I think Mike Pence’s respectful policy of not being alone with a woman in an intimate setting who is not his wife has been thoroughly vindicated. Pence shows ten thousand times more respect for women than Hollywood & Washington.
Pence has no respect for women as equals. The implication that it’s “dangerous” to be alone with a woman, even in a public restaurant, is just as disrespectful to her as expecting her to put out for you. It also means a female co-worker is not equal to a man since you can be alone with other men. Pence can’t ever hire a woman if the job required them to travel together on business or even go to dinner after hours even if she’s the most qualified person for the job. That’s sexual discrimination which is just as bad for women as sexual harassment.
As a young bank manager, I was frequently required to have dinner meetings with male supervisors to discuss marketing strategies, long term planning, and other matters without the constant interruptions of phone or subordinates. Not once ever was there a problem with these meetings.
Open frank discussions were possible because of mutual respect and because coworkers weren’t around to overhear or interrupt. Sex never entered into the discussions because it was inappropriate to a business meeting.
If a man truly respects women he can take a meeting alone with a woman and treat her as he would any other coworker.