| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 2:38:53 PM | Are all men potential rapists?
I read in the Province newspaper an article in which Aurea Flynn, speaking for Vancouver Rape Relief and Women's Shelter claimed that all men are potential rapists.
I strongly disagree with her claim. Sheesh, talk about painting all men with the same brush.
I am more inclined to agree with journalist Ethan Baron:
We men are not all potential rapists. But we owe it to women to give them the value that is their due, as equals to men in every way — except perhaps when it comes to arm-wrestling and peeing your name in the snow.
The whole story is here:
http://www.theprovince.com/news/potential+rapists/2122434/story.html
How do you feel about Flynn's claim? | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 2:48:42 PM | | Without reading the article, I would say from a woman's personal safety vieiwpoint... yes potentially any man could be a rapist. | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 2:55:26 PM | stupid fluff piece. The real problem is that we don't take rape seriously enough as an offense. C'mon - men need to treat women as equals?
Yahuh - when the alternative is to be castrated (made as if women) they might.
Castration is the logical consequence to the inability of some males to learn how to put their pecker in only appropriate places. How many females are pedophiles? How many females rape and sexually assault others?
I don't know guys - do you think that might be a sufficient deterrent to taking any risk that your advances are unwelcome? To mess with our innocent children? I bet the rapists would still be assaulting women but not raping them with that consequence.
The problem I'm afraid is us women. We spend oodles of resources treating the victims and trying to educate the masses. We should be rounding up the perpetrators and inflicting lasting consequences (within the law of course which we women as the majority voters should be changing!)
I am maybe be more than half serious. | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 2:59:47 PM | And no. I don't believe that all men are potential rapists. There are some situations where many men who might not otherwise rape a woman would do so if they were certain there would be no consequences or could convince themselves it would not matter, or that the woman somehow deserved it but there will always be men of principle whose goodness can never be shaken IMHO.
goodness - MY goodness! Jeez hope my kid feels better soon so I can avoid this computer! | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 3:18:09 PM | | Every human being has the potential to commit every act under the right circumstance if there is absolutely no fear of negative consequence. | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 3:44:23 PM | I was just going to say what gstringer said.
edit: well not exactly. but that we all have the potential for anything. So word for word that would make her statement true.
I have the potential to be a murderer. I also have the potential to fondle young boys when i babysit them.
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 4:04:16 PM | I am pro chemical castration for rapists and pedophiles.
Do all men have potential to be a rapist? When walking the streets at night, sometimes even during the day, I do feel that.
On the bus, getting home from work, yah.. I feel that fear and tingle on the back of my neck when some random man is walking towards me or I hear footsteps behind me. Do I think the same about women who are on the bus or walking my direction? No. | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 4:05:47 PM | | I guess it's about the same as saying all women have the potential to be stereotyping b*tches! | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 4:16:17 PM | I am pro chemical castration for rapists and pedophiles.
Hmm well you can't castrate a women . So you must mean men . So what do we do with the rapists and pedophiles that are women . Something to think about . Really don't like this thread its one sided topic when it comes to rapists. You might want to look on Wikipedia and search Rape by gender.. | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 4:21:08 PM | How do you feel about Flynn's claim?
"All men are potential rapists" makes a certain paranoiac sense as a practical tip ... but ... I have the lurking feeling that it's more an angry philosophy than a practical tip, and this isn't the first time I've heard similar stuff from her group. Unfortunately, there are some people out there (both female and male) who just want to win the battle of the sexes at any cost.
As you might guess, I disagree with what she said and find it offensive, both for singling out men (*cough* Karla Homolka *cough*) and for its general cynicism.
Every human being has the potential to commit every act under the right circumstance if there is absolutely no fear of negative consequence.
More stuff in the category of "literally true but of no practical application." | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 4:37:13 PM | oh baloney. She is talking about rape. Unless you think that rape is a legitimate way for men to wage the so-called "battle of the sexes"? That is exactly my point. We take rape far too lightly in this society.
