19-Year Old Saudi Rape Victim Ordered to Undergo 200 Lashes

[safan80]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,311848,00.html

a big WTF


RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — A 19-year-old female victim of gang rape who initially was ordered to undergo 90 lashes for "being in the car of an unrelated male at the time of the rape," has been sentenced to 200 lashes and six months in jail for telling her story to the news media.

The new verdict was handed down by Saudi Arabia's Higher Judicial Council following a retrial, the Arab News reported.

The court last year sentenced the six heavily-armed men who carried out the attack against the Shiite woman to between one and five years for committing the crime.

But the judges had decided to punish the woman further for "her attempt to aggravate and influence the judiciary through the media," a court source told the Arab News.

The new verdict issued on Wednesday also toughened the sentences against the six men to between two and nine years in prison.

Saudi Arabia enforces a strict Islamic doctrine that forbids unrelated men and women from associating with each other, bans women from driving and forces them to cover head-to-toe in public.

The case has angered members of Saudi Arabia's Shiite community. The convicted men are Sunni Muslims, the dominant community in the oil-rich Gulf state.

[Rattle]

well maybe in another century they will catch up to the civilized world over there

[Kayin]

And why has no one attempted to remove her from the country about this? We're "civilized", start acting like it.

We're no better than them-we just stir them up and watch.

[Rattle]

well she has no oil so noone gives a :banana::banana::banana::banana:

[Nanometer]

They must have democracy immediately.

[Speederlander]

They must have democracy immediately.

Democracy doesn't guarantee much of anything. They would probably elect extremists.

Either way, welcome to a society where church and state are one.

[Zytek_Fan]

I hate hearing things like this. Because of some stupid belief system somebody suffers...

[leoftw]

200 Lashes ? What is that ?

[Omastar]

Well, Saudi Arabia, it's good to see that things haven't changed in that vicinity of the world since, oh, about 600 AD.

Hey, who the hell needs basic human rights when you have obtuse custom and tradition, right?

[alpha0ne]

Should be a good enough reason for bush to invade, certainly a better reason than the one he had for Iraq :rolleyes:

[NickS]

Kayin;2561868']And why has no one attempted to remove her from the country about this? We're "civilized", start acting like it.

We're no better than them-we just stir them up and watch.

That's like begging for them to go to war with us too..

[Newblar]

i guess its up to the least politically aware society in the world to criticize a foreign government, citing them as "primitive" and lacking moral value

[Omastar]

i guess its up to the least politically aware society in the world to criticize a foreign government, citing them as "primitive" and lacking moral value

Coming from a Kalifornian, that's not surprising. :rolleyes:

Because as we all know America's legal system, corrupt or inefficient as it may be, is certainly analogous to that of Saudi Arabia. Give me a break. You cannot deny the punishment is primitive, punitive and completely throws basic human rights out the window.

But hey, it's their funeral, not mine. We've stepped in enough countries' affairs already, and at this point they can save their own souls for a change, if they so desire.

[EniGmA1987]

well maybe in another century they will catch up to the civilized world over there

People in America should wake up to what is happening and see that in not too many years, unless something drastic happens, the US will be governed by Islam and there will be no more democrasy in America. Islam is not a religion, it is an entire way of life. A government, religious, military, and economic section. It is an entire package. Democracy wont save Islamic countries because democracy CANNOT exist in the Muslim belief system. Perhaps people should learn more about the Islamic culture and belief system before they start talking about it. And hearing about it from the news or from the government is not what I mean.

And Democracy doesnt work at all once the people realise they can vote themselves lots of free stuff ;)

[[XC] riptide]

Democracy doesn't guarantee much of anything. They would probably elect extremists.

Either way, welcome to a society where church and state are one.
QFT^^^

Should be a good enough reason for bush to invade, certainly a better reason than the one he had for Iraq :rolleyes:
Funny^^:ROTF: :clap:

Coming from a Kalifornian, that's not surprising. :rolleyes:

PWN+1

Speeders post is relevant here. The big problem with Saudi Arabia is its ruled by the al Saud monarchy et al. The population is getting restless under this. Although some reform has taken place, the main problem is that if you held elections there there is a good chance that very Anti-Western Extremeists would get elected and control a large portion of the worlds oil supply.

