Controversial same-sex case

[CountDeMoney]

Well if you are correct and only a tiny percentage of rapes in the US are ever reported then instead of around 100,000 rapes a year we have millions of rapes a year and a huge percentage of our population are serial criminals who need to locked away for life.  I find that hard to buy.

I don't.  Sex offenses collectively--from child sexual abuse to acquaintance rape--are the most unreported offenses in this nation, save perhaps misdemeanor theft.

[Eddie Teach]

DGuller just joined the Axis of Pedo Defenders with Martinus.

Martinus joined because he thought it had to do with feet.

[Valmy]

I don't.  Sex offenses collectively--from child sexual abuse to acquaintance rape--are the most unreported offenses in this nation, save perhaps misdemeanor theft.

Sure maybe in absolute numbers but we are talking a tiny percentage?  Like orders of magnitude are not reported?  We already have one of the higher rates of rape and sexual assault in the world for Godsake.

[merithyn]

I think the bigger issue is the term "rape". It's used for an entire spectrum of crimes, all of which are bad, but some are far worse than others. Unlike murder, where dead is dead, with rape, there are a lot of mitigating factors that come into play that should, imo, be addressed rather than having a blanket sentence.

It should matter if it's statutory rape between teens. It should matter if it's two drunk people, one of which goes too far. It should matter if it's someone who brutalizes the person when he/she rapes them. Those are factors that should matter in sentencing.

[Martinus]

DGuller just joined the Axis of Pedo Defenders with Martinus.

Please show me where in this thread I am defending pedophiles.

[CountDeMoney]

Please show me where in this thread I am defending pedophiles.

As this thread doesn't have any European film directors drugging and assraping little kids, I'll have to show you some other threads.

[CountDeMoney]

Sure maybe in absolute numbers but we are talking a tiny percentage?

Does that make it any more acceptable?

[DGuller]

DGuller just joined the Axis of Pedo Defenders with Martinus.

Somebody has to keep a perspective, or else we'll backslide into every crime getting a life sentence.  I really don't want panhandlers to be out in society, you know?  They're kinda annoying.

[Barrister]

Typically these people have strong compulsions to do what they do that are not easily trained away, although some techniques appear to work the fact that it's a constantly struggle for them to not go around raping people is strong evidence against releasing them, regardless of whatever minimally useful statistics might show. But back to the root of it, the malicious mindset to even commit a rape is so contrary to the public order that there is no compelling reason to not punish it with a life term.

Well if you are correct and only a tiny percentage of rapes in the US are ever reported then instead of around 100,000 rapes a year we have millions of rapes a year and a huge percentage of our population are serial criminals who need to locked away for life.  I find that hard to buy.

Now I am not saying serial rapists should not be locked up for life, I just think there needs to be something like evidence to suggest this is so.  I mean statistics show most reported rapes occur with drugs or alcohol involved where people's judgement is impaired.  Besides recall we are discussing a statutory rape case here, which is considered rape even though both parties are close in age and it is consensual.

I don't think sex offenders should be locked away for life, but I have no problem with the argument that you have millions of sex offences per year going on in the US.

[Eddie Teach]

I don't think sex offenders should be locked away for life, but I have no problem with the argument that you have millions of sex offences per year going on in the US.

That's more of a statement than an argument. 

[Valmy]

Sure maybe in absolute numbers but we are talking a tiny percentage?

Does that make it any more acceptable?

I do not think this is about acceptability.  The debate here is if every person convicted of rape can be assumed to be a serial offender incapable of behaving in regular society and that all official statistics are false to the point of being ignorable.

[Valmy]

I don't think sex offenders should be locked away for life, but I have no problem with the argument that you have millions of sex offences per year going on in the US.

Maybe but that would be pretty mind blowing to me and I spent years working with sexual abuse victims.

That would mean that reported rates of rape/sexual assault/abuse are being under-reported (not arrested or convicted or anything just reported) by at least a factor of 5. Am I to accept that instead of 1 in 6 women being raped or sexually assaulted during her lifetime the actual number is well over 70%?  Or that, for some reason, these women are reporting they are being raped or sexually assaulted but under-reporting the number of occurances?  That a significant percentage of American men are committing rape on at least an annual basis? 

[garbon]

I don't.  Sex offenses collectively--from child sexual abuse to acquaintance rape--are the most unreported offenses in this nation, save perhaps misdemeanor theft.

Sure maybe in absolute numbers but we are talking a tiny percentage?  Like orders of magnitude are not reported?  We already have one of the higher rates of rape and sexual assault in the world for Godsake.

I guess it depends on definition. There were members on here with a questionable definition of sexual assault.

[Valmy]

I think the bigger issue is the term "rape". It's used for an entire spectrum of crimes, all of which are bad, but some are far worse than others. Unlike murder, where dead is dead, with rape, there are a lot of mitigating factors that come into play that should, imo, be addressed rather than having a blanket sentence.

It should matter if it's statutory rape between teens. It should matter if it's two drunk people, one of which goes too far. It should matter if it's someone who brutalizes the person when he/she rapes them. Those are factors that should matter in sentencing.

Absolutely.

[Barrister]

I don't think sex offenders should be locked away for life, but I have no problem with the argument that you have millions of sex offences per year going on in the US.

Maybe but that would be pretty mind blowing to me and I spent years working with sexual abuse victims.

That would mean that reported rates of rape/sexual assault/abuse are being under-reported (not arrested or convicted or anything just reported) by at least a factor of 5. Am I to accept that instead of 1 in 6 women being raped or sexually assaulted during her lifetime the actual number is well over 70%?  Or that, for some reason, these women are reporting they are being raped or sexually assaulted but under-reporting the number of occurances?  That a significant percentage of American men are committing rape on at least an annual basis?

Sounds about right to me.