4 ms·
One implication of this statement is that some people hold back from committing sexual assault in large part due to societal pressure. Perhaps true, but not muc
by drags 16y ago
One implication of this statement is that some people hold back from committing sexual assault in large part due to societal pressure. Perhaps true, but not much of an excuse on a moral level.
- sp332 16y agoNo one said it was any excuse. I'm worried that people will get the wrong answers when they ask the wrong questions. My point wasn't about social pressure but mental exertion: consciously examining one's own thoughts in real-time. Definitely the only thing that keeps people back from sexual assault is consciously deciding not to.
- msbarnett 16y agoI cannot recall ever consciously needing to decide not to commit sexual assault.
- mkramlich 16y agoI bet you very likely did, and may not be aware of it. Because all it depends on is how loosely "sexual assault" is defined. If you've ever been near a female you were attracted to, and you were horny, at least some part of your brain(s) may have thought about wanting to touch her -- especially in a sexual way or a sexual part of her body. And you may have thought, nah, you shouldn't do that, for whatever reason, at the time. You my friend had come really close to committing an act of legal sexual assault. But, you chose not to do so, at the last minute, through conscious decision. Again, we're not talking necessarily about rape (in the old fashioned sense of the word) but about "sexual assault" which is a more recent and genericized and watered down term used in the law enforcement system, designed intentionally to include a much wider variety of acts beyond the traditional rape act.
- MoreMoschops 16y ago" Definitely the only thing that keeps people back from sexual assault is consciously deciding not to." That is so not true. Don't extrapolate your own pitiful lack of morality onto others. If you have to explicitly remind yourself not to rape people, it doesn't mean everyone else does too.
- mkramlich 16y agosexual assault != rape Rape is a subset of sexual assault. By the common legal definition of sexual assault it includes acts like a pat on the ass or on the clothing outside the breast area. Hardly rape. What one person would call sexual assault another may call just being aggressive and forward with their sexuality. In that scenario, it is not a pitiful lack of morality. Just sexuality. Sexuality itself is not, or is not necessarily, immoral. It's a natural biological process and urge. We're not talking about murder here, or theft, or bombing, or starting a war. We're talking about an unwanted kiss or touch. If the very same act was wanted and explicitly consented to by the receiving party it would not be a crime. That's how subtle and delicate of an issue this is, and so controversial.
- sp332 16y agoThis isn't just about rape, it's about ANY physical contact.
- MoreMoschops 16y agoOh, I'm sorry. I'll rephrase. That is so not true. Don't extrapolate your own pitiful lack of morality onto others. If you have to explicitly remind yourself not to sexually assault people, it doesn't mean everyone else does too. Is that better?
- sp332 16y agoYeah, it's better. But the reason I don't do those things is specifically because I think they're immoral. I can look at the impulse and say, "No, that's wrong." Do you think that makes me immoral?