We all, every one of us, need to be better about how we handle sexual assault allegations.
I was raped in the school bathroom at age 6. I didn't tell a soul for at least two years, and didn't begin talking about it more broadly until I was in college. We have to take allegations of this nature seriously and treat the accusers with respect.
I had a very good friend who was accused by his sister of molesting his niece. As far as I can tell, this was a family feud spun way out of control. He was innocent and was eventually cleared, but not before the charges were publicized. He lost his job, and people who didn't know him or the accuser were posting on message boards about looking forward to him getting raped in prison. We have to treat the accused as innocent until further evidence is available.
These may seem like mutually exclusive propositions, but they're not. We need to take Dr. Christine Blasey Ford's accusations seriously. The physical threats and verbal attacks against her are disgusting and need to stop. We also need to take seriously the possibility that Judge Kavanaugh could be innocent. The recent political ads which presume he is guilty of rape remind me too much of the self-righteous hate spewed at my friend from ignorant strangers. We need an investigation into this matter. The FBI is the entity that conducts background checks for the federal government, and it is a disservice to the innocent party, whoever that may be, not to order them to investigate further.