The GOP's Twisted Sick Game to Legalize Rape and Banning Abortion.

[evildevil.livejournal.com]

I know it sounds crazy but some day courts may stop prosecuting rape crimes, if at all. The pro-life personhood religious rightwing of the conservative party seems driven to make sure all forms of abortions are banned no matter the cost (yes, that includes rape and incest). They want their view of personhood and life to become the law of the land, and even decriminalize rape and the punishment that subsequently follows with it. Let us start with the issue of "Legitimate Rape", such a statement is a loaded word that tries to give the impression that there are different types of rapes. When Todd Akin went to Mike Huckabee's radio show to explain himself he said, "I was talking about forcible rape," he said. "I used the wrong word."

"forcible rape" is nothing but an attempt to create a legal distinction as a way to circumvent the issue of abortion, a loophole in an attempt to ban abortion.

Quote: Hang on -- "forcible rape"? If that term perplexes you, go back to the 2011 controversy over the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act. The first version of the law created a dilineation between "rape" and "forcible rape," which Nick Baumann noticed first and explained best.

With this legislation, which was introduced last week by Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), Republicans propose that the rape exemption be limited to "forcible rape." This would rule out federal assistance for abortions in many rape cases, including instances of statutory rape, many of which are non-forcible. For example: If a 13-year-old girl is impregnated by a 24-year-old adult, she would no longer qualify to have Medicaid pay for an abortion.

If you think trying to rethink or create new definitions for rape wont cause serious social issues, then you are ignoring the repercussions and criminal implications that will cause on society if implemented. Back in 1999 Findland introduced a new category regarding rape, what happened next is that it caused that less than half of those convicted of rape ever serve jail time.

Quote: "According to a news report aired by the commercial television network Nelonen on Sunday, courts in Finland have been handing out relatively lenient sentences in cases of sexual assault – even in some which have led to physical injury.

Nelonen examined all sex crime cases handled by Finnish district courts over the past year and found out that prosecutors and courts have considered acts involving injury to the victim, or in which the woman’s home has been violently broken into, and even in which the victim has been kept a prisoner for several days, to meet the definition of “coercive sexual contact”, a category of sexual assault considered less serious than actual rape.

[...]The Nelonen report found that more than half of those convicted of actual rape have to serve real prison time. Less than one in ten of those convicted of the lesser crime have had to serve custodial sentences."


Or how about this quote: "There are three kinds of rape in Finnish law: rape, aggravated rape and "coercive sexual contact". Here is an example of "coercive sexual contact", a lesser crime than rape, from the Nelonen report:

A man, born in 1977, forced a woman to have sex with him in the disabled persons' bathroom of a restaurant by hitting her head into the wall and twisting her arm behind her. The woman could not call out for help because the man held his other hand over her mouth. Earlier that evening the same man had tried to forcibly kiss her in the restaurant. The state prosecutor demanded a sentence for coercive sexual contact, because the violence used was mild and the act was performed under mitigating circumstances. The public court decision does not set out these circumstances. The man was given a seven-month suspended sentence and ordered to pay 1000e in reparations." (source)


So what do the Todd Akins of the world want? Ban IVF, ban contraception, ban abortions, create a new legal definition for rape, and incidentally and technically legalize rape or lower rape convictions.

Comments

[blondebaroness.livejournal.com]

Todd Akin misspoke. I think he was trying to discriminate between forcible rape and statutory rape. But let's spin it into something that it's not, namely the legalization of rape, or the lack of prosecution of rape, or the promotion of rape. The hysterics and histronics have been over the top. The media was playing a "gottcha" moment by asking about allowances for abortion in case of pregnancy resulting from rape. I think you'll find that most people don't want abortion used as birth control. They don't want women using abortion as their only means of preventing pregnancy. This whole thing is just a distraction from the real issue, which is the economy, and restoring America to it's proper place in the economic world.

[root-fu.livejournal.com]

IAWTC.

[pastorlenny.livejournal.com]

Two questions:

1) Do you agree that women rarely get pregnant from "forcible rape" because there is a biological response to such rape that prevents conception?

2) What is America's "proper place in the economic world?"

[root-fu.livejournal.com]

Whether or not rape has an effect on fertility, is generally unimportant & detracts from relevent issues.

[dwer.livejournal.com]

Todd Akin, GOP nominee for US Senate, clearly disagrees with you.

[pastorlenny.livejournal.com]

So if someone makes a claim that it does have such an effect -- and that said effect should influence government policy -- you would not come to any conclusions about that person's intellect or grip on reality?

[chron-job.livejournal.com]

> The media was playing a "gottcha" moment ...

No, the media was making ratings hay by showing and reshowing a politician doing something that really pisses some people off.

The thing he was doing that really pisses some people off? Spreading a lie that services a political ideology.

[root-fu.livejournal.com]

You said it yourself, the lie services the political ideology & not the other way around.