Anecdotal, I worked with a guy once who lived in Saudi Arabia with his family. He recalled to me once in a car with a couple of saudi men in it. They seen a man beating a woman on the street. The men got a little upset at seeing this. Why were they upset? They were sympathetic of the man NOT the woman. Their angle on it was that the poor man must have a terrible wife who would cause him to raise his hand in public, and bring shame on him. :shocked:

Just a very different way to think on it.

[Omastar]

riptide;2562555']Anecdotal, I worked with a guy once who lived in Saudi Arabia with his family. He recalled to me once in a car with a couple of saudi men in it. They seen a man beating a woman on the street. The men got a little upset at seeing this. Why were they upset? They were sympathetic of the man NOT the woman. Their angle on it was that the poor man must have a terrible wife who would cause him to raise his hand in public, and bring shame on him. :shocked:

Just a very different way to think on it.

Well, I guess it depends on what they consider a worthy justification for beating your wife; apparently pretty much anything justifies this. :up: However, they're the polar opposite of our society where we have these rude, arrogant feminists at the extreme end of the spectrum, decrying everything men do as oppressive and misogynist. And then we also have the large pool of incredible [mainly teenage, 20s] sluts here who really turn my stomach, and cause me to go into frequent existential crises.

Neither is right, and neither is justifiable, but at the end of the day I return to my libertarian roots: let women do as they please, so long as they don't impinge on my rights and well being. That is to say, let them sleep around and/or ballbust all they want, but I'll have no association with it. Beating them for their desire to be whores isn't going to cure them. But in Saudi Arabia I have a suspicion that due to the distinct lack of our Hollywood-driven western culture, the women would be happy with being able to socialize with other men in a friendly manner and not be, you know, stoned publicly.

[Origin_Unknown]

i've got a novel idea.

Why don't we just let them get on with what ever it is they want to do and stop getting involved?

[Speederlander]

i guess its up to the least politically aware society in the world to criticize a foreign government, citing them as "primitive" and lacking moral value

It doesn't take a political rocket scientist to be able to label a system as "primitive" or "lacking moral value" when they have their rape victims lashed hundreds of times. I mean, give me a break. Now, to be sure, such labels are simplistic and never tell the whole story, but in cases like this, they carry real weight.

[[XC] leviathan18]

how the hell you punish someone that suffered an assault is just idiotic

[Kobalt]

People in America should wake up to what is happening and see that in not too many years, unless something drastic happens, the US will be governed by Islam and there will be no more democrasy in America.

:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[NickS]

People in America should wake up to what is happening and see that in not too many years, unless something drastic happens, the US will be governed by Islam and there will be no more democrasy in America. Islam is not a religion, it is an entire way of life. A government, religious, military, and economic section. It is an entire package. Democracy wont save Islamic countries because democracy CANNOT exist in the Muslim belief system. Perhaps people should learn more about the Islamic culture and belief system before they start talking about it. And hearing about it from the news or from the government is not what I mean.

And Democracy doesnt work at all once the people realise they can vote themselves lots of free stuff ;)

ROFL

The day the Islam's try to take over is the day our huge country-wide militia gets their guns and goes huntin'. America well never be taken over, never.

As far as the stuff in Saudi Arabia goes, it's none of our business. It's their country. It's the way their country works.

[Agent11]

And Democracy doesnt work at all once the people realise they can vote themselves lots of free stuff ;)

I hear this quote paraphrased a lot.

What you do not realize is that this is the reason we have a senate.

Think of the House as our direct representatives. It is their job to push to legislate what the people in their districts want and need.

Think of the Senate as the 'anti Athens' legislative body. It is their job to be more deliberative.

Partisanship has wounded the balance of the congress as a whole, and as a result many people do not even know how it was intended to function.

[n00b 0f l337]

Democracy doesn't guarantee much of anything. They would probably elect extremists.

Either way, welcome to a society where church and state are one.
Democracy isnt really always the absolute answer, its the least evil of the evils is all. To put it lightly, its still a bad system.

[b1lk1]

i've got a novel idea.

Why don't we just let them get on with what ever it is they want to do and stop getting involved?

AMEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Rattle]

People in America should wake up to what is happening and see that in not too many years, unless something drastic happens, the US will be governed by Islam and there will be no more democrasy in America. Islam is not a religion, it is an entire way of life. A government, religious, military, and economic section. It is an entire package. Democracy wont save Islamic countries because democracy CANNOT exist in the Muslim belief system. Perhaps people should learn more about the Islamic culture and belief system before they start talking about it. And hearing about it from the news or from the government is not what I mean.

