may be rare.