[geofft]

> Assange's little difficulties with women ... not everyone has a squeaky clean character

To be clear about his "little difficulties", he's been accused of intentionally breaking a condom he was using when having sex with one woman (both of them have stated that the condom broke) and continuing a sexual encounter with another person while refusing to use a condom. As the article states, he's escaped trial because he hid from Swedish authorities and they weren't able to have the case tried in a timely fashion.

I will think it's a failure of our justice system if Assange is prosecuted in the US for leaking information (especially if, as described by the article, it's by Sessions et al. as a precursor for a leaking crackdown) and not tried for the sexual assault case that he's actually been on the run from for years - because it means that anyone who's in a similar position to Assange can now get away with sexual assault, claim asylum for their political activities, and have the world ignore their "difficulties with women."

[thevardanian]

What is the evidence that happened?

[geofft]

What is the evidence that these are the accusations, or what is the evidence that the accusations are true? I obviously don't know that the accusations are true. Swedish prosecutors think they have evidence of that. That's what I was hoping a court case would decide. I think the government should treat him as innocent until proven guilty, of course, like any civilized person, but like any civilized person I also think trials should happen.

If you're interested in evidence that these are the accusations, see e.g. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Sex-accusers-bo... or https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assange_v_Swedish_Prosecution_... or https://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/dec/17/julian-assange... or http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-11-14/julian-assange-to-be-i... or really a Google search for 'assange condom'.

[toyg]

> Swedish prosecutors think they have evidence of that.

Some Swedish prosecutors, rather. The accusations were originally dropped, then picked back up by a more politically-oriented prosecutor. It was very, very iffy from the start.

[foldr]

You can find some of the relevant evidence summarized in English in the original UK ruling on the EAW:

https://www.aklagare.se/contentassets/cc904ed99288454586d860...

[im3w1l]

Assanges position at the embassy is similar to being in prison, so I wouldn't say he got away with repercussions.

[Theodores]

I was not sure how to best describe the 'little difficulties', my personal opinion is that he was less than a perfect gentleman, but I was not there.

I do wonder how much his 'heroic freedom fighter' demeanour tied into his bedroom ambitions. Why be a groupie wanting to bed the lead singer of the band when you could become one of Assange's baby-mamas?

He wouldn't be the first male to have greedy desires regarding the ladies, but, had he read Che Guevera's Guerrilla Warfare, and, had 'freedom fighting' been his true ambition rather than a means to further his rock star ego, then he would have kept his little head to himself.

Although Che Guevera mansplains from a different era, he wrote about how that the true revolutionary - assumed to be male - needs to stay away from women until the revolution sought for is achieved. I know everyone seeks a partner - it is human nature to do so - and that 'behind every great man is a great woman', with Assange he should have known that there were basic 'operational security' risks in doing so. It takes months to work out if that lovely lady is narcissistic and likely to play the victim card in some police cell with a 'he said/she said' situation that can't be controlled.

Had there been one incident then you could imagine that she was just an attention seeking liar, to give him the benefit of the doubt. I remember being on this page with Mr Clinton, but, when the numbers add up and a pattern is revealed you do have to wonder.

[geofft]

"Rapist" is a pretty good term for it.

And yes, I think that the personality of wanting to be a famous and powerful man and is often correlated with the personality of wanting power over women at any cost. I wasn't there either, so I don't know if that's what happened here, but it certainly wouldn't be the first time those have lined up. However, I'm not sure that this is really about a "partner" - the accusers are two different women who had sex with him within weeks of each other, not someone who he was in a long-term relationship with who then went to the police.

(And yes, I do think that "rapist" is an appropriate term for Bill Clinton, too, but that doesn't seem particularly relevant.)