And Democracy doesnt work at all once the people realise they can vote themselves lots of free stuff ;)

LMFAO

you know what they say, sometimes its better to keep your mouth shut then to remove all doubt that your a fool.

[WrigleyVillain]

The day the Islam's try to take over is the day our huge country-wide militia gets their guns and goes huntin'.



You mean the gangbangers? :rolleyes:

At any rate, radical Islam is a small blip on the radar of America's apparently scary future. China is the real threat. Sometimes I really wish I had been born when my parents were.

[Omastar]

You mean the gangbangers? :rolleyes:

At any rate, radical Islam is a small blip on the radar of America's apparently scary future. China is the real threat. Sometimes I really wish I had been born when my parents were.

I don't know how old your parents are, but I'll assume mid 50s. So you would prefer to have been around during the height of the Vietnam, Nixon-era Watergate mess? And let's not forget about the Cold War, and as always, the Middle East crises.

Pretty much all generations since that of the post WWII/we can rebuild the West ideal have been crappy. What you'll want to do here is blame the baby boomers for having to clean up their mess. Of course by the time China assumes world domination, the baby boomers will all have died. :p:

[Kunaak]

its not uncommon for arabic countries to HEAVILY retaliate against the use of media in any form.

a classic example was that british guy who got captured and put in jail, he was suppose to do 6 months there.
but his wife made a fuss about it, went to 20/20 and they got pissed, and killed the guy.

theres been a few stories, even movies about this in the last few years.

in arabic countries, trying to manipluate the media to pressure a goverment to change some conviction, or sway public sympathy, can make things 100 times worse.
basically, thier insane, and dont like to be questiond.

[swami]

If they did that to the victim , what did they do to the culprits!?:shocked:

[Omastar]

If they did that to the victim , what did they do to the culprits!?:shocked:

Asked them how they were holding up. :rolleyes:

[Omastar]

Bombing them isn't going to do any good; if we bomb Saudi Arabia there may be negative impacts on advanced civilizations in the surrounding area. I could give a rat's ass what they do, to be perfectly honest. Let them treat their citizens however they see fit. It may be excruciatingly wrong, but maybe the Saudis will eventually rise up and perform a bloody coup.

[Kunaak]

when the hell did this topic come to the point where someone thinks its ok, to say "muslims, kill them all"??

muslims arent bad people any more then you or I.
some of them are insane.
much like anywhere else.
a few bad people, doesnt make then entire culture of people bad.

[Omastar]

Gee, I don't know, when you compare the Middle East to a lot of other cultures in the world, they do seem more constantly in chaos. I think it takes more than a few religious zealots to lead to the downfall of an entire country or countries.

[Movieman]

when the hell did this topic come to the point where someone thinks its ok, to say "muslims, kill them all"??

muslims arent bad people any more then you or I.
some of them are insane.
much like anywhere else.
a few bad people, doesnt make then entire culture of people bad.

Very well said..
Every culture or nation has it's nutcases..
Doesn't matter what label you put on them they are all the same..nuts.
Look at Ted Bundy..How many did he kill in the US?
Some think upward of 100 and at least 40 can be proved..
So many to choose from..The unabomber, those idiots in Oklahoma City.
These guys weren't Muslims but born here in the US and their acts could also be classified as terrorism as that was the net result..They instilled terror into the hearts of the public.

[Ashraf]

They must have democracy immediately.

Never. Saudi Arabia is where Islam was born, the government and everything is based on the Qur'an, Sonna, and Hadith, not from their head.

None of Muslims is against it, they are responsible as a Muslim. I have some female friends (one of them is from Germany) that live in Saudi Arabia, they feel much safer with how their government runs.

Ever wonder why the US never bothered to overthrow the government in Saudi Arabia? So, yeah don't bother them.

[Speederlander]

Never. Saudi Arabia is where Islam was born, the government and everything is based on the Qur'an, Sonna, and Hadith, not from their head.

None of Muslims is against it, they are responsible as a Muslim. I have some female friends (one of them is from Germany) that live in Saudi Arabia, they feel much safer with how their government runs.

Ever wonder why the US never bothered to overthrow the government in Saudi Arabia? So, yeah don't bother them.

