Birds on the Brain

Quote 21 Sep 13 notes

Not only did Martinez refer to “forcible rape” in an announcement instating April as New Mexico’s Sexual Assault Awareness Month — as if some kinds of sexual assault need to be qualified as more or less “legitimate” than others — but, as RH Reality Check reports, the term also appears in the state’s proposed changes to its official applications for childcare assistance. If the proposed changes take effect, women in New Mexico will be required to prove that their sexual assault qualified as “forcible rape” if they are seeking childcare assistance for a child that resulted from rape:

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New Mexico Gov. Requires Women Seeking Childcare Assistance To Prove They Were ‘Forcibly Raped’

from Think Progress by Tara Culp-Ressler

So, how often do women claim that consensual sex was actually rape? MAYBE 3% of the reports of rape are deemed to be false. And of course, it’s estimated that most rapes (at least 75% — that is the lower end of the estimates) are never reported. So false reports of rapes are less — possibly FAR less — than 1% of actual rapes.

This sounds a lot like voter impersonation fraud, and it makes me wonder why Republicans have such a tendency to overestimate very rare wrongdoing. Do they look at people they don’t like and think, “What MIGHT that person do to damage me? I’d better make sure that is illegal!” ??

Nah. More likely, they look at people who are uppity and say, “Like hell will you get control of ANYTHING, including your own lives!”

(via shiracoffee)

(Source: wateringgoodseeds)

#forcible rape #Susana Martinez #rape #sexual assault #childcare #New Mexico #war on women #Republicans #politics