Singling out men? I don't believe this male rights garbage. Just take a look at the statistics - and not the unsubstantiated spurious data cited on the Men's Rights web sites which is solely a forum to improve men's chances at getting custody of their children at all costs and where data is obtained via surveys of disgruntled divorcing men many of whom are seeking to accuse those who have accused them of violence.
Oh my gosh! You sound tolerant! But think about what you are saying please. These women are angry for a just reason! If there were the same statistics of women going around deliberately harming mens' willies to feel powerful, and nothing was done to stop them through the centuries - jeez how do you think the men would sound? How many women cannot enjoy sex because they were raped or abused as children? Compare that to how many men. Now think - how much do you enjoy sex and how would you feel if it was jeopardized by walking the street at night, taking a drink in a bar even when you are with friends, or staying at home with your so called loving spouse?
Please do not minimize the very real threat and those women who dare to put themselves out there facing the ridicule of men and some women who feel they should be quiet, nice, sweet, and nurturing in order to raise awareness and to put an end to the harm done by men to women just because they ARE women.
Wow! Sure now that you think I've been raped and hate sex lol please be aware that I at least am thankful for those women who have stood up and faced ridicule and defeminization for the protection of other women. And I will do the same even if I never get another date in my life. lol | |
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PiggyT
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Joined: 9/14/2009
Msg: 12 | |
| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 4:47:35 PM | Dear Debra...
I think what you are mistaking for tolerance is frustration with such blatant stereotyping.
I think most men responding are like myself in being quite insulted by the insinuation by this woman. Nowhere in my "being" do I think I have the capacity to force myself on another. I find the the thought repugnant, and in turn I find you to be somewhat offensive in bunching men like myself into the category.
I even hate the word.
VVV
You are blatantly stereotyping by your very argument Deb... that is the problem.
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 4:53:10 PM | And no. I don't believe that all men are potential rapists. There are some situations where many men who might not otherwise rape a woman would do so if they were certain there would be no consequences or could convince themselves it would not matter, or that the woman somehow deserved it but there will always be men of principle whose goodness can never be shaken IMHO.
^^^ Hate to be quoting myself here but Dear little Mr. Piggy, so like a man you cannot read?
EDIT: ^^^ I know! It was fun too! | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 4:55:57 PM | Msg 10
Two of my exes would'nt DO IT even when it was offered up on a silver platter.
There are sensitive men out there who would not dream of violating the opposite sex
So, no....i dont think so.
the man
????
Those exes of yours were men? | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 4:57:51 PM | On the bus, getting home from work, yah.. I feel that fear and tingle on the back of my neck when some random man is walking towards me or I hear footsteps behind me. Do I think the same about women who are on the bus or walking my direction? No.
^^^^
Even though we mustn't paint all men with the same brush,
I very much understand La De Da's feeling .. and felt this from time to time since I first started walking in public alone. The fear is crippling. Rape is real.
Violent Rape is scary, VERY VERY SCARY!
Trust is what keeps us carrying on day by day.
Yes, there are female rapists though I've yet to personally hear or meet one. On the other hand, I personally know both male and females of all ages who were raped by men.
So please don't bash us for living with this fear from the time we realized we can be victims of it anytime, anyplace. Just thank us for trusting YOU.
Trust is the word here.... trust | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 5:20:59 PM | Thats such an unfair observation...WTF???? ....Didn't even read the article because I'll just get upset.....Thats why I dont read the paper or watch anything to do with the media...Its F'd up!! | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 5:40:02 PM |
We take rape far too lightly in this society
looking beyond ones own sandbox one could notice that this society takes all crimes committed far too lightly, rape is no exception.
Apparently we are all as a society too busy taking every kook's claim to special status as minority or victim very heavy, just so we can appear as acting politically correct.
Alas,strangely we always find ourselves over and over again having to deal with those who think they are better and can stereotype.
For those who propose castration do tell will you accept sewing the mouth shut and cutting off fingers to disable communication abilities for those who continue to babble shiat?
