Friday, August 04, 2006
O'Reilly: Rape, murder victim was "wearing a miniskirt and a halter top.
We live in a culture that condones rape as nothing more than men letting out their sexual desires, because it's part of our evolutionary psychology or something like that, you know man is the hunter and is a natural rapist. Last time that argument was brought forth to justify rape, it was rightfully attacked as nothing more than an excuse for rapists. But my friends, this is lower than low.
O'Reilly: Rape, murder victim was "wearing a miniskirt and a halter top. ... [E]very predator in the world is gonna pick that up at 2 in the morning"Now I know that O'Reilly is an opinionated asshole but this takes the cake. He claims to be a moderate but in reality he is nothing more than a right-wing hack. He does not feel any compassion for this victim, he does not feel any empathy towards her. I thought the defense of the victim wearing seductive, suggestive clothing was outdated and even banned in the court of law, but in the court of opinion, sexist attitudes die hard even though they should be buried in the dustbin of history....
While discussing the recent rape and murder of 18-year-old Jennifer Moore during the August 2 edition of his nationally syndicated radio show, Bill O'Reilly appeared to suggest that the clothing she was wearing at the time helped incite her killer. O'Reilly discussed several factors that contributed to the "moronic" girl's rape and murder, including that she was drunk and wandering the streets of New York City alone late at night. But in addition to those factors, O'Reilly added: "She was 5-foot-2, 105 pounds, wearing a miniskirt and a halter top with a bare midriff. Now, again, there you go. So every predator in the world is gonna pick that up at 2 in the morning."
O'REILLY: So anyway, these two girls come in from the suburbs and they get bombed, and their car is towed because they're moronic girls and, you know, they don't have a car. So they're standing there in the middle of the night with no car. And then they separate because they're drunk. They separate, which you never do. All right.But isn't that the standard defense now? The victim was drunk so she obviously WANTED to be raped and murdered. She was asking for it!Now Moore, Jennifer Moore, 18, on her way to college. She was. 5-foot-2, 105 pounds, wearing a miniskirt and a halter top with a bare midriff. Now, again, there you go. So every predator in the world is gonna pick that up at two in the morning. She's walking by herself on the West Side Highway, and she gets picked up by a thug. All right. Now she's out of her mind, drunk.
And the thug is so stupid, he uses her cell phone, and the cops trace it back to him and they -- and they arrest him and charge him with murder.At least he called the rapist a thug, but other than that, I cannot find any condemnation of the rapist for his vile crime. Maybe he could have come out and condemned the culture of sexism which allows us to excuse rapists for their crimes by suggesting that the victims were Sirens who ensnare us. Instead of pouring down curses and condemnation well-deserved upon the thug, he gets on his case not for raping and killing the girl, but for being stupid, for being caught with his hands in the cookie jar! But this seems to be the culture of responsibility on the far right: it's more important not to get caught than to not engage in criminal acts.
I really love seeing how some on the right-wing always ALWAYS become apologists for rapists by shifting all blame and responsibility to the victim. I really love how he is suggesting that it was her fault for putting herself into that situation. I love seeing how he is implying that the poor victim is nothing more than a slut who dressed provocatively and "got what she deserved." I love seeing how O'Reilly makes himself look even more of an ass than he already is. He's said some despicable things in the past, but this has got to be a new low. I love how he has the gall to spit on the victim's body by calling her "moronic."
As I've said before, conservatives and these holier-than-thou Pharisees have framed the rape issue by completely turning around who becomes the criminal and who becomes the victim. O'Reilly is simply reinforcing the stereotype that women are no better than animals who need to be tamed whether through marriage or even rape. Yes, he used the word predator, yes we all do, but O'Reilly frames it into an issue of the hunter vs. the hunted instead of it being the crime it should be. The theme of the hunt is prevalent throughout mythology and in ancient Greek magic which I hope to study someday, to tame the "beast." Congratulations, O'Reilly, you just put yourself in the Religious Right camp when it comes to rape...by blaming the victim, you are no better than the fundamentalist preachers who counsel rape victims to look inside to see "where they sinned." This is why rape victims are more likely than not to decline reporting their rape, because of the condemnation and ridicule our society places upon them.
As I have said before, this is how the right can turn around and tie this to abortion. Now no one likes abortion, unlike what those on the far right would love to tell you. No one wants to be aborted fetuses, but where do we strike the balance when it comes to a rape victim who has been psychologically damaged and would be further damaged if she carried her baby to term? The far right would love to "punish" the victim by having her "keep" the baby as they love to frame it as an "unwanted child" issue, but that is not their main concern. Their main concern judging on studies done on them and these attitudes toward rape victims is punishment and condemnation. The slut got what she deserved and she's trying to find an easy way out?!
Rape SHOULD NEVER BE CONNECTED TO WHETHER YOU ARE "RESPECTABLE" OR NOT. (Yes, I realize it is all in CAPS but this needs to be...) Rape should NEVER be connected to whether you're drunk or whatever you're wearing or however you're behaving. Perhaps we should learn to keep our dicks in our pants when it comes to someone who cannot give consent NO MATTER WHAT, but until we address this issue, both men and women and change our society's beliefs so that women do not become seductive animals in our thoughts and in our minds, then this will continue to happen.
So O'Reilly, I'll call you out as AN ENABLER OF RAPISTS! You and your ilk give comfort and aid to every rapist or potential rapist...everytime you blame a victim while keeping silent on the criminal.
