Akin: When I Was Talking About "Legitimate" Rape, I Meant "Forcible" Rape

[Coyotl]

Now, to the continuing saga of how to lose an election, galvanize opposition of the opposite sex, destroy your own political party for decades to come, and, hopefully, create a continuing dialogue that helps address the social problem in Western culture of violence against women:

================
http://www.slate.com/blogs/weigel/2012/08/20/akin_when_i_was_talking_about_legitimate_rape_i_meant_forcible_rape.html

Mike Huckabee wears two hats. He hosts a radio show and a TV show, and on them, he acts like a common sense broker between common folks. At the same time, he heads HuckPAC, which endorses candidates for office at all levels. In that latter capacity, Huckabee backed Todd Akin in the 2012 Missouri U.S. Senate primary. It was only fair for Akin to come on Huckabee's radio show and try to recover from the "legitimate rape" story.

So Huckabee gave Akin a chance to apologize for the comment, and he did -- he said something that was "wrong," and hurtful to rape victims. Good so far. But right after that, Huckabee prodded Akin to define what he meant by "legitimate." Did he mean "forcible"?

Yes, said Akin. "I was talking about forcible rape," he said. "I used the wrong word."

............

=======================
Mouth, meet other foot

[Brickbat]

1. "Forcible rape" is a non-legal term that is meant to muddy the waters. Rape is rape.

Sometimes rape is violent, and sometimes it's not.

[Coyotl]

13. It is the term used in the House bill sponsored by Paul Ryan and Todd Akin!

Obama Attacks Paul Ryan’s ‘Forcible Rape’ Bill: ‘Rape Is Rape’
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/08/20/715731/obama-attacks-paul-ryans-forcible-rape-bill-rape-is-rape/

[Brickbat]

18. I know. Infuriating.

Without a definition, it's hard to enforce, isn't it?

[panader0]

24. Exactly--what the hell in "unforceable" rape?

Is it not still rape? The GOP wants to make sure that women are beat up in order to get Medicare to pay for their abortions.
Was that not the point of the Ryan/Akins bill?

[Lifelong Protester]

2. Oh, yeah, that makes ALL the difference

Sure, NOW I understand you....


What an incredible, insensitve idiot he is.

[sibelian]

3. That's called ASSAULT, Todd.

Rape is a different thing and it's called RAPE.

[ananda]

4. All rape is forcible, of any kind or type.

Rape is rape. Period.

[seabeyond]

5. but, by the very definition of rape it is forced, my teenage son said last night, confused. nt

[sinkingfeeling]

6. Keep on holding tight to Ryan, Todd!

[JoePhilly]

7. Brilliant, switch to the word "forcible" so that Ryan gets pulled in deeper!!

[seabeyond]

8. that is what i thought. huckabee well connected the two. nt

[warrior1]

9. yes please

keep talking about this.

[GreenPartyVoter]

10. Apparently date rape and incest don't exist in their world. Or rather, they aren't considered to be

WRONG!

[yardwork]

19. That's it. Date rate, incest, and any other "kind" of rape doesn't "count," according to Republicans

The Republicans want to redefine rape so that it only counts as "rape" if the woman had a gun to her head or a knife to her throat. Unless a woman was severely beaten up, it wasn't really rape. Anything else doesn't count. This is all part of the "women ask for it" and "sluts lie" approach to rape victims. This is why so few rape victims come forward. This is a window into the way that victims of rape are abused again by our society and by the Republican Party.

[seabeyond]

20. that is the push. it is coming from different areas. this is what it is all about. nt

[Whiskeytide]

21. That's it exactly.

They don't believe that anything less than at gun or knife point is actually rape. Those "other" kinds of rape are just "misunderstood signals", "hussies asking for it", or "a man taking what God made for him".

That's what has really struck me about this whole thing. Akin didn't really understand what he said wrong. He had that "whadidIsay?" look on his face for a day or so afterwards, until the political fallout mounted, and he understood - not that he was an Ass, but that he'd made a blunder.

[Brickbat]

11. So typical of the patriarchy -- drawing lines to quantify, qualify and define the different

iterations of rape, in order to make it work best for them...instead of looking for ways to stop rape.

[Chorophyll]

15. +1

[riderinthestorm]

17. +2 nt

[KansDem]

12. As opposed to...?

I was talking about forcible rape...I used the wrong word.

Oh?
[p align="right"]
[p align="left"]

[Chorophyll]

14. Oh Todd, you're a certified Boy Genius.

Keep talking. Keep going on the teevee and talking.

[riderinthestorm]

16. Because a woman's Bio Defense Shield against pregnancy only works with "forcible rape"!111!!!

Yeah, that's it!111!!!!

Totally different!

[hamsterjill]

22. When a woman says "no", she means "no".

It's that simple, Mr. Akin. There are no degrees to rape. Rape is rape.

[retread]

23. Akin got his information from his doctor when the doctor was excising a harmful surplus of a humor.

[Coyotl]

25. I thought it was from

his barber

[VWolf]

26. Holy shit! He REALLY said that?

I thought that was a joke! That was his clarification of yesterday's statement???

This guy is too much.

[Coyotl]

27. Yeah, he said that on Mike Huchabee's show, albeit that is not the direct quote.

He did everything except give an attribution to Paul Ryan for the term "forcible rape"

Akin: When I Was Talking About "Legitimate" Rape, I Meant "Forcible" Rape
http://www.slate.com/blogs/weigel/2012/08/20/akin_when_i_was_talking_about_legitimate_rape_i_meant_forcible_rape.html

So Huckabee gave Akin a chance to apologize for the comment, and he did -- he said something that was "wrong," and hurtful to rape victims. Good so far. But right after that, Huckabee prodded Akin to define what he meant by "legitimate." Did he mean "forcible"?

Yes, said Akin. "I was talking about forcible rape," he said. "I used the wrong word."

[Coyotl]

28. Photobucket has been blocking this image from being served!

Interesting how they are playing politics by censoring

[FightForMichigan]

29. Excellent.

Akin should be on a talk show each day. Huckabee, Limbaugh, whatever. Keep him talking. The more he says, the better. He's a useful idiot.

[Dawson Leery]

30. Make this clear: the Rape Party is holding their convention in Tampa next week!

[jsmirman]

31. Hope the voters tell him "No Means NO"

Then maybe he'll get the message.

[Warren DeMontague]

32. And why dont you explain why you're even on the topic, Todd?

Namely, that those tricksy womenses will lie about being rapeded so they can gets the abortionses! Tricksy! Tricksy womenses!

[Arkansas Granny]

33. Regardless of the terminology he uses, does he still stick with his "theory"

about a woman's body shutting down so conception won't occur? This man is looney tunes.