Tosh, Rape, and Why A Shitload of People Are Missing the Point Entirely
Okay, so there's been some controversy going around on the blogosphere lately about whether or not rape jokes can be/are funny, and this is in response to an incident where Daniel Tosh was making some rape jokes at a comedy club. I want to start right out by addressing the most important issue, which most people tend to skip in favor of jumping
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At any rate: You're wrong. He should have to, because our culture doesn't actually have that strong of a stance against rape, as a whole. It'd sure be nice if that were the case, but it isn't, and we can't pretend that it is. Well, you probably could; judging from your words you're not really at risk for rape. But to be decent human beings you have to think about the people who are at risk of rape, and there are many who fall into this category.
Furthermore, it's not a matter of people's opinions being swayed by jokes. It's a matter of the already rape-culture-influenced opinions being reinforced. You're living in a fantasy world where rape doesn't happen, where victims aren't blamed, and where attackers don't get off scot-free. And you live in this world because you aren't at risk of being raped. It is a position of privilege you are in, and you need to recognize that in order to overcome your biases and be a decent person.
It's interesting that you bring up violent video games, because there are people who play those games and then go on to commit violent crimes. Violent people. They played those games because they were violent, and the games rewarded violent behavior. They went on to commit violent acts. Likewise, people who think rape is okay will go to a Tosh show to be reassured in their stance and rewarded for thinking rape is fine and dandy. For you to think that they won't follow the same model and go on to rape shows a lack of pattern recognition skills.
BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY
You have missed the main point! The point here is not whether or not rape jokes are acceptable. I left that up for debate, giving a few pointers on how to be more socially acceptable. The real point here is that Daniel Tosh supports rape. He handled a situation where someone called him out on his bullshit by telling his audience to gang rape that person. And that is never okay.
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