What Is Wrong With the World??

[hellison]

1. headline from bbcni re cervical cancer jab - "Girls urged to ABSTAIN in jab row"
why? Because its a dirty cancer you can get from SEX and obviously if you've been having sex you deserve it. Or... something.
More from the helpful FAQ here -

Colin Hart, Director of The Christian Institute, said the way to tackle the problem was not to offer injections, but to tell girls not to have under-age sex.

Ahh. So it's only *underage* sex that causes cancer. Good Girls won't get it, and thus don't need vaccinated. Well that's all clear then!

I know there are Other Issues around the vaccination and which version was chosen etc, but that's not what these people are saying. They're saying girls shouldn't be vaccinated against a potentially TERMINAL DISEASE, because then they might have sex! And we can't have that!!
Would there be the same outcry if it was discovered testicular cancer was also linked to a virus and teenage boys were offered it?

2. This article about date rape is making my head explode with WTF and RAGE. Because obviously if you go drinking with a guy who turns out not to care whether or not you're concious when he gets off on/in you, well that's YOUR fault you silly loose drunken woman. It's not like he's done anything WRONG, or should face any consequences for it! SKIN CRAWLING NOW.

SEND KITTENS PLZ. NEED HAPPY THOUGHTS.

ETA New Mistful Fic! and at lunchtime too. Couldn't have been better timed.

EDIT 2 - just to add, now the original RAGE has calmed slightly, this turned into a thought provoking discussion; a timely reminder the world isn't completley full of morons. Or at least my flist isn't ;) Thanks!

AAAAND if we can keep it civil kids, that would be good. _unhurt_, I still have crutches. And I know where you live. Keep up the ranting tho. Rants Good. CIder better. MOAR CIDER

Comments

[caramel-betty.livejournal.com]

Now, I don't want to sound like a rapist (because I'm not), and I don't want to sound pro-rapist (because I'm not), and I don't want to sound like Judge Pickles saying that a girl in a short skirt is just gagging for a throbbing member to be thrust up her (because I'm not)...

A few women of my acquaintance (some friends at Uni, mostly) were incredibly heavy drinkers, possibly borderline alcoholic. However, if you weren't watching what they were drinking and/or with them often enough, you wouldn't know they were drinking that much, because they were good at holding their drink. Except... their memories were somewhat shaky. It wasn't like they were embarrassed or covering things up (because there was plenty of embarrassing stuff they could remember, and laugh about) - just sometimes they completely forgot stuff.

In such a situation, you have:
- a woman who is incredibly drunk, and possibly too drunk to give informed consent, but looks just "merry" to the naked eye
- a man who thinks "Alright darling"
- a woman who says "Okay, let's shag!"
- a man who hops on board and makes squelching noises
- a woman who remembers none of this in the morning.

I don't know what the answer to a situation like that is.

[jin-shei.livejournal.com]

Video the consent on your mobile!

*beams helpfully*

[hellison.livejournal.com]

We've all been there, done that etc, my main problem is that the focus on 'stopping rape' is all aimed at what WOMEN should/shouldn't do to avoid it.

Where is the focus on what MEN should/shouldn't do to avoid being accused of rape or, you know, actually raping someone? Where are the articles urging men NOT to sleep with unconsious women? Pointing out that just because you carry some drunk women from a taxi to her door, doesn't automatically mean you get to shag her? that sometimes, even if she *seems* willing (or isn't actively protesting), its' STILL BETTER TO NOT SHAG HER.

Why do they make women responsible for NOT making men rapists?

(heh. Rant overload. Sorry ;p)

[glassstrider.livejournal.com]

Where are the articles urging men NOT to sleep with unconsious women?

I was given one actual, serious, father-son instruction on how to live my life by my dad, which was: there can be reasons to kill people. There can be reasons to steal from people. But there is never any reason or cause to rape someone.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_unhurt_/]

are these women saying they've been raped? if not, there's your answer.

YOUR answer is not to fuck people who are passing out. which apparently you don't. so you're probably ok. maybe more men should try this approach!

some men seem pretty hazy on what consent actually implies. like the woman i know who shared a room with her ex at a house party they had been invited to before they split up. a room they agreed to share as friends. she went to bed earlier than him, alone. and woke up to find him - drunk - FUCKING her. because, you know, that consent he had when they were going out was good for LIFE yo!

[caramel-betty.livejournal.com]

YOUR answer is not to fuck people who are passing out. which apparently you don't.

But my favourite chat-up line is: "Does this smell like chloroform to you?" What am I going to do now?

*whines*

[http://users.livejournal.com/_unhurt_/]

i have a feeling that rape jokes are generally funnier in threads that aren't about rape.

but i handed in my sense of humour when they issued my feminist card (it's rule three) so i guess i wouldn't know?

[caramel-betty.livejournal.com]

With hedged comments like "apparently you don't" and "probably okay", there's still this lingering air of "YOU MIGHT BE A RAPIST."

Would you, in other conversations on some other sort of crime, tell other people "Well, I assume you don't burgle, so you're probably okay" or "I assume you don't commit arson, so you're probably okay"? If not, why do you feel the need to do so when talking about rape?

[http://users.livejournal.com/_unhurt_/]

i might if those people's reaction to the subject was to at once present scenarios in which: hey! maybe it WASN'T burglary. maybe they asked for the fire to be lit! people are complicated you know - maybe it's all a misunderstanding involving wine and matches!?

that would be the reason why - it's not the same conversation TO START WITH. and it's "the crime most often represented as a misunderstanding". which weirdly i am not really OK with. because that meme is the one of the reasons rape has suck a fucking abysmal prosecution rate. it's become an accepted cultural story. jesus, some women buy into it too. it makes me crazy!

so, fwiw it's not personal, but the framing of the discussion - well, i didn't build the frame, you know, but i think the frame is ugly and wrong and that certainly does influence my reactions.