Hmmm.

[mountain_laurel]

Am I the only one who's offended by the phrase "you can't rape the willing"?

Comments

[mskala.livejournal.com]

I think for me it would depend on the context in which the phrase was used.

[lysystratae.livejournal.com]

Yeah, me too

[merde.livejournal.com]

I most often hear it used in a joking context, which is probably why it offends me so much; I'm offended by pretty much any attempt at humor involving rape. (I also see red when sports fans talk about their team getting 'raped', &c.)

[loosestrife.livejournal.com]

I've never even heard it. What's it supposed to mean?

[ronebofh.livejournal.com]

You can rape the Coalition of the Willing...

[xauenmurph.livejournal.com]

no, you aren't.

[avahgdu.livejournal.com]

As a rape victim...the phrase upsets me. Because I have only ever heard it said by some asshat attempting to justify his or someone else's horrible actions.

[dnereverri.livejournal.com]

It's a tautology of sorts, so no, I don't find it offensive on the face of it. Given how vague the term "willing" is, though, it's definitely suspect, and I'd be more than a bit leery of anyone who used it without many caveats and some very specific contexts.

[neoliminal.livejournal.com]

rape sucks.

it's hard to think of any sentence you could include it in that's not offensive on some level.

the phrase "you can't rape the willing" sounds like someone's lame excuse for raping someone, so it has an odious feel. (images of frat boy lawyers...)

someone who actually wanted to state this "fact" without being defensive wouldn't phrase it this way. they would say something like "rape is the absence of consent by any party involved in a sexual activity. "

[lexica510.livejournal.com]

It sounds to me like attempted justification after the fact.

Because if it weren't, why did the term "rape" even come up?