For a very long time, I have believed that the full and complete answer to the rape problem is to arm every woman, or at least every woman we can convince to be armed and properly trained. Will a few men get shot? Yes. They will get shot, and they will die. Not all of them will be guilty of sexual assault, but regardless, the message would get out.
See, rapists are not smart, usually. They are opportunistic. They’re not motivated by sex, either. They’re motivated by power. Rape is not a sexual assault, it’s a mental one. A ridiculously large number of them are actually cowed by women, hence the need to overpower them and do bad things to them.
The concern about being shot and killed by women would stop those types of rapists.
It wouldn’t stop the crafty ones, nor the kiddy diddlers, but there isn’t much we can do in advance about those.
But yes, for the “normal” rapists, the “everyday” rapists, the rape whistle shown above would be just fine, along with smaller versions.
What it would not help with are the ones who are in it for other reasons than power. It wouldn’t help at all with the few but real number of women who cry rape when it isn’t. And boy, do I have a problem with those women.
I am afraid that this current “Jane Doe” is one of those women. I’m afraid she’s like Mattress Girl.
When I went to evaluate the coverage of the Cornell case, I asked Grok to get me JUST the facts. No news outlets, no media reports. I just wanted the various documents available to the public, that state the facts as presented. And frankly, there really aren’t all that many.
What we do know:
She went to a frat party, was already drunk and likely high when she arrived. This is by her own admission, as well as the observation of many witnesses on record. She then proceeded to agree to a threesome with two men, take ketamine in a large dose, and have sexual relations with those two men for an undetermined amount of time. After that, the original two men left, and other men came in.
At least some of the men in the frat put up an “advert” of sorts, telling their frat brothers that there was a willing woman upstairs. These other men were ones who read the “advert” and joined in what they thought was the fun. Per their statements, they found a woman who was lucid enough to ask them to stop a couple of times while she went and did things, and a couple of times when other men in the room were so drunk they were sick and she was checking on them. They stopped when she asked them to stop. Her own statement to the police, the original one, included this information.
Now, the District Attorney went over all the information in the case, and came to the conclusion that there was no way to win a case where the woman states that for the majority (and maybe all) of the time, she consented to what was going on. That’s just not rape, in anyone’s books.
I am strongly of the opinion that every woman deserves to have at least one person who stands by her, steadfastly believing everything she says. No, I take that back. Every person who says they are a rape victim deserves it, not just women. Even when the facts seem wrong. Even when it sounds like she might be lying or blowing things up. It’s hard enough to report this kind of thing. Having one person who’s your designated *believer* really does help. Even if it ends up that the person wasn’t telling the truth, the other people around them known that should they end up in a bad place, THEY would have someone to believe them.
I am often that person, for a variety of reasons. I’m okay with that. I will hold hands, encourage proper reporting, stand with a woman while she has a rape kit done (and let me tell you, that’s a whole other level of degradation, even if it’s entirely necessary). Someone has to be with her (or him), and I am happy to be that person.
But none of that means that I give up my ability to have independent thoughts. I have stood beside someone who I personally thought was lying. Turns out I was wrong; I was very glad I kept that thought inside my head. Regardless, she needed someone standing by her, and I gave her that. Had she gone to court and lost, had he not confessed when pressed by the police and shown all the evidence as it piled up, I would have asked her eventually if she was sure. It’s a shit question to ask someone, but sometimes it has to be asked. I don’t mind being that person, either.
I think someone needs to take Jane Doe aside, hold her hand, and ask her quietly if this really happened. Because her early statements don’t match her later ones. If there’s a reason for that (and there is ONE thing… she reported rape, and it was not written into her report that way, so that was a wrong-doing on the part of the police), then let me know. Let us know. I’m all for supporting rape victims… but I do so with the understanding that they will work toward being survivors, not victims perpetually. I am entirely wary of women who seem to want to stay the victim.
If Jane Doe had been carrying, I suspect we’d know if she’d been raped. If she had been, one or more of the perpetrators would be dead. Maybe not the first two guys, who she absolutely consented to be with (and later thanked for the fun, though requested not to invite the whole frat next time, which implies a lot). It takes a lot to just out and shoot someone who isn’t sexually assaulting you. Most women who want attention from this kind of thing would never shoot their target, because they wouldn’t get the sympathy and love that they’re aiming for. It’s not a perfect answer, but at least it’s an answer… right?
Sigh…