Well, the gender wars are on again, clouding the issue at hand.

Trade125, it is sad that you can only equate sex with food and drink. Just another commodity to trade. Yes, it is at times but that isn’t really at issue either. The issue is rape, unless you think that men can demand ‘payment’, a bit like a self appointed debt collector. Are you saying a woman who is raped by her husband/partner should have ‘paid up’ willingly?

It never ceases to amaze me that there are so many men who actually see rape as just another way to have sex. It also never ceases to amaze me that there would be any man who tries to justify rape by rationalizing about needs and expectations. What did you do when you were teenagers? Forgot about the soap in the long showers and the dirty magazines and the box of tissues? Just a couple of hints for you blokes if you cannot find a willing woman to tend to your ‘needs’. I’ve raised boys, so know about these things :)

Both men and women have a natural need for close and intimate contact with another human. Hate to burst your bubble, but men are not unique in this regard.

Boazy, this thread is NOT about Muslims or Islam. Read the bible, it is chockers with rape and pillage. Some of it justified.

JamesH, I almost agree with you. A man bashing, or woman bashing for that matter, thread is such a waste of emotional energy.

Please bare with me as I try to frame a arguement.

Does anyone remember a story about a palestine father and son hiding behind a wall as bullets flew past them? It was later announce that the child had been shot by the Israeli soldiers.

Highly emotive story.

Having just read a story about how the above story was constucted to make Israel look bad. Basically a lot of people had the wool pulled over their eyes but a very clever propaganda campaign.

The Israeli soldiers did not deliberately shoot or kill that boy.

This story demonstrates how once the emotive part of our brain is engaged, the logical more critical thinking part tends to be put on the back burner. It is a clever trick to use.

The author of this article use the same trick to engage the emotive feelings which then results in the clouding of critical thinking.

note "In bedrooms all over the country, women are still subjected to sexual violence from their spouses."

Even a friendly tap on the bottom can be construed as sexual assault especially if some one is in a bad mood.

Unfortunately the bedroom is the last refuge of the sex/power struggle. Both women and men are 'raped' under these conditions. The idea that men are never compelled to have sex by their wives and are always ready, willing, and able is feminist propaganda. While men will discuss this with a close friend they are not likely to go public.
I know a fellow who is constantly browbeaten by his wife and he told me having sex with her is the utmost trial, Olympian was his word, considering how he must gear himself up to perform. But what is he supposed to do. He has children. He can't afford to just walk away.

Trade 215- your article containing the statement that "Love is a very powerful device for tying a person to thy self-serving-self in the name of altruistic benevolence, few people allow themselves to see it let alone admit it." is a a very perceptive article.

I once read an article that said love was more about co-habitation and the human need to belong to a supportive social group then actual love. I was a bit shocked at the time and felt sad that the notion of romantic love was probably based more on self need than reality. But I knew deep down it was true.
We just become dependent on the support and companionship of those we are partnered with. We are just used to them and familiar with them and it gives us security in a world full of strangers thats all.

Seeker is turning out to be quite enigmatic – he is either a rapist, has had someone close to him rape someone, is a professional defender of rapists, or is after all, a twisted she. If none of the above, then one very sorry dude – perhaps even a reformed rapist himself.

Women need to develop the necessary language to articulate their predicament and establish effective campaigns against male violence. This language currently still reflects the “too scared to speak up” female (and male) attitudes to undesirable male behaviour. Until we change this the one-sided view of violence will remain.

OK, while I’m at it there is one more thing Violence is violence. Muscle mass, size, and other male characteristics have a lot to do with the bullying of women. Defence of violent male behaviour helps perpetuate the prejudice and discrimination that the feminists already endure. Guess none of us are immune to conditioning received through the language of anti-feminism

Very amusing, donald blake.

If regrettable sex can be equated to rape, then surely over time, women could be held equally responsible. If unilateral decisions amount to violence, they are indeed, formidable combatants.