SlutWalks

[Sister Hyde]

Perhaps we should all cover up completely... and take to wearing the Burka!!! No, damn it, that wouldn't work either because many of the same guys who tell you that you should not "go out" dressed a certain way are among the very first to point out how abhorrent it is that in radical Islam the menfolk actually think that they have the right to tell woman what they should and should not wear!!!

Best wishes,
Zodiac.

I always tell other girls to always have a crowbar in their purse, but they don't understand why and they even tell me i'm not right in the head

[Errata]

The "lie back and enjoy the ride" thing just seems nasty.....and I have to admit I'm struggling with the concept of not fighting back, but as you said for any victim staying alive must be their objective.

I don't think it's so much "never fight back" because women have successfully made themselves such a problem that their attackers have let them go. I would certainly say never bring anything to the fight that can be used against you, like a weapon. Men have much greater upper body strength than women, and typically have little problem prying something out of their hands. My old math teacher would have just been raped, but she had a gun which her attacker prized out of her hands and put it against her kneecap and fired, so now she is a rape survivor who walks with a cane.

The best advice I ever got was from a crime scene tech who told me that the number one lesson she learned about surviving a rape was to never let them take you to a second location. If they want to pull you into an alleyway, fine, but never ever get in a car or walk off with this person. They are just taking you someplace where they can kill you slowly. Based on the condition of the remains she had seen, she would rather be killed on the spot than have a small chance of surviving what these people do to women in the privacy and safety of their own space. Having read some of the cases, I am inclined to agree.

[Robert]

Hi Errata

Could you clarify those figures please? Are these figures based on reports alone, or on reports followed by convictions?

[Fleetwood Mac]

I'm liberal; do you want to whom you want providing you don't break the law.

I value privacy, too, so please just go about your business quietly instead of going on some walk that affords you some attention.

[Errata]

Hi Errata

Could you clarify those figures please? Are these figures based on reports alone, or on reports followed by convictions?

They were based on self-reporting surveys given out at.. some University Hospital. I 'm thinking Baylor, but that could be wrong. But as patients checked in to see a doctor they were given the survey.

I haven't ever seen the survey again, although I have come across the numbers being quoted by other organizations, like Planned Parenthood, and 1-800-The-Lost.

[Robert]

Hi Errata

Ok, thanks.

[Errata]

Hi Errata

Ok, thanks.

Someone once told me that sociologists were mankind's only hope for finding what slips through the cracks. Obviously she was a sociologist

But it seems to be true. Studies I have taken part in, read, helped administer, etc. seems to deal with everything between "The Perception and Reality of Extra Plys of Toilet Paper: A Study in False Security"(my old roommates senior project. very disturbing) to unreported crime.

It's only been in the past 15 years that we have started to change our thinking as why women resort to prostitution. And while it is true that there is an undeniable relationship between prostitution and drugs, previously there was no work done to discover if the drug addiction came before or after the prostitution. And now we know it's about even. The causal relationship between sexual abuse or sexual assault and eventual prostitution is stunning. And rape counseling now devotes just as much time convincing women that they are not soiled goods now as they do on convincing women that it was not their fault. And sociologists figured this out. Cops and social workers knew something else was at play, but they didn't have the time or resources to pry it out.

And as much as I still consider it "soft" numbers (I'm still a weights and measures girl at heart), it is very hard for me to dismiss the research and the overall value of the numbers. There's a whole lot of reasons for me to wish the numbers had come from arrest reports. I just have to settle for being glad the numbers came out at all.

[Robert]

Hi Errata

The trouble is, unreported crime is, well, unreported. It hasn't gone through a court and led to a conviction. Now, while I myself have no problem with anecdotal evidence, I gather that sociologists do have problems with it.

[Errata]

Hi Errata

The trouble is, unreported crime is, well, unreported. It hasn't gone through a court and led to a conviction. Now, while I myself have no problem with anecdotal evidence, I gather that sociologists do have problems with it.

Well, they don't actually. They construct surveys and models to give them a good idea as to how many people are lying on a survey. And people do lie. Sociologists use these numbers to formulate theories. They aren't using them to change the world. Others are.

The problem is that anecdotal evidence is easily challenged by politicians, police commissioners, anyone who does not want there to be a massive uptick in societal problems. The fact is, outside of anecdotal evidence, there is no way to measure unreported crime. But a police commissioner can point out that there is no hard evidence that these unreported crimes exist. So it becomes very hard to use those numbers to convince law enforcement that something has to change, and to implement those changes. That's where the problems lie.