Great, then we are in agreement. | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 5:53:34 PM | Well not content to*minimize* rape to the same as all crimes (all crimes are NOT the same!), ML1 *minimizes* the HUGE gender imbalance of a crime committed against one gender by almost wholly the other gender, oh yeah - can't take a little joke is tucked in there too - and then *minimizes* rape to the equivalent of someone who says something he doesn't like.
I REST my CASE, wondering about the history behind THAT comment!
Aha! It was the men's rights lobby group! gotcha :devil: | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 6:15:28 PM | oh baloney. She is talking about rape. Unless you think that rape is a legitimate way for men to wage the so-called "battle of the sexes"? That is exactly my point. We take rape far too lightly in this society
WTF??? Talk about a leap to conclusions ... and one as offensive as the original statement. Kindly control yourself. You're spouting nonsensically.
Singling out men? I don't believe this male rights garbage.
What male rights garbage? She identified men specifically - "All men are potential rapists." That's what singling out means. What the hell does this have to with any men's rights sites??
These women are angry for a just reason!
Well that's the crux of the matter... If this were somebody else saying this I probably would've only commented that it makes sense as a practical matter although it's also rather paranoiac. However, this isn't just any random person saying this. Ms. Flynn has a history and a background which I was already somewhat familiar with, and I think it is a fair guess that she's bashing men in general. It's also certainly not true that all rape counsellors or victims blame men in general. The editorial BE cited quotes another equally prominent rape shelter spokeswoman who has quite a different view of life.
But don't take my word for it. Make up your own mind. ...
Their website is http://www.rapereliefshelter.bc.ca/faq/index.html The political and feminist slant of it will be immediately apparent.
Here's another telltale quote from Aurea Flynn:
I believe that woman only space is necessary for women to seek peer help and gain strength to enable them to resist sexist oppression, in an otherwise male dominated world. In a world where women only spaces are harder and harder to find, I am gladdened to hear about the new Women only Pharmacy in Vancouver, and thank the Vancouver Women’s Health collective for the good work they do.
That's from a comment she made defending Lu's Pharmacy (for women only) when they turned away transsexual women. (Whole thing at http://www.straight.com/article-240560/lus-pharmacy-rejects-transgender-customer).
There was an article about the centre in the Vancouver Courier some months ago, as well (maybe even a couple years now, don't remember) which had a lot more to say about the approach and counselling methods they took. I don't have an online link for it, unfortunately, but that's where I first read about her.
I think we can make a fair guess at her views and position from all that. She's a feminist advocate of woman's rights (all good so far) who thinks male-domination of society is evil (questionable logic but whatever) and who tends to get carried away with public statements and is willing to stir up anger and even hate to further her goals (which is totally not OK, with me at least). What are the goals of feminism? Looking into it from outside, it seems to me its value is in freeing women and giving them more power over their own lives. However, there really do seem to be some women who just want to use the feminist banner as a weapon to club the opposite sex, and going by her public statements she does appear to be one of them. For sure there are also lots of men equally guilty of equivalent behaviour, although they're not the immediate issue. Anyway, that sort of thing is what I meant when I said some people just want to win the battle of the sexes at all costs. I don't think they're really interested in educating anyone or settling anything, just fighting. Are you in that category? If so, please just let me know now so I can stop wasting time trying to reason with you.
Wandering onto other asides from the more rewarding bits of this thread:
Yes, there are woman rapists. They are much less common but far from unknown. I named one famous example already - Karla Homolka. Although inconvenient to those who want to believe rape is normal sexual behaviour for men, I trust that datum will be appreciated by those interested in truth.
For those proposing rapists be chemically castrated ... do you then believe that rape is about sex rather than power? Pretty much every authority I've ever heard from on the subject believes differently (as do I, for whatever it's worth). If rape is just another form of violence then it's worth questioning whether the causes that motivate it have anything to do with sexual urges - and thus whether castration would achieve anything other than "eye for an eye" punishment.
There's an interesting book (written by a feminist author) on subjects related to all this - "When She Was Bad." Check it out sometime, fascinating read. | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 7:10:44 PM |
Are all men potential rapists?
What?
Just because they've got a cokc?
