Sexual Harassment Naivete Ticks Me Off

change of focus yes, abrogation of responsibility no.

First off if you forget anything you read here this is my bottomline. Rape is the fault of the rapist not the victim.

Now, that said, among the arguments i find most irritating is the naive one. "we should be safe from rapists no matter what we do. we should change society so there will be no more rape." Good luck with that.

As for any crime not just rape, the criminal is out there, that's the given. Taking measures to maintain your safety is not putting the burden on yourself, it is being practical.

While rapists are equal opportunity offenders they rape any body type and any sex rapists still take visual cues before they select their targets. I'm no longer talking about "dressing sexy means you're asking for it." I'm saying offenders profile their victims and weigh things like, perceived vulnerability, physical prowess, alertness plus whatever fetish they're into. As said earlier the criminal is already out there you cannot wish them away. What you wanna do is not be in their sights when they're scouting for a victim. If you give advice not to wear excessive jewelry when shopping in divisoria and think it's good. Why is "dress modestly in crowded places" shifting the blame on the victim?

Downgrade rape to groping and you will see the logic that when you feel up a person, bare flesh is a premium. Of course the girl in daisy dukes, is a better groping target than a nun. Well of course nuns get groped too but when there is a choice who would they logically rather?

Oh don't be naive and say clothes have nothing to do with it! Of course it does. We do it all the time. We do what's called preening moves to get the attention of the opposite sex or even colleagues consciously or not.We dress for effect.We dress to impress. We power dress for business to be taken seriously. We dress down to be more approachable. There's the little black dress for elegance and the high heels to lengthen the legs to make you look sexy. And guys wear muscle shirts to announce "I work out." Then all of a sudden how we dress isn't supposed to say anything? We judge people by the way they dress why shouldn't rapists?

I'm all for "down with rape and the objectifying of women." But somewhere down the line the would be victims should recognize the need for personal responsibility.