I feel for you too,... but you have to put yourself in men's shoes; what may be unpleasant to you is career-ending for men. Not exactly apples to apples, men are primarily the ones getting the bulk of dreaded calls from HR. Not saying the reverse doesn't happen, but the number of complaints/terminations pale in comparison and are far less likely to be taken seriously. And yes, I've witnessed jaw-dropping harassment-- from women, more times than I can count.

Unfortunately the damage is likely to be permanent. Relations have been strained and the workplace tension is palpable; sexual correctness is here to stay. FO Pina didn't help matters, but the litany of accusations, coming from every sector, private and public, have ensured a 'new normal'. In a fashion reminiscent of the Kavanaugh nomination (circus?), the threads relating to this story reveal how many don't hesitate to convict men without a shred of evidence. ("We believe the survivors!!")

Considering a recent study that found millennials to consider even innocuous compliments to be sexual harassment, it doesn't appear conditions will improve anytime soon, especially when combined with the US government's definition of harassment. Originally defined as "Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment"..... Sounds quite reasonable until they later added... "unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment." The addition makes it far more nebulous, difficult to define, and up to the whims of the accuser and rests on the shoulders of the accused to disprove. One only needs to be 'offended' to qualify and the corporate culture will quickly investigate for fear of liability. What constitutes offensive is subjective but weighs heavily in favor of the initiator.

Short answer, due to the actions of a few (opportunists), the reactions of others (special interest groups), and over-reactions of the hyper-politicized (terrified) corporate and government culture, the weaponization of the woman's movement in the workplace has taken what was once much-needed woman equal rights, protection and compensation, to a ridiculously paranoid level of discourse between genders. Given the similar tensions surrounding topics dealing with racial sensitivities, it only makes sense that lite, fun, social banter in the workplace has been placed in the same muzzled category as religion and politics. Who needs it?? The fear of losing one's career via an innocent comment or misinterpreted word is not worth the risk. More and more, the philosophy of keeping discussions/interactions sterile, sober, and boring is setting in.

Slam, click. Leave the sandbox at home.