[caz]

The motivation to lie in any given circumstances is obviously a factor here. If a survey on unreported sexual assaults and abuse is anonymous and completely confidential, the various authorities should at least consider the results seriously, because the motivation for significant numbers to lie about something like this is hard to imagine.

Conversely, we have been told recently that factor 30 is now considered to be inadequate protection against sun damage, but I do wonder how that was established scientifically. "I'm afraid you may have skin cancer, Miss X, have you been sunbathing for days and weeks on end with nothing on but factor two and a smile?" If the answer is yes, the motivation to tell fibs here can be very strong: "Oh no, doctor, I always follow the latest advice, and when I sat in the pub garden for ten minutes the other day I literally smothered myself in factor 30." And the factor 30 product may well be sitting on her bathroom shelf and replaced each summer, but it doesn't mean she ever slapped it on.

"By the way, Miss X, how much do you drink? Your liver isn't in great shape either."

"Ooh just the odd glass of wine, once a month after payday."

Love,

Caz
X

[caz]

The motivation to lie in any given circumstances is obviously a factor here. If a survey on unreported sexual assaults and abuse is anonymous and completely confidential, the various authorities should at least consider the results seriously, because the motivation for significant numbers to lie about something like this is hard to imagine.

Conversely, we have been told recently that factor 30 is now considered to be inadequate protection against sun damage, but I do wonder how that was established scientifically. "I'm afraid you may have skin cancer, Miss X, have you been sunbathing for days and weeks on end with nothing on but factor two and a smile?" If the answer is yes, the motivation to tell fibs here can be very strong: "Oh no, doctor, I always follow the latest advice, and when I sat in the pub garden for ten minutes the other day I literally smothered myself in factor 30." And the factor 30 product may well be sitting on her bathroom shelf and replaced each summer, but it doesn't mean she ever slapped it on.

"By the way, Miss X, how much do you drink? Your liver isn't in great shape either."

"Ooh just the odd glass of wine, once a month after payday."

Love,

Caz
X

[Magpie]

Seems a slight over-reaction to one Policeman's insensitive comments.

.

Sorry Dave, but this wasn't a case of "one Policeman's insensitive comments" but a case of "One policeman at an official event publicly exposing the pervasive and inappropriate mindset rampant throughout the police force."

The Toronto police force sadly has a history of this (including the "Jane Doe" case and the Barnardo fiasco)--this mook's comments just serve to to show that the underlying attitude that directly contributed to those tragedies is still there--they've just stuck a veneer of "sensitivity" over top.

[miss marple]

Come on,rape is not about sex, but power and control, at this moment thousands of women and girls and babies of all ages have been raped in the Congo and Darfur. Gaddafi is using rape as a war weapon in Libya. Also in Syria. Rape as an act of violence and intimidation has been used by invading armies for thousands of years.
What women chose to wear or not wear is irrelevent. Men are raped too.
The slut march is a bit of fun but does not address the real issue, rape is not about sex.
Miss Marple

[Errata]

Come on,rape is not about sex, but power and control, at this moment thousands of women and girls and babies of all ages have been raped in the Congo and Darfur. Gaddafi is using rape as a war weapon in Libya. Also in Syria. Rape as an act of violence and intimidation has been used by invading armies for thousands of years.
What women chose to wear or not wear is irrelevent. Men are raped too.
The slut march is a bit of fun but does not address the real issue, rape is not about sex.
Miss Marple

It is somewhat disingenuous to say that rape is not about sex. Barring politically motivated rape, it is about sex. It is about how power over another human being, and how harming them is sexually exciting to a certain percentage of the population. These men don't want power over you so they can have power over you, they want power over you so they can get off. And I know exactly why we say it's not about sex, and how helpful to the victims the notion is. But holding that particular opinion doesn't stop rapes, and it doesn't stop rapists. And if we are ever going to stop it, we need to keep in mind that the platitudes and half truths for victims aren't going to lead to a solution. Just more confusion.

[TomTomKent]

Just bumping this topic because the London Slutwalk is covered in some depth by Christine Ottery this week on the Pod Delusion.

Go have a listen, it's a good piece.

http://poddelusion.co.uk/blog/