Word Power

Tired. It's a good tired, but tired is tired, none-the-less. We're home from SPLAT, and it was great. I'm sure it will be the genesis of more posts, but probably not tonight.

How about something to think about? (thanks to this blog for writing about it). In Nebraska, a man is on trial, charged with first degree sexual assault. The judge decided that certain words around the issue were too "inflammatory," so he banned a few words from the trial: Rape. Sexual Assault. Victim. Attacker. Assailant. Forced. His reasoning was that we couldn't call "rape" a "rape" until the jury decided that it was a "rape." This means that she could not say that the hospital did a "rape kit." The jury could not know that the defendent was charged with sexual assault. And the jury was not told about these instructions.

Imagine for a moment trying to describe what happened without using those words. It is inevitable that any descriptions sound consensual.

Think for a moment if the judge applied this "standard" to other crimes. Imagine trying to prove the guilt of someone accused of stealing or murder, without using similar words. Why is "rape" any more inflamatory that "murder?" Why is "sexual assault" any more of a legal term, than "theft?" Ridiculous.

I read a bumper sticker coming home the other day: Feminism is the radical idea that women are people, too. Amen.

Image: Sunset on the way home from dinner.