I think the comment you quoted was meant to be ironic but I could be wrong.

[Speederlander]

None of Muslims is against it, they are responsible as a Muslim. I have some female friends (one of them is from Germany) that live in Saudi Arabia, they feel much safer with how their government runs.

Well, here's a question to you then. Is it morally justifiable to lash a rape victim 200 times? How does that work?

Also, you say no Muslims are against it, but as I recall there are groups in Saudi Arabia who are working to end this kind of thing and they are Muslim. Muslims generally are not of one mind on such topics.

[Serpentarius]

one problem with Muslims is they're wayyyyyy tooo antique.. in this age and time, they're still thinking all non-muslims as barbarian are absurb and immature, considering their religion has been here for 2 thousand years (what actually they learn in these 2 thousand years? must've been slacking)

another thing with Muslims is their disrespect for females, these are super male chauvinism. Women bullies. If they're disregard so much bout females why bother getting 4 wifes, and whipping them to work for income? just make an ALL-MALE COUNTRY!

i tell u muslims nowadays r a disgrace to their Prophet Muhammad, considering the pioneer to Islam is such a noble man, how Islam has fallen. Prophet would shed tears looking from above.

[Speederlander]

one problem with Muslims is they're wayyyyyy tooo antique.. in this age and time, they're still thinking all non-muslims as barbarian are absurb and immature, considering their religion has been here for 2 thousand years (what actually they learn in these 2 thousand years? must've been slacking).
Not all Muslims are the same. Just like not all Christians follow the dictates of Bob Jones or Pat Robertson. Also, Islam was established in the 7th century (600's AD), making it about 1400 years old, not 2000.


i tell u muslims nowadays r a disgrace to their Prophet Muhammad
Interesting. How did Ghandi's statement go?
"I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."
-- Mahatma Gandhi

[Serpentarius]

sry for the wrng history dating .. cant really remember those islamic studies i have to go thru in their university course .. that sucks, but manage to learn what they're really thinking in their heads


Not all Muslims are the same

i can't agree. coz since i stay in muslim country, studied their religion, plus working with them .. meeting a different mentality muslim is like 1 in 100. but no matter how different or mature their mentality is .. environment, and influence from other muslims will infect those good ones. it's like placing a good apple in a basket of rotten ones.

[Speederlander]

i can't agree. coz since i stay in muslim country, studied their religion, plus working with them .. meeting a different mentality muslim is like 1 in 100. but no matter how different or mature their mentality is .. environment, and influence from other muslims will infect those good ones. it's like placing a good apple in a basket of rotten ones.

*sigh*

[weescott]

They must have democracy immediately.

And they say America must become an Islamic country.

It's this lack of understanding between cultures that causes so much grief. Just because someone has a different lifestyle to you doesnt mean it's wrong.

It is a serious offence in Muslim countries for a woman to be even seen in a public place with another man that isn't related. That is why she was lashed. Nothing to do with the rape.

[Ashraf]

It is a serious offence in Muslim countries for a woman to be even seen in a public place with another man that isn't related. That is why she was lashed. Nothing to do with the rape.

:up:

[Speederlander]

:up:

Sooo...if some woman gets taken against her will by unrelated males, gang raped, and then lashed because she was with the unrelated males, that warrants a thumbs up?

Or do we think that a Shia woman was with 6 heavily armed Sunni males (who were obviously up to raping her) willingly?

[Rattle]

lol more like it is a serious offense to walk around LIKE A FREE HUMAN BEING IN THE COUNTRY YOU WERE UNFORTUNATE ENOUGH TO BE BORN IN.

what a bunch of crap and she probably takes it willingly not knowing any better.

[weescott]

Sooo...if some woman gets taken against her will by unrelated males, gang raped, and then lashed because she was with the unrelated males, that warrants a thumbs up?

Or do we think that a Shia woman was with 6 heavily armed Sunni males (who were obviously up to raping her) willingly?


Where is that question coming from? Where did the news article say anything about an abduction?

[Speederlander]

Where is that question coming from? Where did the news article say anything about an abduction?

Did you even read what you quoted where I explained why it appears so? Did you notice my use of the word "if"?

[weescott]

yes I can read thank you. I dont see your point hence why I said, "Where is that question coming from?"

It reads as a random question that wasnt relevant. Please explain your point. :)

[Speederlander]

yes I can read thank you. I dont see your point hence why I said, "Where is that question coming from?"

