Rape - what sentence do you think it deserves?

[Avalon]

How about a minimum sentence of 5 years with complimentary sack and crack wax?

BTW, tamba, your previous (1st post i think) was eloquently put and sums up what i think too.

Have cat'd you JT.

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No means No in any language
and in any situation.

wow thats the first time anyone has ever said i type eloquently

YES queen Victoria, THANK YOU!!!!!

me never very good at explaing stuff when i type, but i know what i think...

BTW ive come far too close to being raped some eveil guy who i'd never met (but (thank god) i amaged to get away from him.

thats what i meant.... that guy is an absolute B***d..... was on a trian at the time, got it stopped etc and train pulled into station and police arrested hiom there and then...

unfortunately they messed up the statements big time and the guy got away scott free, he's around NOW and can try and do the same to anyone else cause the police F***D up again. (he got to court but cause of the statements being 'wrong' unbeliavbely bth MY police man AND his made the same error) when it got to court they couldnt prove it was cause NO ONE WROTE I IDed HIM ..... therefore he got away scot free.

exactly, doormat.

I know JT

Was cat'ing to say my MSN is broke!

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I'll save ya. Did you get me CAT?

Appologies as I have not read the full thread but I believe that considering that a rapist is condemning a woman to live in fear, to distrust any male that she is being left alone with, to fear the thing is going to be repeated at any time, to fear for other female friends and family, I think that a rapist who has attacked somebody out of the blue, without any mitigating circumstances, deserves to be castrated.

Now if there are mitigating circumstances I would say a far less radical sentence. The problem with rape however is that sometimes is almost impossible to be sure about who is talking the truth

Mmm, probably I was a bit extreme... guess that castration it's a thing the "justice" will never consider but hey, if the person is a serial rapist, why to continue to take any risks?

I agree chandra

ITS ONE WAY TO ENSURE THEY CAN NEVER DO IT AGAIN!

I think the attempt to place the experience of rape on a hierarchical scale is just madness. How can anyone say that one rapist is worse than another one just because he hides behind a tree FGS? The terror of all attack, sexual, violent, whatever and however it comes is the complete loss of autonomy, the terror of having no control over your own life to the point that you very well may die. Just think of the most terrified you've ever been, and not just scared, terrified and then try to imagine that a hundredfold..It?s unimaginable! Especially in this age where there is so much empty feminist rhetoric about 'being in control' - we always have some element of control, except in such moments and that's the spark of mortal terror.

To try to rationalise such an experience and say one terror is less to another is just absurd and grotesque, to try and imagine the unimaginable and displace another?s experience on the grounds of such ignorance is the height of stupidity but unfortunately that seems to be just the kind of society we live in today. All it would take to understand these things is to take a moment and really think for ourselves but more and more we let the media do that thinking for us to the point were we parrot it's meaningless platitudes and actually believe they are our opinions and beliefs. And at some level that disempowers us all, especially victims of violence.

Agree with Chandra

MT, I'm not feeling particularly eloquent (far too early!). I understand what you are saying in your post, I think.

We do have the option to empower ourselves though. I agree that on the whole society/media the influences around us are disempowering and I personally believe that in the face of that the only way to retrieve what should be ours is to seek empowerment ourselves.

I'm a womens self defence instructor in the later stages of my training. TBH, the training I've received has empowered me and I'm enjoying passing that on to other women.

I chose to train in this area following a spate of incidents within my own life...... being followed, harrassed, verbally attacked, assaulted and finally the realisation that my (now ex) H was a surreptitious misogynist and that I was (obviously now, but not at the time)suffering the consequences of this.

Taking matters into my own hands seemed the only realistic option. Sadly necessary I felt, though extremely empowering.

Oops, I think there should be a minimum sentence...was that the original Q?

There might be many variables involved in any rape, so? Big deal. There should be a minimum IMO and that minimum should be high, very high.

I think it deserves at least 10 years.

(Only took me 3 posts to answer!)

Yes, by cutting their balls off they'll suddenly become lovely people incapable of harming others. Won't it just give them another excuse to hate women even more?

Badger, I know what you mean, but think it's important to say that sometimes the best defence is to run away. My DP is a martial artist and I tag with him and try out various self defence techniques, but what becomes obvious is that if I was to be attacked by someone substantially heavier and stronger than me, I shouldn't stand my ground but bascically use the training to get away.

The basic rule we've come up with is that you just have to be prepared to hurt the person attacking you as much as they're prepered to hurt you.

monkeytrousers I agree with you. But the main problem at the moment seems to be, not that convicted rapists don't get long enough sentences, but that there are simply not enough convictions. The vast majority of rapes complained of never get to trial; of those that do, only 21% end in convictions (down from 28 % in 1998). We have to ask - what are the reasons for this? Should the CPS be concentrating its efforts on prosecuting in those cases where they know they have the best chance of securing a conviction? Sadly, that probably means not prosecuting for rapes where the rape survivor was very drunk, because there is no way that a jury is going to find her evidence as reliable as that of someone who was sober.

MT, agree completely. Our self defence approach is similar, generally aimed towards disabling an attacker and creating opportunity to get away.

I practice a marital art as well...... that's very different, more complete

Less if they admit guilt. The chap who raped me convinced even my family that I was lying, very few people have ever believed me. He went on to marry and have kids (according to friends reunited anyway) and is probably a full member of the community blah de blah, I have kinda got over the rape (still some physiological responses if face covered etc) but the lies took away the next few years of my life, and my trust in my family.

Sorry, a bit emotional now

I agree Dinosaur.

Badger - it's helpful knowing how to take a smack in the chops too