PARENTS: listen up.

[clarsct]

Some sad, sad facts in the ole newspaper today.

All statistics used are cited from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Nearly 50% off all rape victims are under the age of 18.

29% of rape victims are between the ages of 12 and 17 yrs old.

Doing a little math, that comes up to somewhere about 21% must be younger...probably more like 17-18 percent...but that's greater than 1 in 10!!

You have a daughter? Does she have 4 friends? Think of them..their names...

Chances are one of them has been 'sexually exploited'RAPED
Sorry, just cutting through the media doublespeakese.


If you have a son, does he have 9 friends...well...you guessed it. 1 out of 10 boys are sexually molested before they reach adulthood.

www.childlures.com

They just did a presentation in our area focusing on the idea that it isn't always strangers who do these things. Soemtimes it's friends.


With RT's thread about the 18 yr old girl and all, well, it seemed fitting. And sad.

 

[CBL4]

Many of the alleged sexual abuse of children are bogus. There are numerous parents who use allegation of abuse as a weapon in custody and divorce cases.

The percent of false cases is unknown. I have seen estimates in that false allegation in divorce cases are as high 80%. The infamous recovered memory are the most ridiculous cases but there are doctors who make their money by finding evidence of sexual abuse whether it occurs or not.

I saw a transcript of a doctor who said that an unbroken hymen was "consistent" with a girl being raped over 100 times. He knew this because of seminars he had attended and the number of similar cases with convictions.

I do not deny that there are too many real cases of abuse. I know that the number is less than generally reported.

CBL

 

[ysabella]

This is anecdotal, but among my close circle of friends and family, people have been:

- molested (as a child) by a relative
- molested (as a child) by a neighbor
- regularly groped by childhood dentist
- raped (college-age - date rape)
- cornered at work (alone in the store, age 18) by a flasher/rapist

Out of that list, most are female, one is male. Most are friends, one is my mother. None are 'recovered memories.'
The last one is me - I had my pepper spray on me, and I got him to go away. He did, and attacked at least one other young girl that same morning.

 

[WildCat]

Nearly 50% off all rape victims are under the age of 18.

29% of rape victims are between the ages of 12 and 17 yrs old.

Isn't it considered rape if a teenaged (12-17) has sex at all, because legally she cannot give consent? If not, what definition was used to reach those numbers? That (childlures) seems like a good program, but those stats seem a little cooked.

 

[WildCat]

This is anecdotal, but among my close circle of friends and family, people have been:

- molested (as a child) by a relative
- molested (as a child) by a neighbor
- regularly groped by childhood dentist
- raped (college-age - date rape)
- cornered at work (alone in the store, age 18) by a flasher/rapist

Out of that list, most are female, one is male. Most are friends, one is my mother. None are 'recovered memories.'
The last one is me - I had my pepper spray on me, and I got him to go away. He did, and attacked at least one other young girl that same morning.

Two words - move away.

 

[clarsct]

I'll try to get a link on those stats.

I read them elsewhere than the net, so I'll have to go searching.

Hmmmmmmmmm.

Maybe we need a thread on underage sexual encounters and consent...

 

[slingblade]

Isn't it considered rape if a teenaged (12-17) has sex at all, because legally she cannot give consent? If not, what definition was used to reach those numbers? That (childlures) seems like a good program, but those stats seem a little cooked.

I had to do a presentation in my education classes on teen rape, and you are correct in thinking that the stats can be skewed. It does depend on the definition of rape used, and who's doing that defining.

But the numbers from rainn.org seem legit, if you read them carefully, and Rainn backs them up with stats from the 2003 National Crime Victimization Survey, Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice. http://www.rainn.org/docs/statistics/cv03.pdf I don't think these number include statutory rape, but victim-reported rapes. Not sure. Could be wrong.

Note, that's a survey. There are rules about surveys in logic, no? So, a caveat or two.

Rainn also clearly defines rape and sexual assault here:
http://www.rainn.org/statistics/index.html

At any rate, the numbers are coming down, but they're still fairly high, and yet under-reported. To me, the point is not how many rapes are occurring, per se, but the fact that 83% of all rapes are committed against women under 30 years of age, and 44% of those are committed on girls under 18 [rainn.org].

The chances of a teen being assulted or raped are very good, unfortunately.

 

[Twilek]

What are the stats I wonder for being groped more than once by different people? In my lifetime, I have had:

1) an uncle (non-blood relative) at the age of seven
2) a cousin's husband at the age of 12
3) and a much-older highschool boy twice right in the hallway in front of people, also at the age of 12

manhandle me in various inappropriate ways. Not raped or seriously assualted in a scarred-for-life kind of way, but boy...I really didn't like being an early bloomer back then. I can't believe it's that unusual, just not reported much. Hell, in highschool back in those days we were resigned to the fact that getting a "titty-twister" or getting grabbed "down there" was considered just another hazard of going to highschool (good grief, I remember my older cousin matter-of-factly warning me about it) and I was afraid tattling would only make it worse.

