For those of you who don't follow the news as closely as I do, here's a story you may have missed.
A bar in Australia is in trouble for offering drinks vouchers to female guests who are willing to hang their underwear up on the bar. See here for a few articles...
Now, I'm not for or against this idea really, to be honest. What a business wants to do to get attention.....which they've certainly got - is up to them.
But what gets me is the response of...well...let's call it "a certain vocal minority". Let's not name names though.
Not for a few lines.
But don't take my word for it, let's start quoting..
"Carolyn Worth of Melbourne Centre Against Sexual Assault ....... said: "It sends a very bad message, and it is one made very explicit. It's almost an invitation to sexual assault.""
Lets start with the purely pedantic. If you invite someone to sexually assault you and they do, it ceases to be sexual assault. Because you asked them to...and they did what you asked. What you would call it, I don't know...rough? Weird Adult Roleplay? I don't know - but it's definitely something you've *literally* asked for.
Now secondly, more on a "synchronise your dogmas" point of view - I was under the impression that a victim of a sexual crime was never to be blamed and that they were the Victim. (It's a point I'd quibble with to a degree, but that I do agree with, mostly. But that's another post entirely).
Here, this person is claiming that actually, it is possible to provoke an assault. Definitely off message...but moving on.
Yes - it's sending a bad message. I'd agree.
But short of stopping every other bad message, what's her point? Hell, let's look at her definition of "Bad". It's something she doesn't like. Bad is a moral judgement.
How about banning all those bad messages on eating unhealthy food (aka anything but salad), replacing all those models with Real Women and insisting that everyone should cover every inch of flesh in case something bad should happen. Like...um...sunburn. Or inciting every man in three hundred yards to do something unlawful.
Actually, yes. Men.
You know, if I saw a women drunk on the streets sans underwear...I'm fairly sure I could restrain myself. I'm pretty certain that every man I work with could say the same thing. I'd go so far as saying that 99% of men would be able to restrain that inner demon forcing them to rape, pillage and murder any men, women, children and underage goats they may come across.
Because most people don't like hurting each other.
But the simple assumption by this woman is that all men are rapists. That men can not control themselves. That a little bit more flesh will tip them into a frenzy of depravity.
By her reasoning, women should stay at home hiding themselves from view to stop men triggering this bestial desire.
My message to her?
Go have a drink and CHILL.
(All quotes are taken from The Register article...but they're sprinked though out the rest of the reports. The register just happens to bring them all together. I was going to use more then one....but the rage...)
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3 comments:
Im in no way defending her but maybe what she meant is that, sexual predators may go here instead of another bar knowing this fact and that this could be putting the customers in greater danger than at any other bar that arent flauting their customer's undies everywhere.
also to clarify a point, a lady giving her underwear to the bar to get cheaper drinks doesnt invite some to assault them, the bar does on their behalf so the "Lets start with the purely pedantic. If you invite someone to sexually assault you and they do, it ceases to be sexual assault." is wrong
Just to clarify...
If left £5 on the table, and someone walked in and took it - that's theft.
If I ask you to take it, that isn't theft. Even though the actions are otherwise the same.
In the same way you can't invite someone to sexualy assault you - because if they took you up on that offer, it's an agreement - and not assault.
Yes, by taking these actions the women may make themselves more vulnerable to assault.
But this is not same as "inviting assault". It's a pedantic difference, I know.
I said it was a pedantic point. What's the difference? Why should I care about such a split hair?
Because she's suggesting that these women are doing the impossible....and saying that this impossible thing is bad and wrong....and that this pub should be punished for encouraging impossible acts.
(To be absolutly 100% clear - if a women became drunk, lost all her clothes and somehow ended up in a quiet ally somewhere...and someone takes advantage...that's still assault or worse.)
(If, on the other hand she asked someone to do something while in that state...that's another, much more complicated can of worms. Which I'm not going into here.)
If you leave 5$ on the table and I take it thats theft, If your roomate tells me to take it and I take it thats still theft because he/she was never authorize to give it away since it wasnt theirs to start with.
Theres a 3rd person here , THE BAR which is asking on behalf of the women without their consent. So it's still assault.
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