Friday, August 8, 2008

rage is better than caffeine

Tam is one of my first reads every morning. While forcing myself into wakefulness, I visit her pink page, sip my coffee and either chuckle at her snark, smile at the goingson at Roseholme, or grumble at whatever news story she's chosen for her unique commentary.

This morning, however, View From the Porch has made me angry. Tam found a story about how the U.N. (& yeah, I admit it. Most mentions of the U.N. make me a little pissed anyway) has found that children are being raped in Afghanistan. Not surprising, of course - it has happened since human beings first started to war against each other, which I suspect was probably very, very early on.

Oh, yes, the U.N. will protect them. Terrific. We all know how they feel about rape, right? I am not holding out much hope for these Afghan girls...especially since I researched and discovered what exactly the U.N. is doing about rape. (here's a clue: not a damn thing.)

They encourage us all to learn this gesture:


which reminded me instantly of this Oleg Volk poster:

But I bet self-defense and fighting back is not in the U.N.'s "plan" for these helpless girls. It would kind of put them out of a job, wouldn't it?

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Just when I think that the UN cannot possibly become more of a parody of itself...I see this silliness.

What planet do you have to be from to think the appropriate response to women and children being raped is "Oh...we need to spread a gesture!"

I guess we should be happy....at least they aren't doing the raping anymore.

Turk Turon said...

Goings-on in the Third World are very discouraging, such as this observation in the Irish Times (http://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/kevin-myers/africa-is-giving-nothing-to-anyone--apart-from-aids-1430428.html):

"The wide-eyed boy-child we saved, 20 years or so ago, is now a priapic, Kalashnikov-bearing hearty, siring children whenever the whim takes him."

The author, Kevin Myers, may be facing prosecution for that article under Ireland's Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act of 1989. Myers could face two years in prison for what he wrote. Unlike the U.S., Ireland has no mandatory jury trials.

Thank God for the Bill of Rights!

I'm with Tam on this: I'd drive down to Fort Bragg and answer phones and live in my car for a month if it would free up some young soldier to go over there and take care of business.

Ken said...

It would put some of them out of a hobby, too.

III

Rio Arriba said...

Rapists respond to trendy gestures? News to me. I always figured 2B/1H was the language they needed to hear.


*2 to the body, 1 to the head.

Anonymous said...

Well, yeah, the UN isn't going to support the Ruger Spay and Neuter Clinic...because the same guns that can prevent rape can be aimed right under the blue helmet.

Anonymous said...

Reminds me of an old gun-control site's advice that women should carry a tongue depresser with them everywhere they go.

Why?

Because if someone starts raping you, you can jam it down your throat and vomit on yourself, thus becoming "no longer desirable."

The mind of the antis is a strange place indeed.

Anonymous said...

Correction needed.

It wasn't a gun-control group per se advocating barfing on yourself.

It was the Illinois State Police.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMEKOr6DswM

My bad.

knitalot3 said...

Wouldn't a finger work as well as a tongue depressor.

I think a thumb in their eyeball might be a better deterrent.

I like 2b/1h!

Anonymous said...

It boggles the mind that the UN - which was, among other things, founded to help protect people from aggression - is so anti-gun. Do they WANT people to be helpless?

Oh, wait... Yeah, I guess they do. People who aren't helpless don't need the UN.

Personally, I think rio arriba has the solution.

Hecate said...

I'm a rape survivor, and this crap beyond enrages me.

It happened when I lived in Chicago. Now I live in a state where I can own and carry a gun. I won't even visit Illinois ever again.

If anyone tries to rape me now, I will shoot him to the ground. That's the solution they should be promoting.

Rio Arriba said...

I could not agree more strongly with Hecate nor more enthusiastically applaud her resolve. May she never have to use it, but if she does I hope she shoots straight.

I got my handgun/self-defense instructor certification as a result of my anger over a couple of rapes where I used to live. Any woman that was serious about protecting herself was welcome to contact me for free instruction.

If enough of these scumbags got a bad surprise to spoil their twisted fun we'd see some down-flow in rape statistics. It's definitely something to work for, along with the turning out of politicians and bureaucrats who make it hard for people to defend themselves.

Sorry, but couldn't resist coming back for a second comment. The whole topic makes my blood boil.

d smith kaich jones said...

The Cross-Armed X Gesture? Are they KIDDING?!!! Gawdalmighty!

My aunt was brutally raped & beaten when she was about 12 or so & it took more than one deputy to keep her brother & father from killing the bastard who hurt her. More than two. Only prison saved him from death at their hands. But this is Texas, and we're just not as highly evolved as the jerks at the UN. Thank God!

TOTWTYTR said...

Bravo Hectate.

It beyond boggles my mind that anyone seriously thinks that the cross armed gesture, or any gesture for that matter, could stop a rapist.

For twenty years I've been told that rape is not about sex, it's about power, control, and violence. A stupid gesture isn't going to stop that sort of thing, but some lead and copper sure might.

Anonymous said...

The only thing the "cross armed gesture" is good for to me is to signal taxiing aircraft to stop.
Rapists will stop only if the attack is met with force. Rape used to be a capitol crime; it should be again.

Haji said...

I'm so sick of the UN. They don't do anything but cost Americans money, and they have the gall to have their HQ here-because they couldn't run their suck like they do against any other host country-and tell us we're doing it wrong. I'd like to see a compilation of the estimated number of lives the UN hasn't saved...but I fear the number would be so huge I'd get sick.

Joe Carpenter said...

Breda, snap a pic of your own "cross gesture", though might I suggest an embellishment?

DUAL WIELD

Caption: "Rape? Not a good idea."