It reads as a random question that wasnt relevant. Please explain your point. :)

How is it not relevant? I said, "Or do we think that a Shia woman was with 6 heavily armed Sunni males (who were obviously up to raping her) willingly?". Is that somehow unclear? Were those points not taken DIRECTLY from the OP's story? You're splitting hairs over something you're wrong about. Either discuss the issue or move along. Don't parse words in an attempt to drive the thread off-topic.

[Ashraf]

one problem with Muslims is they're wayyyyyy tooo antique.. in this age and time, they're still thinking all non-muslims as barbarian are absurb and immature, considering their religion has been here for 2 thousand years (what actually they learn in these 2 thousand years? must've been slacking)

another thing with Muslims is their disrespect for females, these are super male chauvinism. Women bullies. If they're disregard so much bout females why bother getting 4 wifes, and whipping them to work for income? just make an ALL-MALE COUNTRY!

i tell u muslims nowadays r a disgrace to their Prophet Muhammad, considering the pioneer to Islam is such a noble man, how Islam has fallen. Prophet would shed tears looking from above.

That's their culture, not religion.


Sooo...if some woman gets taken against her will by unrelated males, gang raped, and then lashed because she was with the unrelated males, that warrants a thumbs up?

Or do we think that a Shia woman was with 6 heavily armed Sunni males (who were obviously up to raping her) willingly?

I was giving a thumbs up to weescott because what he said is correct. What the girl did was prohibited in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

I suppose the judges have the right to make their own decision for the girl? :shrug: I was actually surprised when I heard this news, because it doesn't happen often like that in KSA. But again, we don't know the whole story of the real situation in between the girl and unrelated men.

I am Muslim, I believe it's wrong to get her lashed because neither the Prophet Muhammad nor the Qur'an said a female must be punished for breaking any command by Allah. The Qur'an gives a lot of power to Muslim women, they actually have a lot of rights as Muslim men do.

I can see that the government prefers to follow the Hadith and the Sonnah over the Qur'an. The Hadith and the Sonnah allow Muslims to make a decision of what they should do and not do by examples of Muhammad's life.

I am a Bangladeshi origin, we have about 88% Muslims in Bangladesh. If you travel over there, you would see every Muslim female is being treated equally as a Muslim male. :)

[weescott]

How is it not relevant? I said, "Or do we think that a Shia woman was with 6 heavily armed Sunni males (who were obviously up to raping her) willingly?". Is that somehow unclear? Were those points not taken DIRECTLY from the OP's story? You're splitting hairs over something you're wrong about. Either discuss the issue or move along. Don't parse words in an attempt to drive the thread off-topic.

I didn't see why a "what if", scenario could have been taken directly from a factual article (well, FOX news).

You quoted the thumbs up and your response didn't make sense to me, hence why I was asking for clarification. Simple as. How can I be wrong for asking for clarification?



But again, we don't know the whole story of the real situation in between the girl and unrelated men.


That is part of the problem, people making opinions on 1. A religion/way of life they know little / nothing about. 2. Listening to tabloids.




I am a Bangladeshi origin, we have about 88% Muslims in Bangladesh. If you travel over there, you would see every Muslim female is being treated equally as a Muslim male. :)

I have traveled to the far east a few times, on my last trip I went to Muslim wedding. Roasting hot and wearing black :shakes: Some countries have a much stricter way of life that others may see as wrong, it is thier choice and not for other countries to be critical of, but understanding.

[Speederlander]

I didn't see why a "what if", scenario could have been taken directly from a factual article (well, FOX news).

You quoted the thumbs up and your response didn't make sense to me, hence why I was asking for clarification. Simple as. How can I be wrong for asking for clarification?
I was exact. I wasn't ambiguous. His thumbs up WAS ambiguous. Stop nitpicking.


I have traveled to the far east a few times, on my last trip I went to Muslim wedding. Roasting hot and wearing black :shakes: Some countries have a much stricter way of life that others may see as wrong, it is thier choice and not for other countries to be critical of, but understanding.
No, that's bullsh*t. "Understanding" is not unlimited. Your logic would have us justifying anything and everything, and there ARE limits. Is the stoning to death of people who had sex (Somalia, Nigeria, etc.) something to be understanding of? Is the wholesale prevention of women from getting medical attention (the Taliban general decree in 1988) something to be understanding of? And I am not saying this is Islam, as my previous posts arguing that Islam is not monolithic attest (it tends to be tribal), I am just saying it is wrong. Some actions are wrong. Someone whipping your mother to death because she exposed too much skin is wrong. End of discussion. End of story. It ain't relative in any way, shape or form.

