From: evansmp@uhura.aston.ac.uk (Mark Evans)
Subject: Re: Nordstrom Rape Case 
Organization: Aston University
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL241235]
Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1993 14:31:10 GMT

Michael Rivero (michael@neuron6.jpl.nasa.gov) wrote:
: 
:   Those of you who know me feelings about the ape hyperbole know what's
: coming next. The alleged victim kept chaning the story of what happened
: and where, and when pressed for details, finally admitted the whole
: affair was a "joke". Nordstroms, having started disciplenary action
: against it's employees without any prooof of wrongdoing, is now the
: target of a lawsuit by those employees. Both the costs of the ad

However a valid lawsuit if it is a claim for herassment or breach of
disiplinary procedure

: campeign and losses from the lawsuit will be passed on to those people
: who shop there.
: 
:   Of course, the women's groups who were so vocal about the bad ol
: salesclerks and the bad ol store and the bad ol rapists and the bad ol
: insensitive police have yet to grant a single utterence on the bad ol
: girl who got her jollies crying rape. As was the case in Davis, California,

They would probably be far too embarassed to do so.
: I am waiting for the NOW press conference that suggests the alleged victim
: is secretly working with the police to discredit the rape issue.

Has anyone heard of the fable of the shepherd boy for cried wolf?

Could be, more likely she is in need of some sort of psychiatric help!

: 
:   It's one thing for Catherine Comins to suggest a false rape charge is
: valid in a non-sexual situation if it leads to empowerment (which I
: disagree withy by the way), and quite another for a woman to cry
: "rape" just to see the bystanders jump.

The is the means justify the ends BS argument.

: 
:   Ten years ago, before the feminist media campeign that promoted rape
: and abuse as political instruments, any woman who claimed she was raped or 
: abused would have gotten my immediate sympathy and belief. As of right now,
: I would not believe any woman who claimed she was raped or abused without
: reasonable evidence.  With the overwhelming majority of these cases, both
: in court and in the media, turning out to hoaxes; with the FBI reporting 

Possibly just a well reported minority, however so far as the effect it
dosn't matter.
: that rape is the single most falsly reported crime in the United States, the 
: odds are NOT in favor of her being truthful about such matters.

You are reaching the point where you have a situation of honestly being
unable to prove in cases at the same time as a vocal group saying what 
the verdict should be in every case.
I think this will put an enormous strain on systems of law inforcement,
police initialy (as they are in the front line), followed by lawyes (judges
and other legal professionals).
However as people get more uncertain, I would predict a turning up of the
heat from the presure groups involved. (probably directed at the general
public, who after all form jurys) to convict in these cases.

USING criminal justice systems for political purposes is a good way to 
undermine there effectiveness.

--
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Mark Evans                                   |evansmp@uhura.aston.ac.uk
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Newsgroups: soc.men,alt.feminism