Misogyny is alive and well, unfortunately.

A barrister called Michael Osborne has recently been in the news for a blog post he wrote about rape and consent, which he originally titled 'She Was Gagging For It' (he has now edited this just to rape and consent). According to Osborne, it's ok for a man to rape a woman who is too drunk to say no, because after all she was 'gagging for it'. This pathetic excuse for a man also refers to men 'red blooded men who are out on the rut'. He has now edited and toned down some of the things he wrote, but the damage has already been done, and the original comments have been widely circulated in the media

Looking at his blog, it seems that he only publishes comments that are in agreement with him, I know mine won't get published, but at least I know he will have to read this:

Gagging for it? Seriously? This must be one of the most disgusting blog posts I have ever read, and what is even more revolting is that all the comments on your article seem to agree with your misogynistic attitude. Do you delete any opposing views, by any chance?
A woman has got the right to wear what she wants, she could be walking around stark bollock naked if she wants to and NO ONE has the right to make her do anything she does not want. And that includes coercion, in the manner of plying her with alcohol and/or drugs.
Not only is this article degrading to women, but also to men, as you seem to bring them down to the level of animals who cannot control their urges. Also, by your logic, it seems to be ok for a man to have sex with a woman he has knocked unconscious with a baseball bat? What about necrophilia? After all, dead girls don’t say ‘no’

Incidentally, Osborne also opposes the prefix 'Ms', his exact words are:

 And is it just me, or are women taking over the world?  And is it just me, or do you share my dislike for the prefix ‘Ms’?  It’s all to do with political correctness, or so they say, but speaking for my wife, and I suspect millions of other wives, when she agreed to marry me, convention dictated that she took my name and became Mrs. Osborne.  She does not wish to be referred to as Ms. Osborne, nor does she wish to be known as my partner.  It’s absurd!

It seems that not all dinosaurs are extinct.

There are no blurred lines

I am not going to discuss Miley's dubious performance on the VMAs. Or Robin Thickes video featuring naked women - incidentally, I had not heard of this man until the VMAs. But I am going to discuss the message in his lyrics. And I'm not going to go all Tipper Gore and discuss sex or swear words in lyrics, I have no problem in that as long as it is between consenting adults. But I do have a problem with date rape. And I have a problem with violence to women.

The song repeats the phrase 'I know you want it' a lot. In other words, according to Mr Thicke or whoever wrote this, it seems that although a woman is saying 'no' she really means 'yes'. Another line in the song is 'I'll give you something big enough to tear your ass in two'.

Radio One may bleep out the offending lyrics, but that will only increase people's curiosity to look for the uncensored version, which can be easily found online.

This song advocates criminal acts, and the music industry should be held accountable. I shall finish this post with the awesome parody by a group of Australian students.

No excuse for child abuse

Eddie Shah is a disgusting and vile excuse for a man for suggesting that under age girls are to blame for abuse if they consent. He was recently cleared of raping an underage girl between 12 and 15 in the 1990s, and is quoted in various newspapers today (11th August 2013) as saying in a BBC Radio 5 interview:

     "Rape was a technical thing - below a certain age. But these girls were going out with pop    groups and becoming groupies and throwing themselves at them. Young girls and young men have always wanted a bit of excitement. They want to appear adult and do adult things...If we're talking about girls who just go out and have a good time, then they are to blame. If we talk about people who go out and actually get 'raped' raped, then I feel no - and everything should be done against that."

WHAT THE HELL!!! An underage girl MAY APPEAR TO CONSENT TO SEX but that doesn't mean that an adult should take advantage of this.

For all they know, the child may have such a low self esteem that makes him or her feel totally worthless, and equates sex to love. Or could be under the influence of drink or drugs. Or have mental health issues. Or feel pressurised. Or feel in awe of an older person's celebrity status, and this celebrity happens to be a pervert. Or have been groomed by the pedo.

Even if the girl flings herself stark bollocks naked at the older person and begs for sex, if she is UNDERAGE, it is up to the adult to do the right thing and say NO. Sex with a child below the age of consent is STATUTORY RAPE.

Eddie Shah may have been cleared by the law of the accusations against him. According to the law, the offence of which he was accused of did not take place. However, his comments are absolutely revolting.

These come in the same week that the judge a similar trial, Nigel Peters QC, called the 13 victim in this other case a 'sexual predator', and described her as looking and acting older than her age. The child was playing truant from school, and approached Neil Wilson and asked him for cigarettes. He gave her a whole packet and then took her back to his flat for coffee. She was dressed in her school uniform, so it was obvious that she was still a child, even though she initiated sex. Wilson abused the child for 2 weeks, and he also kept calling her and sending her text messages.

The lawyer for the prosecution, Robert Colover, said during the trial that the sexual activity was 'not of Mr Wilson's doing', and 'you could say that it was forced upon him, despite being older and stronger than her'.

Despite being found guilty, the pervert, Neil Wilson, was only given an 8 month suspended sentence, even though sick images of child abuse AND bestiality were found at his home during a police search.

Mr Colover has now been barred from prosecuting any sex cases by the Crown Prosecution Service, and the Judge, Nigel Peters QC is also being investigated by the Office for Judicial Complaints.

The attitude of the judge and prosecutor in Neil Wilson's case makes me think that, if this is the sort of opinion that our judiciary share, it calls into question other cases in which the accused been acquitted.