Interesting Links for 14-03-2013

[andrewducker]

• The Dark Knight Rises was the best selling movie of 2012. Still beaten by Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 and Fifa 13.
  (tags: music games uk movies media )
• Rape investigations are undermined by the false belief that false accusations are rife.
  (tags: police rape )
• I had no idea there was such a charge as "Recklessly producing household electricity"
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Comments

[kiffkin]

"The Scottish Government is locking up trans men for not revealing their gender history to partners. Have a petition."

No, The Scottish Government isn't locking up trans men for not revealing their gender history (the Scottish Government don't go around prosecuting people - that would be the Procurator Fiscal, and prosecutions are overseen by the Lord Advocate), the CPS have nothing to do with the case and Wilson lied about his age to obtain consent. Hence the charge of obtaining sexual intimacy by fraud (note: the 23 years old and under defense was removed a few years back). The trans* aspect seems to have been introduced by the defence, not the prosecution.

The reporting of the case, however, has been terrible and has potentially done much more damage to transrights than the case itself. And given the terrible reporting of the case, it's difficult to state much about it for certain without access to the court report. If it turns out that Wilson's gender dysphoria was a factor in the prosecution, then yes, he shouldn't be punished for it. It's ridiculous and possibly harmful to jump to conclusions based on incomplete information (as the reporters of the case have done).

"If we can't afford for people to be disabled, what's the plan?"

We - and I'm speaking in general, not about you - can stop pretending disability is something that only happens to other people. That would be a good start. Stop the rhetoric of 'them' and start talking about 'us'.

"The new pope was complicit in dreadful crimes in Argentina."

Actually that's not certain just yet, as The Guardian themselves admitted (and are currently investigating further). It's possible he was a fifth columnist rather than a collaborator. Again, it's a case of not having all the information yet.

[andrewducker]

Thank you for the two updates there - that's good to know!

(And totally agreed on the middle one. If we can't acknowledge that this could happen to anyone, we're all fucked.)

[ashfae]

Thank you for your response RE the trans imprisonment case, which is very much what I wanted to say and which really needs to be more widely known.