Suggesting that the lie is important, significant or serves as the motive for said political ideology is a disservice to humanity.

[chron-job.livejournal.com]

I'm really not sure how or why you reach that conclusion.

My words... "a lie that services a political ideology." Refers to a lie which exists in order to facilitate a political position. The political position of "all abortions should be illegal" is threatened by many who have reservations to the effect "we should make exceptions for cases of rape".

The "pregnancy doesn't come from rape" lie is a crafted falsehood, and spreads specifically because it is politically useful to those interested in de-legitimatizing those reservations. It's ultimately unknown if Atkins is the liar, or the lied to, but in any case he should know better. Such lies spread for specific political effect need to be vociferously opposed. We have too many convenient lies warping our politics as it is.

This is why the lie is important. That's why it is significant. Ignoring it is the disservice to humanity.

[dwer.livejournal.com]

Todd Akin did not misspeak. Todd Akin wants to remove abortion as an option for women under any circumstances. Todd Akin is attempting to redefine the word "rape " to mean "we don't trust women to tell the truth about being raped, so we want to make the definition as restrictive as possible and rule out as many instances of rape as possible."

Todd Akin told the truth about what he, and the Republican Party, want to do. And THAT's why this is a real issue.

[root-fu.livejournal.com]

Republicans want to cut social security & other social programs - that's obvious.

They don't need flawed views on human biological function to justify cuts on social security anymore than they need Akins voicing incorrect views on rape as justification to cut abortion or rape funding. The biology abstract is redundant, unnecessary and completely unrelated to their motive for wanting to cut social programs. So is religion.

You're not doing yourself or anyone else a favor in blowing offhand comments out of proportion & falsely attributing skewed views on biology for the conservatives comprehensive war on social and welfare programs. Quite the opposite.

[dwer.livejournal.com]

The biology abstract is redundant, unnecessary and completely unrelated to their motive for wanting to cut social programs. So is religion.

You fundamentally misunderstand the mindset of the Republican Party.

[gillianinoz.livejournal.com]

Exactly! Well said!

[kylinrouge.livejournal.com]

Maybe he misspoke if he was accidentally speaking a language that sounds remarkably like English but actually nothing like it, and meant what you said he meant.

They don't want women using abortion as their only means of preventing pregnancy.

Then maybe they should fund programs that provide birth control. It seems their only answer is 'don't have sex'.

This whole thing is just a distraction from the real issue, which is the economy, and restoring America to it's proper place in the economic world.

We can talk about multiple subjects at a time. All of life and its issues don't have to go on hold until we 'restore America's proper place in the world'. That is a fallacious argument.

[kayjayuu.livejournal.com]

I call troll on the headline. Legalizing rape? WTF?

This type of histrionics is okay for ONTD, but not for TP. IMO.

[dwer.livejournal.com]

If "legitimate rape" is redefined to the instances of rape that are perpetrated by strangers who assault women in dark alleys, and therefore removes instances of rape that are perpetrated on women by friends and family (which is far more prevalent than the former), then yes, it's legalizing rape.

[notmrgarrison.livejournal.com]

But it's no, as your "if" is absurd.

[notmrgarrison.livejournal.com]

the impression that there are different types of rapes.

1) A 15 year old girl has sex with her 18 year old boyfriend that she's been dating for 2 years

2) A 15 year old girl is jumped on her way home from school and is told not to scream while the guy she's never met and wouldn't have been attracted to in the first place has sex with her against her will.

No difference there!

[kylinrouge.livejournal.com]

Statutory rape laws are a little silly once you get close to 18 but you always look like a pedophile when you talk about them. They're not objectively bad but I think there should be more emphasis on intent.

Your situation is a boy who is 16 and starts going out with a 13 year old...

[gillianinoz.livejournal.com]

I personally think an 18 year old having sex with a 15 year old is wrong.

But it's not rape, even if the word statutory is put in front of it.

[sophia-sadek.livejournal.com]

It is pretty clear that Fundamentalists want to return to the days of coat hangers and women bleeding to death in alleyways. Their charity knows no limits.

[gillianinoz.livejournal.com]

The man was given a seven-month suspended sentence and ordered to pay 1000e in reparations

How was this ever allowed to happen? Horrifying.

The way things are going I don't think it's over the top to believe this kind of thing could happen in the US. I have personally heard a judge here in Australia state that a rape was less damaging to the 13 year old victim because the rapist rendered her unconscious before raping her.

[policraticus.livejournal.com]

Republicans also are in favor of eating babies and kicking puppies.

TRUFAX!

[mahnmut.livejournal.com]

In all fairness, I do remember a couple of conservatives saying "Meh, so what" when this was being discussed:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mjb8-2dh9s (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mjb8-2dh9s)

[dwer.livejournal.com]

no, that's atheists, who are rarely republican