There is a fundamental difference between Taylor Swift and every other case currently being discussed. This difference has been ignored or glossed over, but it is absolutely critical.
The difference is power.
Mueller's alleged crime was not an abuse of power. It was (at worst) an abuse of consent. While swift is accusing him of grabbing her butt, she consented to a hug - she consented to a selfie and put her arm around him. Swift may not have liked how he did it, but he had her consent first.
This is fundamentally different from every other case. Mueller is not using his power to compel or coerce. He has no power over Swift. He is not pushing interns into the closet or rubbing up against women in the elevator. He is not using his position as an adult to manipulate teenagers. There is no fear here. In this case, the physical contact was consensual.
Perhaps it is true that Mueller used Swift’s consent in unwanted ways and made her uncomfortable. But that is fundamentally different than making her afraid.
Mueller could not destroy Swift’s career. He did not and could not threaten her physically, she had bodyguards present. Mueller was interacting with a peer who had as much power over the situation as he did. When people interact as peers, there will be mistakes. But making people uncomfortable is categorically different than making them afraid.
We can and should expect women to stand up for themselves when they are uncomfortable. We do not expect them to stand up for themselves when they are afraid.
If we turn this movment against being afraid into a movement against being uncomfortable, the movement will die. Because discomfort is a part of adult life. It is fear that we are fighting against; it is abuse of power that is the problem, not rudeness. It is assault and harassment that we hope to stop, not unwanted expressions of sexual interest. The idea that we will remake society into a world where no one is ever exposed to a sexual proposition they don't want is simply childish. It would also be sexless, because neither gender is equipped with mind-reading abilities. If people are going to make offers, sometimes they will be rejected. That's just statistics.
As someone else said in a different context, prison should be for people who make us afraid, not for people we don't like. You don't have to like Mueller's grabby hands. Fine! Don't ask him to touch you, and he won't. What more can you ask for?
Nothing. The answer is nothing, becuase if you demand perfection, you will get nothing.
The target of this attack is not David Mueller. It is the movement itself. It is outrage over sexual misconduct they want to disgrace and destroy, by making fear equivalent to discomfort, thus discrediting every case as snowflake feefees. Mueller is just a bonus.
We must recognize and defend the difference. People have a right to make you uncomfortable. They do not have a right to make you afraid.
* Note: I don't think Mueller did anything wrong. I think Taylor Swift has changed her story from when it actually happened, and I think the other women are simply accidents. But that is irrelevant to this argument.