Some commenters here have started discussing the Ariel Castro sentencing — and the remarkable, delusional, self-pitying, victim-blaming statement he made before being sentenced — in the Minter Meltdown thread. Because so much of what he said — and so many of the issues raised — are potentially triggering, I thought it would be good to open up a separate thread for this.
Here’s a piece at the Daily Beast with some of the most astounding quotes from Castro’s statement today.
Consider this whole thread to have a TRIGGER WARNING on it for discussions of Castro’s rape apologias and victim blaming.
The Planet of the Apes fanfic, I mean, not referring to Michelle’s comment re: Castro.
@Michelle, That got to me too. Just a reminder that this kind of thinking is still pretty widespread. 0_o
Here’s another one: http://vocaroo.com/i/s1t808SE4f64
From here: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/667106/1/DIGIMON-SAVEZ-THE-WROLD-1111
I love how much this thread has derailed and I love you all. In the non-creepy I’ve-never-even-met-you way. In more of a “you make me laugh even though the weather is shitty and my classes run into the evening” way.
Wow. Just. So someone had sex before, therefore it’s ok to chain them to a pole in a basement for years? QED!
I just can’t think about Castro. So thanks all for the info on tigers, weed and for the vocaroo recording links.
And this – ‘weed’ tiger – http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UEUBfoBe4Kw/UXbjzTPQdxI/AAAAAAAADLg/XC1u0Y-oj1M/s1600/topiary+tiger.jpg
Topiary tiger is the best!
Ugh, I’m so glad that Castro is put away. I was so afraid he’d be let loose for some crap reason.
Now, I will celebrate with terrible fanfic. Have you read the Garfield ones by ComicsNix?
Just googled Garfield ComicsNix and stumbled upon bestiality fanfic. Yikes. =S
Oh! Bad fanfic favorite: Half-life 2 Full-Life Consequences! Animated in Gmod to match the quality of the writing.
(two more parts follow)
It’s not brain bleach, exactly, but who wants to see bad people being funny and pathetic, instead of evil and scary?
Oh crap, I should have warned about ComicsNix for like, everything. Sorry =(
Heh … and even with “fewer than ten” people turning up to their rally, they still got more people than the MRM does for its meetings.
Here locally there was a flurry of MRA activist commenters when this story broke: http://www.denverpost.com/dnc/ci_23592884/longmont-police-testify-fathers-family-appeared-be-assisting, trolling the many articles that chronicled the progress of the hunt for the kidnapped boy and the aftermath. It’s almost like MRAs believe there is a special law of physics, that for every ghastly thing a man does, the woman must have done something equal or greater in ghastliness to provoke him. (no mention of this law when the woman does something ghastly).
So Castro kidnaps a 14 year old, a 16 year old and a 21 year old and they’ve ALL had multiple sexual partners before? I do NOT believe him.
And even if I did believe him, it makes no difference to what he did. In fact it makes it worse. Because it means, among other things, that he kidnapped and raped a 14 year old rape victim.
I think this whole revenge fantasy eye-for-an-eye thing is often tied in with a wish that the perpetrator realizes what it was like for his victims. But besides all the other reasons there are for not having state-sanctioned revenge, I don’t think this would work. I think 99 % of all perpetrators wouldn’t see the analogy. They’d be like “oh, it’s so horrible FOR ME to get raped like this” (if we’re talking about a rapist) without ever realizing that it was just as horrible and bad for their victims. They’d think it was two completely different things, because their victim deserved it or secretly wanted it or whatever, whereas for them it’s horrible.
The parallels between the MRM’s party line (everything’s all the fault of dirty sluts) and Castro’s behavior (everything’s all the fault of dirty sluts and maybe the fact that I looked at pr0ns) are creeping me right out. And the MRM isn’t even trying to distance itself from him! I often wonder if they can sink no lower, but, y’know…that question usually answers itself in short order.
This case is a perfect example of misogyny taken to its logical conclusion. This is what happens when a woman is viewed as nothing more than a hole for a dick. I am so sick of otherwise normal people acting as if we’re a post-discrimination society, and I’m especially sick of MRAs acting as if misandry is the REAL problem of the times. How many of these male MRAs would ever have to fear being made some reprehensible, inhuman prick’s sex slave/punching bag? I’ll warrant it’s not many. No, it’s misogyny that makes this shit possible.
/newbrant
@auggziliary,
I tried stevia but I just couldn’t stand the aftertaste. I’ve been trying to eat low carb and I’m uncomfortable with artificial sweeteners so I’ve been looking for an alternative. So far erythritol is the best option I’ve found, the only issues I have with it so far are that it’s very expensive and some versions are made from GMO corn. I decided to avoid xylitol because it can cause gastrointestinal issues and is extremely toxic to pets if they happen to get ahold of it.
I’d like to try monk fruit sometime but the only available sweetener I’ve found also contains sugar, stevia and malitol.
@titanblue: So Castro kidnaps a 14 year old, a 16 year old and a 21 year old and they’ve ALL had multiple sexual partners before? I do NOT believe him.
More likely, they told him they weren’t virgins because that was what he wanted to hear. It may very well be that he assuaged whatever conscience he has by rationalizing that, because they told him they weren’t virgins, then a) they were telling the truth, and b) what he was doing was okay.
Or maybe he imagined that they weren’t virgins and mistook that for fact.
Or maybe they really weren’t virgins – it happens. Their sexual history really has no bearing on what he did.
@girlscientist
QFT.
I’m trying to call him out on a. probably lying about them and b. using blatent victim-blaming and double standards when he implies that, because they weren’t virgins, raping them was just fine.
I’m not doing it very well and am sorry for implying otherwise.
At least someone will get it next time I go I have to flame fast and keyboard too slow!
Anybody else find parts of what Castro had to say really, really reminiscent of uber-fundamentalist Christian purity crusaders? Like the sketchy virgin/whore dichotomy where, because these girls weren’t virgins, it’s not like he did them any harm? Or the idea that he’s as much a victim as anyone because he got involved with pornography and it made him deviant? I’ve noticed a strong tendency in purity movements to grossly inflate the seriousness of porn use as a sign of sexual deviance.
It kind of makes me wonder about the guy’s religious/spiritual influences over the course of his life.
@titianblue: I’m not doing it very well and am sorry for implying otherwise.
You said earlier:
And even if I did believe him, it makes no difference to what he did.
So you were doing perfectly okay and you don’t need to apologize at all. I was just agreeing with you, because it’s the kind of thing that, unfortunately, needs to be repeated as often as possible (also, I didn’t want to imply *myself* that the victims’ sexual history was at all relevant).
The whole thing is ridiculous. Did he really expect people to go “oh, they weren’t virgins? that’s OK then about the kidnapping”?