[ryanmartini]

hahahahha

Yes... Lets invade the USA.. Hell an army wouldnt make it past the South for sure. Can you say millions of pissed off gun carrying citizens?

[Speederlander]

hahahahha

Yes... Lets invade the USA.. Hell an army wouldnt make it past the South for sure. Can you say millions of pissed off gun carrying citizens?

The South has such a complex about getting smacked down since the Civil War. Too much overcompensation after the fact.

[[XC] riptide]

The South has such a complex about getting smacked down since the Civil War. Too much overcompensation after the fact.

Dayum... wheres the popcorn. :sofa:

[weescott]

I was exact. I wasn't ambiguous. His thumbs up WAS ambiguous. Stop nitpicking.


No, that's bullsh*t. "Understanding" is not unlimited. Your logic would have us justifying anything and everything, and there ARE limits. Is the stoning to death of people who had sex (Somalia, Nigeria, etc.) something to be understanding of? Is the wholesale prevention of women from getting medical attention (the Taliban general decree in 1988) something to be understanding of? And I am not saying this is Islam, as my previous posts arguing that Islam is not monolithic attest (it tends to be tribal), I am just saying it is wrong. Some actions are wrong. Someone whipping your mother to death because she exposed too much skin is wrong. End of discussion. End of story. It ain't relative in any way, shape or form.

I am not nitpicking, you are being agressive where it is not needed. A simple explanation without retort would suffice. A discussion without saying the other person is talking BS would also be much better so as to prevent this thread falling into **** slinging match.

I agree with your point about understanding not being unlimited. That was not where I was going with my post, making the facts you stated irrelivant to my point and indeed the discussion.

[Speederlander]

I agree with your point

bout time. :up:

[ak_47_boy]

the US will be governed by Islam and there will be no more democrasy in America.

The demon monkeys that live in my frosted flakes agree.

[muzz]

Wow... just wow will do.......

[cloned]

200 Lashes ? What is that ?

a lash is a slap with a whip, typically across the back with no protection.

in other words a hellish punishment for what should not be considered a crime in this case. after looking at this i gain a little confidence in our justice system, just a little

[DTU_XaVier]

a lash is a slap with a whip, typically across the back with no protection.

in other words a hellish punishment for what should not be considered a crime in this case. after looking at this i gain a little confidence in our justice system, just a little

I think he knows what a lash it, I think the question was what the hell they were thinking when they sentenced her to 200 of the buggers...
She'll have NO skin left on her back after that :(

I understand the fact that she was punished according to their law, but the sentence is just... Wrong... Give her a fine or something, 200 lashes and immense physical pain when she's already been to hell and back being raped, shows an immense lack of knowledge and understanding from people who have had their brains turned into goo by a government run by a ridiculous interpritation of a religion...

Best Regards :toast:

[Northwood]

some of the tarts over here could do with a few lashes.

[pcwhisperer]

some of the tarts over here could do with a few lashes.

You Mean Like Those ?

""Woman raped by police informant, then sentenced to prison"

Rape: Just Another Prerogative of the State

by John M. Regan, Jr.

In Saudi Arabia, a young woman is violently gang-raped by strangers. Her rapists receive a light punishment, but she receives punishment as well. When she and her lawyer complain about it, her punishment is increased and the lawyer is disciplined for making such a fuss. The rape victim’s punishment has yet to be carried out. In the meantime, the whole episode is an international outrage.

In the United States in the State of New York, a young woman is violently raped at knifepoint by a stranger. Her rapist receives a light punishment but she receives punishment as well. When she and her lawyer complain about it, her punishment is increased and the lawyer is disciplined for making such a fuss.

In the United States case, the rape victim is now in prison. Nobody seems to be too worried about it, though, except her and her lawyer.

Don’t believe me? It’s all a matter of public record. The rape victim’s name is Sephora Davis. She was prosecuted in Livingston County, New York by District Attorney Thomas E. Moran under indictment number 2004-276. Mr. Moran explicitly stated in court papers that it didn’t matter that Sephora Davis was raped.