Im female............but i definitely DONT think all men have this horrifying potential!!!!
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 7:18:43 PM |
On the bus, getting home from work, yah.. I feel that fear and tingle on the back of my neck when some random man is walking towards me or I hear footsteps behind me. Do I think the same about women who are on the bus or walking my direction?
^ what I am talking about... if you don't know the guys fairly well, you just don't know.
Women can be castrated, and there are some women offenders. When a guy is being abused that way, I think it is even less likely they come forward... because of the "weaker sex" stereo type. | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 7:49:33 PM |
I REST my CASE, wondering about the history behind THAT comment!
before you drift further out into la land with innuendos the HISTORY is the personal experience of several years trying to get a just conviction of the murderer of a close friend.
So Dahrling, when you read try at least to think, even if you don't understand and hold your breath before you verbalize | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 8:47:13 PM | Warning: Very long post - not for the timid! ('the poster' = TravellersEB started this two phone calls ago!)
I am quite impressed by the poster's knowledge and appreciate his attempts to reason with me, an out-of-control, offensive, nonsensical woman about feminism. Thank goodness there are such enlightened pro-feminist men out there in this world to educate us, hey girls (bats eyelids at all males! twice!)
The term "Battle of the Sexes" usually in my rather limited womanly experience refers to the light hearted banter and friendly-spirited competition between our genders about our differences. In contrast, rape to me represents the rather sordid and shameful acts of violence perpetuated predominantly by men against women purposefully directed towards those areas of our bodies that define us as women. Not at all light-hearted. I simply suggested that the poster was trying to minimize the problem. I still think so.
Ah he is quite correct that some women, such as Karla Homolka (which case also involved a power dynamic with a man and as such is not a great example for his argument, perhaps) have also committed rape against women and did he mention also that men commit rape against men? They have, it is true. However, this um datum, now data I guess, does not in any way mitigate the alarming statistic of the incidence of rapes perpetrated by men against women, a rate that puts this crime squarely as a gender categorized crime regardless of the odd exceptions.
(Aside - I wonder how many of the exceptions involve a man as a third involved party, the statistics on homosexual and lesbian rapists and victims, and how many exceptions are committed from the prison or ex-prison population?)
Furthermore, the interesting background provided on the reported speaker, Aurea Flynn, is potentially a fascinating illustration of how extremism is essential in attracting media attention to ones' causes, however, it is much less germane to the main point of the report than the statistic cited - and our enlightened poster manages to avoid mentioning that. Male Basher or not, the speaker's conclusion is a logical progression from those figures, regardless of whether you and I agree with the extent of her progression.
Where do the male rights lobbyists come in? I will happily tell you where, thank you so much for asking. It is not in arguing against being 'singled out' . (An odd word when the reference is to all members of one category when there are only two categories!) It is in the attempt to obfuscate real gender inequalities and concerns (such as the very high incidence of violence of men toward women) discussed in the mainstream media in efforts to influence our legal system in favour of the male gender (where male proponents argue that women have enjoyed unfair advantages. )
The means employed are the same means employed by this poster, a self-professed advocate of gender equality, in refuting my comments: Discounting, minimizing, and distraction. I seek to caution all readers and the male posters that such arguments are spurious and irresponsible.
Do not forget that media influences are insidious and subtle but as history as proven time and time again, highly effective for all that. If this poster were to consider my comments with an open mind, perhaps he will find that even mavens could use a little educating from time to time, even when the source of that education is female, loud, unbound and passionate! 
^^^ and ML1 - Darling! How typical! (laugh) | |
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| Are all men potential rapists?
Posted: 10/20/2009 8:56:14 PM | I can agree with the statement that "all men are potential rapists" in the same way I can agree with the statement "all women are potential child-killers." However, "potential" has no meaning other than acknowledging that some men will rape and some women will kill their children. In practical terms, the vast majority of men are not rapists and never could be, just like the vast majority of women never kill their kids - even on those days when it seems like a good idea.
I know nothing about Aura Flynn, but I feel sorry for her because she lives her life with such a jaundiced view of half of humanity. | |
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