I've been wanting a post like this for a while...

[raichu100.livejournal.com]

...and no one has written it, so I'm taking the initiative.

In a recent post by the_rukh there was a heated ensuing discussion about whether it's appropriate to give advice to women to help them prevent being raped. One of the things that came up repeatedly in the discussion was that whether or not the advice was appropriate (and that is NOT the focus of this post so please don't argue about that here...) it was far more important to take other measures to prevent rape, and also treat rape victims (something that wasn't focused on in the post but which surfaced a great deal in the discussion). I realized that was something that needed to be discussed, and as has been pointed out to me, this is a topic on which I know little, though I have strong opinions. So, what do you guys think?

1. What are the most important steps that should be taken to prevent rape and decrease its prevalence in our society?
2. What are the most important steps that should be taken to improve treatment for rape victims?
3. How about the justice system? What needs improvement there, and how do we make those improvements?

I want to hear from the people who know more about this and I'm hoping to learn something (or many things). I also would like to continue the effort of creating a dialogue that all people who hate rape can contribute to.

Oh, and in case I haven't emphasized this enough, LET'S AVOID TALKING ABOUT GIVING ADVICE and focus on the other parts of the equation.

Comments

[paft.livejournal.com]

Possibly as many more as there are about war, torture, voting, and any other topic related to human rights.

I think issues like rape and abortion are pretty important and worth discussing.

[ddstory.livejournal.com]

Of course they are. But I couldn't hope noticing that nearly 50% of all posts in the last week have been about abortion and rape. Any theory why is that?

[ddstory.livejournal.com]

* hope -> help (typo)

[paft.livejournal.com]

Because they are very important issues that impact many of us on a very personal level.

[ddstory.livejournal.com]

Like I said, fair enough.

[blue-mangos.livejournal.com]

But I couldn't hope noticing that nearly 50% of all posts in the last week have been about abortion and rape.

This is rather hyperbolic. I count 36 posts in the past week, 4 of which are directly related to rape or abortion plus one that got derailed to a rape discussion in the comments. A far cry from 50%.

[htpcl.livejournal.com]

In the absence of Mijopo, you may consider yourself assigned to the task of Community Statistician! The pay is good. (Again, candy).

[blue-mangos.livejournal.com]

I love candy. I accept!

[htpcl.livejournal.com]

Fun fact: he's Canadian too. Seems like you Canucks have a thing with stats. :-P

[blue-mangos.livejournal.com]

It comes from watching so much hockey I think.

[htpcl.livejournal.com]

I hate it when the sports commentators flood the whole air time with stupid stats, like, Did You Know Berbatov Has Scored 9 of his 30 Goals For The Season With His Head? Har Har Har!

[blue-mangos.livejournal.com]

I'm guessing you're talking about soccer here. If hockey players tried scoring goals with their heads they'd have even less teeth than they already do.

[htpcl.livejournal.com]

I thought all of their teeth are fakes anyway.

[blue-mangos.livejournal.com]

Nope, most of them just have flippers that they put in to fill in the gaps. And I have no idea why but this just reminded me of my favourite fight maneuveur The hockey shirt (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=hockey%20shirt)

[geezer-also.livejournal.com]

They have stats in hockey?
Like what, how many punches thrown in the second period by a left handed defenseman?

[blue-mangos.livejournal.com]

:p

total shots on goal, total passes, player career stats, things like that.

[raichu100.livejournal.com]

"I think issues like rape and abortion are pretty important and worth discussing."

this.