The courts of the United States agreed with Mr. Moran and put Sephora Davis in prison, where she remains, at the Albion Correctional Facility. Her inmate number is 07-G-0011.

Her lawyer is…….me.

Supposedly, the reason for the outrage over what occurred in Saudi Arabia is that the regime there "oppresses women". Why is there no outrage over the exact same thing happening in the supposedly much more enlightened People’s Republic of New York? Because in theory, we don’t oppress women; we just worship the state, and the state’s power. We nurture it, feed it, justify it, lie and cheat for it. We adore it and nothing else. So in that context, oppressing women is okay.

You see, Sephora Davis’ rapist was an agent of the state – a police informant who, along with his police officer sponsor, falsely implicated her in his own crime – an armed robbery he and two accomplices committed shortly after the rape. By that time Sephora had been drugged and was passed out in the car. That has also never been disputed and is also a matter of public record.

From there, this is how it works in New York. The police informant gets backed up by the police, naturally. Then the District Attorney backs up the police. Then the court backs up the District Attorney. Then the appellate courts back up the lower court. Yes, this is how political power works.

But sometimes it gets embarrassing. I mean, look what has happened in Saudi Arabia.

Of course, Saudi Arabia is an ignorant and backward country. In their courts they publicly acknowledge that the young woman before them was raped and carry out their judicial atrocity in the light of day. What a bunch of rubes.

We in New York are much more sophisticated, so here our judges write court opinions pretending that no one ever said anything about Sephora Davis being raped, then we put her in prison where she gets her number. And now we can forget about it, because she is a "criminal", and who cares about them?

You’d think the "media", the venerable "fourth estate", would be all over this. Think again. The local newspaper barely mentioned the little rape problem – although that is at least more than the courts would do. And in a remarkable inversion of their usual journalistic policy they refused to name the rapist even though they named his victim. I think it’s because a rape isn’t a rape unless and until the government says so through some authorized "official".

Go to Hillary Clinton, you say? The front-running presidential candidate and junior United States Senator from New York? The feminist ideologue, natural champion of rape victims? Sephora’s mother did, but….not a chance. Hillary will spout off about the woman in Saudi Arabia, but the task of siding with a lone constituent against the state’s entire legal power structure is politically problematic, even if that constituent is a rape victim. Besides, the Saudis are such an easy target – and so conveniently far away, too.

Hillary understands how political power works. On to the presidency, I guess.

But surely there are appeals and whatnot? Oh, sure – well, sort of. There are endless pleas you can make – all equally meaningless, devoid of substance and futile. In practical terms, it is fair to say that criminal convictions in New York are easy to get and never overturned – at least not for people who are actually innocent. The "system" is broken underneath a hollow façade. How do you think something like this can happen in the first place?

Don’t take my word for it, though. It has been scientifically established.

On that subject, while I certainly admire the Innocence Project and their work very much, I have to respectfully disagree with their conclusion that the legislature can do something about the broken system. The problems run far deeper than misinterpreting evidence or misapplying the law. It’s more like there’s no genuine concept of "evidence" or "law" at all. In most cases, making "arguments" before a judge in New York is like trying to reason with a barbarian, a simple creature that can understand only force: as a general rule, don’t bother. And you cannot cure barbarism by passing new laws – barbarians can’t really read them.

Fortunately, New York is emptying out of civilized human beings. The young, especially, are leaving in droves. Those few that remain are increasingly fodder for a ludicrously overbuilt and fundamentally parasitic prison system, overfed by petty tyrant prosecutors like Mr. Moran. Of course, the civilized world understands that dysfunctional justice systems go hand-in-hand with the economic decline so painfully evident in the region. But an economy is not grounded in force, so this simple connection is beyond the comprehension of New York in the early 21st century.

We speak only the language of power. And in that language, prosecutors and judges are "public servants" and their victims have prison inmate numbers.

Feminists have long argued that rape is about power, not sex. I used to think that was bull:banana::banana::banana::banana:.

November 24, 2007

John M. Regan, Jr. [send him mail] is a sometime attorney precariously living in Rochester, New York. He has filed a petition on behalf of Sephora Davis with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in Washington, D.C."

[naokaji]

and because its saudi arabia instead of iraq or iran noone in the western governments gives a :banana::banana::banana::banana: and continues to sell them weapons and pay for their oil....

hypocrites ftw...