Let’s review:
Todd Akin: “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down”
And now this comes to light…
Superior Court Judge Derek G. Johnson: “I’m not a gynecologist, but I can tell you something, If someone doesn’t want to have sexual intercourse, the body shuts down. The body will not permit that to happen unless a lot of damage in inflicted, and we heard nothing about that in this case.
“That tells me that the victim in this case, although she wasn’t necessarily willing, she didn’t put up a fight.”
Told you this mindset wasn’t a fluke. And what is it with all this female body shutting down stuff? That’s what keeps catching my attention – this super-secret feminine power.
In Republican Land there is a definition (on record) of what constitutes a “legitimate” rape:
South Dakota Republican Bill Napoli: “A real-life description to me would be a rape victim, brutally raped, savaged. The girl was a virgin. She was religious. She planned on saving her virginity until she was married. She was brutalized and raped, sodomized as bad as you can possibly make it, and is impregnated. I mean, that girl could be so messed up, physically and psychologically, that carrying that child could very well threaten her life.”
And there it is. Please notice the criteria for who can be raped – Virgin. Religious. Saving herself for marriage.
If you aren’t a religious virgin then you can’t be raped. Altho… wouldn’t female virgins’ bodies have a way of shutting the whole thing down, as well? Or is this skill only learned (bestowed?) after the loss of virginity?
There is something deeply disturbing about this mindset; something sinister that comes very close to justifying rape. All roads lead back to the Madonna/whore standard, as well as, the boys will be boys defense. Yet again, these guys are placing the responsibility on the women. Hey, she must have wanted it. If she didn’t then her body would have shut this whole thing down. Because, you know, “some girls rape easy.”
The truth is… these guys really don’t believe rape exists. That’s what they’re really saying.