Rosemary McLeod: Too much macho

If we learn nothing more useful from this past week's rummage into two famous men's sex lives, it's beware of maids - and poorly paid maids at that.
Men have leapt nimbly to the defence of former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, obliged to resign over accusations from a maid/housekeeper in a ritzy hotel that he forced himself on her.
French feminists have reacted angrily with their automatic presumption of his innocence and I've been mildly astonished. Yes, his photograph in handcuffs was humiliating for a man of his status, but does that mean only "inferior" people should get the American treatment?
The trouble is that men never actually see how other men go about seducing, so they have no idea of the bizarre methods they can employ. Women are less surprised, knowing that often-hilarious attempts, from the most unlikely people, happen in the most improbable settings. Male commentators insist that such an urbane and educated man would hardly descend to random wham-bam-thankyou-ma'am rutting, but to women this would come as no surprise.
The truth or otherwise of the woman's claims will be decided in court, fortunately, and not by commentators, but in the meantime I'm more inclined to believe her than not. She has much more to lose than he has, as a solo mother on low pay whose working life has been thrown into confusion and jeopardy, and whose privacy will be invaded mercilessly whatever the outcome of the eventual trial.
Strauss-Kahn has the advantage of great wealth, with which he'll be able to buy privacy, insulate himself from criticism, and have his ruffled feathers soothed. He'd also be able to pay sleuths to spy on his alleged victim and turn up whatever dirt can be used in court to attack her character. She is incredibly brave if she goes through with this, but for the sake of other poorly paid female workers who men feel they can maul at will - waitresses, housemaids, cleaners, young and vulnerable women in the workplace - I hope she does. Even if she loses, a certain kind of man may think twice in future before unleashing wandering hands on women he regards as lawful prey.
The second case of the seduced maid/housekeeper is rather different in character. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver's housekeeper has proved to be a shocker, capable of acting the part of a subordinate in the household, confidant and seeming friend to Shriver for 20 years, while allegedly entertaining her husband in the marital bed behind her back. That she could maintain this deceit through bearing a child to Schwarzenegger within days of Shriver also delivering him a son indicates jaw-dropping duplicity.
There's an undercurrent to the story, in that this vastly wealthy married couple paid their housekeeper a measly $1500 a month, with any extras coming in the form of presents given as largesse. How the maid felt about that we don't know, but I remember my grandmother, who was in service before she married, grimly getting rid of some china towards the end of her life which an employer had long ago given her as a leaving present. The china was never used, and was always resented because my grandmother said she'd far rather have had the money, which she'd sorely needed at the time.
How little the rich understand the poor, and what a mistake it is to distribute gifts in place of a fair wage.
Far better to be paid what you're worth, surely, and not have vengeful thoughts, and far better to be respected as a human being, even when you're changing the sheets in some luxury hotel suite that you could never afford to sleep in, and tackling its dunny with disinfectant.
Cry Macho was to be the title of Schwarzenegger's next movie.
It looks like there are now two potential stars for that sensitive scenario, which could well turn into a weepy - for a certain kind of man.