I used a longer ban list than usual for obvious reasons. I am sure I left off a couple of names and will kick myself later.
-What is it with this football culture? Is it sports culture, or confined mostly to football? What is it about towns that glorify high school, college, and of course, pro, football players? I guess I am especially interested in the glorification of high school football players. Really? When I was in high school my friends and I sometimes went to the games (only when we had nothing better to do), but it wasn't even the biggest thing going on in our school, no less the rest of the town who couldn't have cared any less. In a town in NJ several high school football players raped a mentally handicapped girl with a baseball bat and another object, and the town rallied around them and were brutal about the victim.
-If you watch the video of some of what went on in Steubenville, you realize this went on for hours, the girl was unresponsive, in fact, unconscious the entire time, and everyone there laughed and cheered. She was also urinated on and ejaculated on. I can't think of anything they missed in expressing their hatred. I believe that if this had been a black male, it would be seen as the hate crime it so clearly was. However, if it had been a black woman it would not be seen as the hate crime it is, but in fact, the victim blaming would have been even worse. She would have almost definitely been accused of prostitution. Why is this not seen as a hate crime? This was a hate crime.
-I have seen written countless comments about the victim drinking. Firstly, I believe she was drugged. Because she had no memory of what had happened and had to piece it together, she did not go to the police in time. They could not run a tox screen. From the first time I read her statements, I was chilled, every word of it is highly consistent with Rophenol. However, I have not argued she was drugged because it is a difficult position. If you argue she was drugged, it is almost as you are saying that if she was not drugged and actually drank enough to be remain completely unconscious during an all-night relentless assault, then it's her fault. NOthing could be further from the truth, but she believes she was drugged, and so do I. For those who say otherwise - if the men had not taped their assaults, does anyone doubt they would have claimed it didn't happen? But they would admit to the rophenol right? Right?? That all aside, let's go forward on the theory that she was drunk and blacked out. When a guy drinks himself into unconsciousness, and a group of men take turns sticking a dildo in his ass, everyone asks how he could have let that happen right? What was he doing there in the first place? HOw could be drink so much? What did he expect to happen?
Oh, no, they don't. No one ever asks that because men are presumed to have the right to go wherever they want to go, drink whatever they want to drink, and to pass out a parties without having objects stuck into their bodies. HOw dare women have the same expectations? What do they think they are, human beings????
-What is happening with sex education in our country? Why is the concept of consent not being taught? Consent is not the absence of a no, it is the presence of a yes. An unconscious or totally inebriated person does not have the ability to give consent. An unconscious person cannot say no. This is very easy stuff. Why is it not being taught? IS it because too much of our sex education revolves around instilling into our youth the dangers of saying yes? Do we place far too much value on virginity, celibacy and abstinence? Is it possible we are not as a culture even equipped to deal with what a willing woman looks like? We are so afraid to go there, to the woman, the young girl especially, who gives enthusiastic consent? We are failing our youth, that is for certain.
I could go on and on, this case has brought up so much in my mind, that I am wondering about constantly. But something is wrong here. Something is very, very wrong here.
