The “epidemic” of domestic violence.
The gender “pay gap”.
1 in 4 young women raped on college campuses.
Access to health care (reproductive services)…
You know the drill.
The latest outrage from the Feminazi Front is waging war on our military chain of command through the astounding increase of “sexual assault” among it’s ranks. And one very self-righteous and determined feminist senator, Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York) demands the matter be addressed through turning the military legal system upside down…just for sexual assault cases; ostensibly because mean, patriarchal brass in the Pentagon (and Republicans) don’t care about women.
Luckily some in the media, being burned so many times before by feminist “studies”, aren’t buying it. In an analysis in the Wall Street Journal James Taranto dissects the issue down to the facts and Ms. Gillibrand’s attempt at inciting “moral panic”. Of course all we hear from the feminist sycophantic main stream media is what feminist activists want America to hear, the shocking headline - sexual assaults in the military “increased by a prevalence of 46 percent in the past fiscal year.” OMG! Unwanted sexual contact in the military is RAMPANT!
From Taranto on the authoress of a New York TImes article:
Today’s New York Times has a fascinating little piece by reporter Jennifer Steinhauer, which begins: “Reports of sexual assault in the military increased sharply during the last fiscal year, new Pentagon figures showed Wednesday, just weeks before a defense bill with provisions to tackle the problem is expected to reach the Senate floor.”
What’s fascinating is that Steinhauer does not betray any skepticism about these numbers, even though she enumerates several reasons to take them with a grain of salt–to wit: “The numbers included sexual assaults by civilians on service members,” which would not fit the common meaning of sexual assault in the military. “Sexual assault” was defined broadly, to include mere “touching of private body parts” (though not “sexual harassment, which is handled by another office in the military”).
Here’s our favorite: “In a twist, the Pentagon found that a substantial number of the reported cases of sexual assault–something less than 10 percent–occurred before the victim entered the military.” That’s a hell of a “twist”! By this definition, the military could reduce “sexual assault in the military” by nearly 10% simply by asking recruits if they’ve ever experienced sexual assault and rejecting anyone who answers in the affirmative.
Figures for “reported” sexual assaults, of course, also include false charges as well as murky cases in which it is impossible to prove either guilt or innocence–which, under American principles of justice, means acquittal is the proper outcome. Assault statistics–and indeed statistics on all crimes except homicide–are unreliable on the other side as well, for not all crimes are reported.
The Obama administration is strangely mum on the issue (they have much bigger fires to fight rigth now), and even some Democrat feminist stalwarts like Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MIssouri) oppose it, while Tea Partiers Ted Cruz and Rand Paul support the measure. Strange bedfellows indeed.
It’s unlikely the bill will pass the Senate with such bi-partisan opposition, and it wouldn’t make it through the House anyway. But it’s very telling to see how some dare question feminist “studies” and “statistics”, this one conducted by the infamous AAUW, and also how easily politicians and journalists can be swayed when Feminist Inc. shrieks about something.
As long as politicians (and journalists) persist in exaggerating the prevalence of sexual assault in the military, the Pentagon will follow suit, and prosecutions on false or dubious charges will continue to proliferate. A decent resolution to this problem will remain impossible until the moral panic passes. One can only hope the effectiveness and morale of the U.S. military doesn’t suffer too much in the interim.
Emasculating the military and destroying it from within is on the Feminist to-do list. More money for women’s “needs” and less money for a band of violent, perverted men to play army. They start with a lie.
