Americans take pride in being a civilized nation. But the stupidity and callous ease with which American Men, both privately and in public positions--including Republicans in congress, can so easily justify or explain away rape and vote no against the Violence Against Women Act makes us anything but civilized.
Americans were appalled and outraged at the death of a young woman from an horrific gang-rape in India. Many were even more outraged at a statement by a lawyer for one of the defendants who proclaimed that "no 'respectable woman' would be raped." But even in the USA, we have a history of blaming the rape victim for the sexual assault against her person and her body in every imaginable way.
Historically, in the USA, the exception to this rule occurred when a minority, especially a black male or Native American male was accused of raping a white woman. Nevertheless, even young white women are not exempt from the protective attitudes for rapists against rape victims when it is suggested that she somehow was "asking for it", was responsible for her rape, or in some way deserved what she got. These positions often provide more sympathy and protection for the rapists than it does for the rape victim-especially when the rapists are "respected men" from "respected families". Because no one wants to see a young white boy's life ruined because he made a mistake. We saw some of this attitude in the support some boys received in the Steubenville, Ohio Case involving the rape and kidnapping of an "out of town" young white girl.
The belief that any woman desires, welcomes, or is asking for rape or sexual assault of any kind is nothing more than a boorish, lazy, uncivilized, sociopathic male sexual fantasy--allowed to be played out so much because the risks for doing it are minimal, even in civilized nations.
Throughout human history, it was expected with some degree of entitlement that conquering soldiers would rape the mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters of their enemies. It was accepted that slave owners were entitled, indeed had a right, to rape their female slaves if they so desired. But, in a civilized nation, how does support for the rapist or a justifiable explanation for rape still remain? Even with animals in the wild, when male and females animals are in heat--the female gets to say no--and the only assaults are with the males who vie for her.
There are plenty of stories from the 40's, 50's, and 60's about black women in black communities near white college campuses who were raped as part of the initiation rites of young white boys in college fraternities. Historically, white men have never been seriously or otherwise prosecuted for the rape of black women and Native American Women. It was an entitlement that only white men enjoyed because even the accusation or allegation of a black male or a Native American male raping a white woman resulted in a lynching of some black male or Native American male--even if the accusation was a lie.
Apparently, when men hold a position of power over women--whether by force, intoxication, unconsciousness, social position, proclaimed ethnic superiority by a dominant group, or wealth--some men feel they are entitled to the right to rape or violate a woman's persons and her body. I have posited in a previous post that a major defect in the creation of human beings was the eventuality of male dominance.
I have also posited in a previous post that rapists, sexual predators, and sexual aggression is likely caused by two things--neither of which are caused by testosterone, and neither of which are desirable--a lack of intelligence and a lack of discipline. To those two I will add a third--the historical belief that men are entitled to the sexual pleasure of a woman--even if they have to take it--if they cannot otherwise control themselves because the woman "was asking for it" by dressing or acting provocatively or by allowing herself to be in a position in which she could be taken advantage of. None of these should be the behavioral belief of civilized men.
