Okay, seriously, people. There isn’t such a thing as “rape” and “rape rape”. There is only RAPE.
Are there really supposedly varying degrees of rape? Is stranger rape considered “rape rape” while date rape or statutory rape is just “not that kind of rape”? What about incestuous molestation? Is that not “rape rape”? Who are these people who think there’s two “kinds” of rape — or even varying degrees of rape?
My niece is 12 years old right now, pretty darn close in age to the girl who was raped by Roman Polanski, and I can tell you that if any man of adult age drugged her and then had sex of any kind with her, I’d probably have a few choice words to say to this man — and you’d better believe I’d push to have his ass in jail for a long time.
If a man drugs anyone, of any age and completes sexual acts with that person, it is rape. There’s a reason the “date rape drug” is called such. It’s rape. Any time a woman or girl is impaired (drugs or alcohol), there is no consent given. And, most especially, if a girl or woman has blacked out, you do NOT have sexual relations with her body. No answer is not consent.
Statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl is not “lesser rape” nor is it “okay rape.” It’s rape, plain and simple, and I don’t understand how dodging the law for over 30 years is ever okay, even if you make supposed good use of your outlaw time by filming people for millions to watch. I don’t care if you’re “brilliant,” there is no such thing as any kind of rape being “a little mistake.” I don’t care if you’re the first person to walk on the moon, if you make “brilliant” movies, or if you are Joe Nobody who lives the next street over: Rape is rape is rape. You deserve to pay for taking advantage of another human being, even if it takes 32 years to finally track you down and capture you legally.
Anyone else who says otherwise is an absolute idiot and, especially if they are women, they deserve to be completely excluded from human contact ever again: They’ve obviously lost their humanity anyway.
I’ve known many women and have had many friends who were raped in different ways. Some were drugged first, some were raped by “friends” or “family”, and some were raped at knife-point. Some were adults and some were only 14 or 15 when it happened. No matter how it happened, no matter when it happened, no matter the circumstances surrounding the event: It was rape. Sadly, out of the many women I’ve known who’ve dealt with this, not one has ever had her attacker arrested or brought to trial. Perhaps THIS is part of the reason these women don’t come forward — maybe someone won’t think what happened was “rape rape” and delegate it to the “just that other kind of rape” pile. You know what, though? Everyone — man or woman, adult or child — should feel safe and able to turn to their families, friends, and legal officials when they have been raped. Unfortunately, this incident just reminds me how much absolute twaddle is laid right upon the victims of rape instead of the rapist.
Something needs to change, people. Something needs to change.
I totally agree with you. I was really shocked when I heard all these roman polanski fans talking about rape and rape rape. I started wondering…does that mean that the girl who was kidnapped at 11 and held for 18 years by those sick people was initially raped but after she had been there a few years and had a kid by the sicko and he got her pregnant again that was not REAL rape. Seriously, if you’re a rape victim, i don’t care who did it….or when….you were RAPED!!!!
Exactly! I was completely surprised to hear Whoopie Goldberg say that she didn’t know what exactly happened but it wasn’t “rape rape,” as though there are other kinds of rape! As for the other girl who was kidnapped, that also sickens me to hear people say that after a while it wasn’t rape any longer. Have they never heard of Stockholm Syndrome? He was the only one “there” for her, so she coped by gradually deciding that he was the only one she could really trust. That isn’t a loving relationship, and it certainly isn’t consensual when you’re not in your right mind to give consent.
I find it interesting that you said this: “Anyone else who says otherwise is an absolute idiot and, especially if they are women, they deserve to be completely excluded from human contact ever again: They’ve obviously lost their humanity anyway.” I heard some Hollywood actor (I can’t recall his name) say that his arrest was showing a loss of humanity.
The article you linked to also talked about America’s and Hollywood’s willingness to forgive, then cited Michael Vick and Mel Gibson.
I had to bring those things up, as there is an obvious disconnect here. Michael Vick didn’t flee the country to avoid his arrest or prison time, nor did Mel Gibson dodge his issues. This all could have been done a LONG time ago if Polanski had done his time (and it is doubtful if Polanski would have done much, if any prison time back then), and he would have been able to continue making his “brilliant” movies.
He may be an otherwise great person that committed this one mistake, and that he’s an otherwise good (though I have to wonder about him as a person, at least back then, if he was willing to drug and rape a girl), but he did not pay for his crime. If this was anyone else, the headlines would be talking about how a rapist was finally brought to justice.
Instead, we’re supposed to forget his yet unpaid for crime because he’s a brilliant director. No matter how bad his childhood, and no matter how good his movies, that does not mean Roman Polanski should get away with rape.
Mamacita has a good post on this, too, which similarly echoes the lack of humanity I see in this in her own title: “What The Bloody Frick Has Happened To Us As Human Beings?” She also mentions something I didn’t focus on in my post, namely Polanski’s history with his parents and his wife (the “past traumas” everyone keeps mentioning). If we go by this, no on would be responsible for their own actions. Who knows one person who hasn’t had something terrible happen in her life? We already know that this mindset doesn’t work and only creates people who feel they can do whatever they want in the name of self-esteem and lack of self-control.
Yes, Hollywood does tend to look the other way when someone in their own ranks does something wrong, but it’s normally after that person has done his time for the crime (Vicks, Gibson, Martha Stewart, etc.) and not when he has dodged responsibility for his actions for more years than I’ve been alive.
I am surprised Polanski is not called the “C” word more, as in Coward.
People were content with calling Vick the “scum of the Earth” for his dogfighting woes, and trust me, I think any involvement in dogfights is pretty scumy, but as you guys said, he did his time. Polanski never had the courage to come back and face what he did, and considering he is obviously not being held of his own volition now, he is still a coward.
If you do something wrong, you have to face the consequences. Even if you get off scot-free, or get a slap on your wrist or community service, you at least paid the piper. Sad that Polanski doesn’t think this is something he is obligated to do.
I just posted on the use of rape language in business. I suspect the word is being misappropriated there because managers feel impotent sitting at a desk all day.
Definitely agree! Strongly!!!