Bill Cosby: Not Who We Thought He Was

First, let me get this off my chest: You should NEVER use drugs to influence women to have sex with you, nor should you molest women. No means no. You say you know this, but now it’s “The Cos” and apparently he didn’t really know it, so a little reminder might be needed.

Of all of the famous men I can think of, Bill Cosby would not even make the list of those I would suspect of being a sexual predator. He embodied kindness and warmth. He was the ultimate family man. He loved kids. With The Cosby Show, he broke new ground. He showed an affluent, professional couple with children – a family doing everything families do. We loved him. But he loved something else.

Seduction by means of fake understanding and interest or mentorship or promises of advice were part of his repertoire of skills. Apparently, drugs were big part of his technique. These are NOT ways to get laid, gentlemen. These are ways to get sued and/or jailed. These acts were not sex. They were rape.

Contrary to his public image of a moral man and father figure, Bill Cosby used Quaaludes to sedate women so that he could manipulate them into sexual acts. In a deposition from ten years ago, he boasted about these acts. Acts with a girl of only 19 years old. He was indifferent to the desires of the women. A memorandum had been protected with a confidentiality clause and the case in which he was accused was settled in 2006. It has now been opened.

Over one thousand pages are contained in the deposition, describing the circumstances of the sexual molestation of a young woman named Andrea Constand.  The documents are detailed and in them, Cosby is cavalier and shows no remorse. Though Cosby has never been charged with a crime in association with accusations. Multiple women have come forward with complaints of being assaulted over the years by Cosby, but more are coming to light every day.

He has managed to keep his behavior from his wife, or so they have both stated. It is all out in the open now, with accusers speaking out on television and newspapers all over the nation. Cable television stations have pulled The Cosby show from their lineups. His bronze bust was removed from Walt Disney World. Even a Washington restaurant chain that had a business relationship with Cosby has pulled away from him.

Does he have supporters? Yes, Whoopi Goldberg and Raven-Symone defended him on The View. Other supporters are leaving his side now that the deposition has revealed proof of his transgressions. How many will stick with him after the revelation that he admitted to drugging women for sex is yet to be seen.

Whatever your opinion of Bill Cosby, learn this lesson: Be a gentleman at all times, whether in public or private. If a woman responds to your overtures, enjoy. If she changes her mind or says “no” then stop. No means no. Even if you’re Bill Cosby.