Rep. Phil Gingrey: Todd Akin Was 'Partly Right' About 'Legitimate Rape'

[Gayle]

Originally Posted by JoeBentley

Yeah but that's what everyone does. People tend to generate toward shared traits and then overvalue those traits because of the shared nature of them and it becomes a self feeding cycle.

In fact I'd wager this works more the other way, statistically small groups over valuing their influence.

That's how children do things until they're taught that not everyone has the same toys. Not everyone has two parents at home. Not everyone has the same color skin. Not everyone-- you get the picture. I think that's the problem with so many of these characters: they flat out reject that their belief system is not for everyone. And they won't try. They take the boogie man approach to these issues: If I can't "get" them, they will "get" me.

Sure we gravitate toward shared traits, but putting some thought behind our instincts is the purpose of having the abilities that humans have.

[TurquoiseGirl]

I think Gayle nailed it. And it is exacerbated by fitting the demographic of the folks who have been in power for the last 200 years or so.

[lavender blue]

Originally Posted by Wolf333

Actually, I think that Mickey and TG have hit the nail on the head. I do not think that people like Ryan actually hate women, but they definitely see them as something less than men. Not quite less than human, but close.

While it may not be hate, it essentially works out to the same thing.

Yeah, I don't think he 'hates' women in the 'must exterminate from the earth' way that people hate cockroaches and bedbugs. But I do think he thinks women are inferior to men--emotionally, physically, morally, and maturity-wise. And so he's enacting these laws to govern women, the way that parents might set rules for children: e.g. kids younger than a certain age are told not to play with matches and punished if they do, because they may not have the maturity to think through the consequences of an impulsive action. By doing so, he's protecting men from women, and women from themselves.

So no abortion, because pregnancy is a punishment consequence of sex, and of disobeying all the men who tell them abstinence is the only way to go. Akin's 'sometimes rape isn't really rape' allows him to veto abortions because the women weren't really raped. After all, women are morally inferior, and so they lie to avoid the consequences of their actions.

So it's not teeth-gnashing hate; it's disrespect because women are inherently inferior.

[Lainie]

And with misogyny, as with racism, the fact that a person does not consciously think "they are inferior" or "I hate them" does not mean that the bigotry does not exist.

[Ryda Wong, EBfCo.]

Originally Posted by lavender blue

So it's not teeth-gnashing hate; it's disrespect because women are inherently inferior.

I think part of it is also MRA-style fear about women gaining any sort of true equality, which means their overwhelming privilege is under grave threat.

[Ryda Wong, EBfCo.]

And, in related news:

Last year, Republicans likely lost two U.S. Senate seats because their candidates claimed “legitimate rape” is a form of contraception and that pregnancies resulting from rape are a “gift from God.” Last week, Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-GA) again demonstrated the GOP’s frequent willingness to belittle rape by claiming that former Rep. Todd Akin’s (R-MO) legitimate rape comments were “partly right.”

In the wake of these toxic statements about a horrific crime, a leading anti-abortion group is now leaping to the Republican Party’s rescue with a training program to teach GOP lawmakers how to speak about this subject:

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/201...lk-about-rape/

Somehow, I don't trust SBA to speak the truth on rape either.

[GenYus234]

I'm reminded of an exchange from South Park. The local priest is quite disturbed at the issue of molestation of young boys by some priests. So he goes to the council:

Priest Maxi: Uh-yes, uh, I'm afraid if things keep going the way they are, we could lose our entire religion.
Elderly Priest: Yes, we've gotta stop these boys from goin' to the public!
Fat Priest: They've gotta know to keep their mouths shut!
Other priests: That right, yeah.
Priest Maxi: Right, and so... wa- wait a minute. What?
Priest 1: Yes, but we've got to find out why these children are suddenly finding it necessary to report that they're being molested. Stop the problem at its source.

[ganzfeld]

Originally Posted by Ryda Wong, EBfCo.

And, in related news:

See, except for that they haven't gone over as well as planned, these are not just gaffes. They have been carefully planned. Remember the Wedge Document? Well, IMO, that's exactly what's going on here: a deliberate plan to change the dialogue by casting doubt on the truth.

