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Original poster

So in the wake of a massive public spotlight on rape, the priority apparently is to protect the reputations of the tiny % of men falsely accused of rape

339 replies

FastidiaBlueberry · 17/02/2013 00:18

FFS FFS FFS

Is it very cynical of me to think that this new demand to enable anonymity for men accused of rape (most of whom are guilty, but get off anyway) is a psychological need to re-establish what is most important to these woman-haters?

Stop talking about the mountain of rape victims who never get justice and FGS start talking about the anthill of men who get falsely accused.

Enough of Steubenville, Delhi, Frances Andrade, Jimmy Savile's victims, the 1 in 4 women who are raped or sexually assaulted.

Let's get back to talking about the really important issues - the miniscule number of men who will be falsely accused of rape or who will be the victim of mistaken identity. Fools, don't you know they're more important than all those rape vicitms? That that's a much bigger issue? So what 25% of women are subjected to rape or sexual assault? So what if 85-90% of rape victims don't report? So what that of those who do, only 6% get a guilty verdict even though only between 2-6% are lying or mistaken? Let's get some perspective on this - men matter more than women, stop imagining they don't.

Fuming but off to bed.

OP posts:
TheDoctrineOfSciAndNatureClub · 19/02/2013 15:12

Thanks Julia.

JuliaScurr · 19/02/2013 13:46

The 'yes means yes' piece shows how many men admit to rape - if it's not called rape, and sometimes if it is :(

JuliaScurr · 19/02/2013 13:44

Doctrine yes, she's a witness and the defence try to show she is unreliable. That's their job. The accused is innocent until proved guilty. Not his word against hers, two evenly balanced sides, but hugely in his favour. The vast majority (over 95%) never get to court anyway.

yesmeansyesblog.wordpress.com/2009/11/12/meet-the-predators/

TheDoctrineOfSciAndNatureClub · 19/02/2013 09:22

Angel, I'm so sorry Thanks

Is the anonymity of rape victims really so very different to the rest of the law?, when a case gets to court, the victim is not the accuser, she (or he of course) is a witness. The case is not "ms X against Mr Y". And our court system has always made provision for the protection of vulnerable witnesses (screens, video evidence, anonymity etc). Did the right to anonymity for victims come from a decision that all such witnesses have a high probability of being vulnerable?

Not a lawyer so the above may be incorrect.

Fastidia, I want to be you when I grow up.

twofingerstoGideon · 19/02/2013 09:10

Sorry, that was to "feminist" 12312.

twofingerstoGideon · 19/02/2013 08:41

Oh yes, my local paper reports virtually nothing else - page after page of stories about women being raped, along with pictures of the poor accused, who haven't even been found guilty of anything. Chock-a-block it is - there's barely room for any other stories. In fact, it's just like the national press with its insatiable need to vilify men and its insistence on printing stories about women walking around in short skirts and not even getting punished for it up a dark alley somewhere...

Rape victims have never had it so good.

Ilovexmastime · 19/02/2013 08:15

Exactly! I'm embarassed to say that I hadn't even thought about women coming forward after reading about a rapist in the paper, and yet it is so obvious.
[Blush]

CabbageLeaves · 19/02/2013 08:06

I browse the feminist threads and often my opinion is shaped, tweaked or I roll my eyes and wander off. This thread as you say Ilovexmastime, has really made me think and change how I see the way rape is portrayed. Excellent points showing how massively biased and unbalanced it is against women and in ways you don't even recognise because they are so 'normal'.

Let the trolls starve

Ilovexmastime · 19/02/2013 08:00

This thread has completely changed my opinion regarding anonymity. I had fallen for the media view and believed that it would be the right thing to do.
Not after reading this though. I will be re-reading this thread so that I can get all the arguments against anonymity straight in my head, ready to argue the case with friends and family.

Feminist12312 · 19/02/2013 07:47

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twofingerstoGideon · 19/02/2013 07:43

The focus should be on helping the thousands of women who are raped by men.
Indeed.

Feminist12312 · 19/02/2013 03:24

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CabbageLeaves · 18/02/2013 22:58

Brilliant points on this thread Fastidia. Thank you

AbigailAdams · 18/02/2013 22:43

Yes that DM article is a classic in not hiding its agenda, bias or misogyny.

kim147 · 18/02/2013 22:43

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Trekkie · 18/02/2013 22:41

Christ the comments....

WHY WHY WHY did I look at them ARRRGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Trekkie · 18/02/2013 22:39

That article has a serious DM spin (shocker!).

If you read what the barrister/judge is quoted as saying, she says there is an argument both for and against. They have padded that out with stories about men being falsely accused and put a sensational headline and Voila! classic DM article.

wonderwoman2012 · 18/02/2013 22:39

I have a family member accused so up until last night I thought that not naming anyone until found guilty was the thing to do.

However one lady on a thread I was posting on said that in her rape case reporting it in the papers helped two over women step forward. That is a very strong arguement that has made me rethink media coverage.

AbigailAdams · 18/02/2013 22:33

Ah yes thanks edam and SGM. Bless her!

YNK · 18/02/2013 22:22

Thanks SGM. Shocking to think he was believed to have started offending as early as 2002. How many women could have been spared if the first woman had been believed!

StewieGriffinsMom · 18/02/2013 22:12

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YNK · 18/02/2013 22:09

Thanks. I am a derrbrain!

edam · 18/02/2013 22:08

Stewie, thank you for explaining the FBI's 'unproven' category, that's really helpful.

AbigailAdams · 18/02/2013 21:32

It was some QC who raised the issue again, in light of Michael Le Cell's arrest Hmm