Ruminating On: Rape

We’ve all heard the talking-heads screw up over the course of this electorial season. Be it them calling it legitimate rape, or a case of buyer’s remorse, I really couldn’t care less. Rape is rape. No means no. I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know, but I do have a question for our society as a whole. Is rape ever justifiable?

Whoa now, come on back. Let me get to my point before you create a meme about how Edward Lorn thinks rape is justified. It’s easy to take someone out of context when you don’t listen, or read, as in this case, so sit back and finish this blog before you go off half-cocked.

Now, rape victims are not solely female. They are the majority, but women are not the only ones being raped. The same goes for rapists. Not every sexual deviant is male. For you ladies that do not understand how that’s possible, given the mechanics of a man’s parts, let me explain. A penis is a confused soul. Just because I have an erection does not mean I have an idea where it wants to go. Sometimes, things just pop up. Given the proper stimulus by a man, a woman, or the inside of my underwear, tents are pitched. It’s a fact of life all of us guys live with. There have been several documented cases regarding men who have been taken forcibly. Sure, it doesn’t happen often, but, as with some women, I would assume it’s not reported because of the attention received afterward. Some female rape victims will not report because they feel people will look at them like they deserved it, that they had it coming, or maybe that they are now dirty and unacceptable in humanity’s eyes. For a man, I believe it comes down to sheer embarrassment. I’m sure both genders share that last one, but what guy wants to tell anyone he didn’t want sex? There must be something wrong with him, right? Well, now that I’ve typed all that… maybe both genders take rape the same exact way. This is why I call this blog Ruminating On. Because, for the most part, I’m still considering all aspects while I’m writing.

On to the meat of this post. So, we know that just because a guy is aroused it doesn’t mean he wants to have sex with the person doing the arousing. But what about justifiable rape? Is there such a thing? Some of society thinks so, and they’re not solely the rapists. I recently saw a Facebook post from a woman touting the message, “Rape is rape. No means NO!” But then I saw another, more fascinating post from the same individual. It reads: “Inmates should be allowed to sexually assault pedophiles and rapists.” That’s not an exact quote, but that was the message. She used some colorful language describing homosexual men that I don’t think brings anything to the message she was trying to convey. So, in this woman’s eyes, rape is all right, is acceptable, if it’s used as a tool for retribution. Herm… makes me think. What happened to “Rape is rape,” and “No means NO!” Now, I would say this is a single person’s view point, but this lady’s feed and thread were filled with emphatic people commenting on how right she was and how socially acceptable that instance of rape would be. Most of these people liked, shared and commented on her most recent post as well. So, is it acceptable for a pedophile and a rapist to be sexually assaulted in prison, or even in the world when they get out? This mindset goes back to capital punishment, as well. If someone kills another human being, should we kill them back? Better yet, these people that wish rape onto sexual deviants, would they, themselves, rape these people given the chance? Would that make them just as sick and twisted as the miscreant they so abhor? I don’t know. I’m asking you. Should the action of rape entail no double standard? If it’s wrong, should it be wrong in any instance? You tell me. I live in the comments section.

E.