Brett Kavanaugh Missed his Moment to Shine
For a minute, let’s give Brett Kavanaugh the benefit of the doubt. Let’s say he was misidentified as he asserts, or that he was correctly identified by Dr. Ford but genuinely doesn’t remember the incident. After all, humiliating girls is a common and favorite pastime of many boys and has been viewed as a normal part of growing up; something girls expect and to which boys pay little mind.
In the wake of Dr. Ford’s allegations I had several male patients in my clinical psychology office dissecting past behavior they now deem racist, sexist, or homophobic. They expressed regret and struggled to understand how the culture they grew up in and their need to fit in contributed to their wounding of fellow human beings. Perhaps it was the courageous self-examination of these men that led to my fantasy of how Brett Kavanaugh might handle the hearings.
In this fantasy of mine Judge Kavanaugh is not confessing — it’s a fantasy, not a delusion — but is showing compassion. He is using the spotlight on him not to tantrum about conspiracy theories and the victimization of the privileged, but instead to enlighten others on the ubiquitous threat to women’s safety. I imagine him still denying he was Ford’s attacker yet adding something like this: “But I believe Dr. Ford was assaulted, in part because she has nothing to gain and a lot to lose by coming forward in a…