But most kids are molested by people they know. The only advice I have pertaining to my own experiences would be: Be very, very careful which relatives you're willing to leave them alone with, especially overnight. I found out later that both the uncle and cousin's husband were men the extended family did not think highly of, and when I told about my experiences with them years later, no one was surprised. Of course, they felt guilty for not heeding their intuition about them at the time, and I felt stupid for never saying anything about it when it happened either. I'll certainly advise any kids I have to SPEAK UP!

 

[Jas]

But what defines rape?

I had one roommate who took a women's studies course, and the definition of rape was pretty broad. She learned that when she was pressured to have sex, and gave in, that that was a form of rape.

So now she refers to the guy in question as a rapist.

I'm wondering how rape is defined in these studies.

 

[ysabella]

Two words - move away.

Actually, those things happened in five different states and over a number of years. Some of the stories were told to me after the flasher thing occured - it kind of brought those stories out from people around me.

 

[Twilek]

She learned that when she was pressured to have sex, and gave in, that that was a form of rape.

So now she refers to the guy in question as a rapist.

I'm wondering how rape is defined in these studies.

Yeah, me too. In my opinion, "no" means no, and "well....ok" means yes, even if it came after a "no". Has this Women's Studies definition been broadened to the point where it is meaningless, since almost any intimate encounter the woman didn't initiate can be defined as rape?

(Of course, the guy's still a jerk for having to pressure anyone into sex. I wouldn't brand him a rapist, but rather a desperately obnoxious schmuck. Which in his world is probably more of an insult anyway.)

 

[Babe from Missouri]

Yeah, me too. In my opinion, "no" means no, and "well....ok" means yes, even if it came after a "no".

That depends. Did the "well, okay" come after bodily harm was threatened? Or after "please, please, if you love me you will."

The first guy is a rapist, the second is not (although he may be an a-hole).

 

[epepke]

But what defines rape?

I had one roommate who took a women's studies course, and the definition of rape was pretty broad. She learned that when she was pressured to have sex, and gave in, that that was a form of rape.

So now she refers to the guy in question as a rapist.

I'm wondering how rape is defined in these studies.

That's a good question.

Catherine Mackinnon wrote the following (which I recall from memory): "Politically, I call it rape when sex is not initiated by the woman." So, for her, it can only be something other than rape if the man is passive. This is a bit disturbing, ad Mackinnon is best known for her role in writing some of the sexual harassment lawsuits.

 

[aerosolben]

I do not deny that there are too many real cases of abuse. I know that the number is less than generally reported.

You are aware that in addition to fabricated reports of sexual assault, there also exist sexual assaults that are not reported? On what grounds to you maintain that the former number is greater than the latter?

 

[gethane]

To those of us that it has happened to, the numbers are all too believable.

Count yourself lucky if you are among those who have the luxury of finding these statistics unbelievable.

 

[Twilek]

That depends. Did the "well, okay" come after bodily harm was threatened? Or after "please, please, if you love me you will."

The first guy is a rapist, the second is not (although he may be an a-hole).

Hmmmm...I supposed I can agree with that. When I read "pressured" I was thinking more along of your second example.

I'd like to think that if I were in the former situation I'd take the chance that he was bluffing and continue to say no, but you never know until it's actually happening to you. Scary stuff.

 

[American]

Some sad, sad facts in the ole newspaper today.

You are either being sarcastic, incredibly dim, or a willful participant in the public sector's primary method of exploitation (namely, victimology).


"Save the children - raise our taxes!"

 

[CBL4]

Original posted by aerosolben
You are aware that in addition to fabricated reports of sexual assault, there also exist sexual assaults that are not reported? On what grounds to you maintain that the former number is greater than the latter?

I am most familiar with the allegations that occur with a divorce. From what I can tell, close to half are false. Clearly this is only an estimate. If I had researched the non-reported allegations, I might emphasize them instead.

There is no way to accurately gather statistics on either question. This makes a comparison iffy at best.

CBL

 

[CBL4]

Double post.

 

[aerosolben]

I am most familiar with the allegations that occur with a divorce. From what I can tell, close to half are false. Clearly this is only an estimate. If I had researched the non-reported allegations, I might emphasize them instead.

There is no way to accurately gather statistics on either question. This makes a comparison iffy at best.

CBL

I just wanted to call you out on your assertation that you "know" there are less abuse cases then are generally reported. It seemed as if you were discounting the incidence rates without a particularly good reason to do so (beyond personal experience). For a subject as serious as this, I tend to be wary of "off-the-cuff" statistics.