And the award goes to...
US REPUBLICAN REP TODD AKIN
Last week, this Missouri Senate candidate decided to educate us all on rape. In his opinion, there is "legitimate rape" and, well, I'm not exactly sure what else there could be. Illegitimate rape?
He used this terminology in defense of his position regarding abortion and rape victims. He said, and I quote,
"First of all, from what I understand from doctors, pregnancy after rape is really rare. If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down."
What happens if a raped woman finds herself pregnant? It gets even better. Akin went on to say,
"I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be on the rapist and not attacking the child."
I cannot begin to describe how absurd his statements are and when the predictable backlash hit, he released an even more predictable response.
He "misspoke".
Besides the fact that he will likely never find himself in a situation where another man forces himself on him, sweaty hands pinning his wrists above his head, elbow painfully jabbed into the hollow of his cheek, knees in the crotch forcing thighs to spread, tearing him apart with the violence of the penetration, Akin is a man and therefore, cannot get pregnant. You know what a pregnancy is to a woman who has been raped? An abomination. A pregnancy in this situation is most definitely NOT "God's will". Oh, and being responsible for half the DNA, does the rapist have parental rights?
To suggest for one second that a "legitimate rape" makes pregnancy rare (and abortion unnecessary, apparently) because of some sort of magical biological defense system, is beyond offensive. It's completely repugnant. Rape is rape. Can you imagine a legal system where a rapist's defense is the fact that the victim didn't get pregnant? Draconian.
Oh, and the punishment bit? There should be some punishment?
Ask any woman who has survived a rape how she feels about appropriate punishment. Ask her about the paralyzing fear and the lingering taste of copper that it left in her mouth. Ask her about that moment when her psyche cracked and she drifted away from the reality of the situation. Ask her how many years it took for her to allow a man to touch her. Ask her how many times she replayed the event in her head, wishing she could go back in time and remove herself from his path. Ask her how she slept at night knowing that the man that raped her is free.
Akin is an asshat. He doesn't belong in any public service position anywhere. I know there will be women out there that will vote for him. Shame on them.
