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#606
"All this discussion about rape has raised some questions for me (btw kudos for the people who put that together. I was touched by the sincereness and forgivingness expressed by the victims.) I've spent a majority of my weekend thinking about this issue instead of studying for finals... uh oh.
I am not a survivor, and have not really discussed this topic with any survivors, so I may come off as a little insensitive, but... Here I go... I think that in my experience, sex is rarely explicitly consensual, although usually any idiot would be able to figure out that consent is implied in the situation. However, at a party where both sides are drunk, I do not see how this can be expected. Judgement is blurred, and a "rapist" could have never had the intentions to go against someone's consent. In this case, why should the perpetrator be judged so harshly? And why should the victim feel anything but misunderstood (unless there were physical injuries)?
Also, I don't really understand the emphasis on "sex". How is "nonviolent" rape that much different than being forced to eat something nasty, or in other cases, finding out that your best friend/boyfriend is a total jerk? Both these cases would be treated much more trivially in comparison to rape, and I think would have less of a psychological impact. I think that the view of "purity" is really what is damaging to a victim's confidence and self worth. Why isn't this issue addressed more?
Also, I'm going to put this out there, but I have often heard, that especially in date rape situations, fighting back gives the victim a much better chance of escaping with less injuries. I'm sure this is very circumstance dependent, but is this true? If so, why do we not talk more about giving the rapist what s/he deserves on the spot?
Also, what about treating different rapists differently? I think that perhaps institutions like MIT and even the victims are sometimes afraid of the outcomes if they acknowledge someone as an rapist. Would the option of a lighter sentence make it more likely for rapists to be acknowledged punished, and thus rape to be (ironically) viewed more seriously deterred?
Mostly, I'm just confused at the two polar opposite sides, with none in the middle. Simply stated, could it be that yes, its the rapists fault, no, it is not the victim's fault, yet most of the victim's suffering could be attributed to the views/protocols that we hold as a society, and the rapist's part in this is magnified?"
#605
"I have mixed emotions about hooking up with a guy. because i know that if other people knew what i was doing, they would think i was easy."
#604
"I am in love... "
#603
"I always swore I would never do it, but I actually love giving head..."
#602
"It really makes me mad when bikers do not follow traffic laws. Bikers: if there's a bike lane, ride in it; and please STOP at red lights. SMH"
#601
"I think people who ride scooters are honestly just embarrassing"
#600
"I wonder if I'm the only one who has to Google abbreviations when I see them sometimes. There's so many that I hadn't seen before MIT..."
#599
"Sometimes, when I walk down the hallways and see professors' offices, I just want to ding dong ditch them. "