My (probably self-indulgent) way of addressing something I've been thinking about all day

[clappamungus]

Comments

[saithkar]

This is the first interesting and intelligent thing I've read about this whole affair

[onerodetoasabay]

Shayne, the fact that you react this way, instead of glibly or flippantly, is one of the many reasons I'm honored to know you. Way too many men out there are far too comfy with joking about rape. :/

[mstakenidentity]

I've been thinking about it a lot, even out here. I think it is very hard for people (me included) to cope with the randomness of the attack. How much more comfortable for us if we could say "She shouldn't have been there, she shouldn't have been drinking, she shouldn't have been alone, she should have worn something different." because that puts the power and the blame in her hands, and therefore, in OUR hands were we ever to be in the same position. As the vast majority of us will never commit such a crime when we are identifying with it (as we inevitably do) we identify with the victim, and the fact that she (we) had no fore knowledge, no sense of danger and ultimately no escape is terrifying and tragic. I think that is far more why the victim blaming culture exists, more even than the patriarchy- because we want to be able to DO something and so we want to believe that there is something she could have done different. If only she'd followed "The Rules" she would have been safe! Being male you probably have never received a cope of

[vivienne_aster]

Like you guys, this hit me strangely as well. But yes, what Shayne said, and also what Chris said. I don't have much new to add.

[kitty_ryan]

You are good people, Shayne.

Jesus, that is pretty harsh

[samhain66]

I hate hearing people casually mention rape as being anything other than horrid to the extreme. And yet, being as de-sensitized as I am in America, I have been guilty about thinking of murder as a numbers game, like an evil lottery anyone can lose. I really need to work on not being like that!