tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5460049377024299674.post3001893719202910516..comments2022-11-05T07:54:06.122+00:00Comments on A Wannabe Writer's Blog: A Serious Misunderstanding of RapeA.M.J. Muirhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12287422340207762774noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5460049377024299674.post-54311547482959342782011-06-01T10:55:43.721+01:002011-06-01T10:55:43.721+01:00This is an excellent blog post.
Also, mm, sexy an...This is an excellent blog post.<br /><br />Also, mm, sexy ankles.dianne tanner dot co dot ukhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03720163855450999083noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5460049377024299674.post-15996590506906912652011-06-01T09:48:52.691+01:002011-06-01T09:48:52.691+01:00Siebendach thanks for the info. I've always qu...Siebendach thanks for the info. I've always quite liked the American system of degrees of rape or sexual assault, if only because I would think it makes conviction easier. On the other hand I can see how it could be used by someone to plead to a lesser offence when they committed something far worse. There's just no winning...<br /><br />And yes I too think that there are a lot of perps who have never been caught, and that they are predominantly of the "intoxicated victim" type. I suspect that a number of people in the world still see this as "taking advantage", when in reality it's no different to rape. But the sex offender thing can at least work as a bit of a deterrent, though with the likelihood of being caught so low I suspect a lot of perps think it will never happen to them.A.M.J. Muirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12287422340207762774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5460049377024299674.post-74976479441552666412011-06-01T09:36:23.024+01:002011-06-01T09:36:23.024+01:00Thanks for your comments Mike, and I agree it isn&...Thanks for your comments Mike, and I agree it isn't really a gender issue, as rape can happen to anyone (though is far more commonly committed against women). So though in and of itself it's not a solely feminist issue, sadly it's only really the feminist movement (such as it is) that is taking on the subject and trying to push for changes. And a lot of the double standards and prejudices about rape and particularly about rape survivors are rooted in subconscious sexist attitudes and simplistic notions about gender roles (men the attacker, women the deceiver, for example).<br /><br />I agree too that rape needs to stop being seen differently to other crime, and I've always thought it's more akin to stealing than anything else. It's the theft of something very precious and vital for a person's sense of self and security. Hopefully, with more work like the studies I mentioned, society at large can start to see this crime differently, and in turn see that the predators behind it are caught and imprisoned.A.M.J. Muirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12287422340207762774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5460049377024299674.post-38071878785044949562011-06-01T02:47:31.267+01:002011-06-01T02:47:31.267+01:00In America, each state has different laws about al...In America, each state has different laws about all crime, including rape. And rape is still usually a "specific-intent crime", in which conviction requires that the defendant's exact state of mind be proven --- often a tricky business. <br /><br />The charge of rape has largely been replaced with multiple degrees of "sexual assault", which often requires only a lack of consent (not proof that the defendant could not have possibly made an "innocent mistake"). <br /><br />Too many people get away with the sort of crime you describe (raping the intoxicated). The perpetrators are often financially successful people. A relatively new deterrent is the worry of ending up on a "sex offender website", which will generally end a person's career.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5460049377024299674.post-72811148288696521322011-05-31T23:18:40.815+01:002011-05-31T23:18:40.815+01:00An excellent and well thought-out post Alexa. You&...An excellent and well thought-out post Alexa. You've said a lot and I'm tempted to say a lot in return ... we'll see how this goes ...<br /><br />Firstly, and I might be out of date here, I don't think women can 'rape' men. By that I mean, the law does not recognise that such a crime exists. Which is wrong on several levels of course. But that's neither here nor there.<br /><br />Although you make the point yourself, I do feel the need to reiterate - two studies are not conclusive proof of anything; but I agree, they are proof of something. And that something is interesting, and slightly(?) comforting. What you're saying is that 'rape' is a crime like any other; it is most likely to be committed by those who have already offended; and committed only by a few people. And the victims are likely to be known by the perpetrators, rather than at random (which as you say, is at odds to the stereotypical rapist cliche we are most often sold).<br /><br />Did you see the excellent documentary series "the truth about killing" which said roughly the same thing about murder. Man, it seems, is very reluctant to kill one of its own, but a small percentage of the population have no such qualms. In wartime, finding these people is essential; in peacetime, likewise, but for different reasons (I've adumbrated greatly here, and do not wish to sound accusatory towards war-heroes, who are a different breed altogether).<br /><br />Like others, I might have thought that, somehow, victims of 'date-rape' (the distinction through terminology itself doesn't help) were somewhat 'less' of a victim. There is a whole load of deep trickiness rooted in the difference between men and women with respect to arousal and sexual signalling. Many aspects of female facial make-up is aimed at mimicking the physical signs of sexual arousal. This plays to a man at a subconscious level, so a man will naturally (literally) infer from a woman a greater level of sexual arousal than she is typically exhibiting. So the cues are scrambled. However, this (to 'normal' men) merely leads to confusing, and bafflement ... and any man of an age will have long ago concluded that women are impossible to read. No defence there ... mere commentary.<br /><br />Part of the problem lies with it being treated as a specifically emotive subject made on gender grounds. It's a bit like discussing any form of racial crime. People are so careful not to appear biased, they make a specific case of the crimes, thus isolating them from the body of crimes we understand. So in our minds 'rape' isn't burglary, or theft, or murder. It's something we need to treat separately. And because of this mental separation of the crime, we find it easier to draw a similar separations of the victims. Whereas we 'know' a murder victim was in no way responsible for their own death; we make a special case for the rape victim ... were they somehow culpable in their own rape? (obviously my language is meant to be detached - hopefully you understand my thrust here. It's somewhat superfluous to state the seriousness of the subject). So, although it is a heinous crime, if we were to stop being so emotional about it, maybe we'd be less likely to fall into the trap of isolating it as a crime apart. Crime, victims and accused, need to be handled in unemotional ways. Sympathy of course, but emotion is not a good mechanism for finding guilt or sentencing. And in this case, it's too often that we argue from a gender perspective, and not from right and wrong. Maybe if we treated rape 'just like any other crime' we would be treating it correctly.<br /><br />I think I might not have explained myself too well. Hopefully some of that will make sense.<br /><br />This post has nothing to do with feminism. I think.MainyMikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14073595786043830608noreply@blogger.com