[DaGuyWitBluGlasses]

• Yet another Republican legislator asserted on Wednesday that incidences of pregnancy from rape are “very low,” setting off a political firestorm reminiscent of the damage inflicted on the party during the 2012 presidential election campaign.
  Trent Franks, an Arizona congressman, made the comments at a House of Representatives committee meeting that was exploring a measure that would ban all abortions after 20 weeks without exception.

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/20...from_rape.html

[crocoduck_hunter]

You'd think that they'd eventually catch on, but apparently every time they're assuming that maybe this time it'll be acceptable to say it.

[mags]

No, I just think they're pandering to the large part of their voter base that find it acceptable. They've already driven off most of their moderate base, so why not?

[Psihala]

Rep. Trent Franks, R-Arizona, said he was taken out of context Wednesday and tried to clarify his controversial comment from a committee markup earlier in the day, when he said the "incidents of rape resulting in pregnancy are very low."

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com...ent/?hpt=hp_t2

[JoeBentley]

*Scene... Republican Press Conference*

Republican: Thank you all for coming out today. It is my pleasure to introduce the newest member of the Republican family... Mr. Apologetic Rape Comment!
Crowd: Boo!
Republican: Ah see... one second.

*Mr. Apologetic Rape Comment goes back stage. Comes out a moment later wearing a different shirt.
Republican: I am proud to present Mr. Totally Not a Rape Apologetic Comment!
Crowd: Boo!
Republican: Hmmm... okay one second.

*Mr. Apologetic Rape Comment goes back stage. Come out a moment later wearing a Groucho Marx mustache and glasses.*
Republican: And now... Mr. Seriously Guys This Isn't a Rape Apologetic Comment!
Crowd! Boo!
Republican: Still? Jeez you dames are touchy. Okay, okay give me minute.

*Mr. Apologetic Rape Comment goes back stage. Comes out a moment later wearing a clown suit.
Republican: And now... Mr. Seriously Guys This Isn't a Rape Apologetic Comment and This Time I Really Mean It!
Crowd: Boo!
Republican: Of FFS there is just no dealing with you people.

[ganzfeld]

Originally Posted by mags

No, I just think they're pandering [...]

I don't think so because it's usually happening in cases where such pandering isn't in any way useful. I have to stick to my previous opinion that there's a deliberate desire to sow confusion about the issue. I would bet a beer that the number of people has increased who think, "Well, I don't know much about medicine but it's obviously a controversial issue if they're willing to say that. Either side might be right to some extent. Nobody really knows..." (cf. Climate Change and Intelligent Design)

That's funny Joe! But, no, I don't think there are actually a lot of boos going on in conservative households.

[kitap]

Originally Posted by crocoduck_hunter

You'd think that they'd eventually catch on, but apparently every time they're assuming that maybe this time it'll be acceptable to say it.

I'd kind of love to have one of them have the stupidity to say this to the family of Amanda Berry. (I would add Michelle Knight's but she doesn't have much of one.) Or Jaycee Dugard's family for that matter.

[Mickey Blue]

Originally Posted by ganzfeld

I don't think so because it's usually happening in cases where such pandering isn't in any way useful. I have to stick to my previous opinion that there's a deliberate desire to sow confusion about the issue. I would bet a beer that the number of people has increased who think, "Well, I don't know much about medicine but it's obviously a controversial issue if they're willing to say that. Either side might be right to some extent. Nobody really knows..." (cf. Climate Change and Intelligent Design)

I agree 100%, it's the same thing (as you note) as the 'debate' around climate change and evolution. Enough people, important people, keep saying there is a controversy so people who don't know any better start to thing there must be something to it. Perhaps they don't fully agree with the statements but they figure the real answer must be 'somewhere in the middle'.

[Esprise Me]

That's exactly it, ganz. People tend to remember what they hear and forget where they heard it. To borrow Joe's brilliant metaphor, eventually everyone recognizes Mr. Rape Apologist Comment's face, and people start asking him for his autograph on the street and maybe he gets an offer for a reality show, and before long most people have forgotten that he's only famous because the same Republican kept bringing him out onstage in a different outfit, not because he actually ever did anything else.