Somebody asked Lady Gaga if she was a feminist lately..she replied, 'No, I don't hate men'. Somewhere along the line being a feminist has lost its mojo and meaning, its like saying you vote for Fianna Fail...So a new generation of little girls can grow up knowing its whats on the outside that counts...again.I have so far resisted open comment on Claire Tully,Ive attempted to admire her tenacity, her ability to spell, her shameless self promotion all features that have been made possible by the rise of feminism in Ireland. 40 years ago women had to cover their heads in church now Clare can get her kit off and still get work in mainstream media. Today's piece by her has finally irked me into action..after tolerating previous articles by this woman I feel a short rant coming on.
Clare Tully is one of the big draws on Joe.ie Ireland's first men's website, dedicated to manly, manly stuff like sports and cars and sports and women. Women who have tits, who like to get them out, and agree with them, and laugh at their jokes. Men, real men, men who shave and like men's stuff, because theres only one way to be a man...
Clare is employed to get her tits out and churn out sex advice, as of course being a woman with a degree from trinity in Immunology she is vastly experienced in and qualified to offer advice on sex...... I'm not going to draw a parallel there between being sexually promiscuous and being a soft porn model; I would not do that to another woman. Which brings me back to the point, having a degree in microbiology does not a psychologist make, undeterred, Claire notes another string in her bow; social commentary. Claire is a woman with opinions, and shes not afraid to buck stereotypes!..well so says her website! This usually ends in Claire succumbing to lads views, at one stage in this piece she mentions her balls shriveling up...if only she had them....
Today Claire (with the maverick, maverikness of Sarah Palin flowing full and free in her lions) bravely challenged women who cry rape! Oh, what daring, what bravado, giving a shout out loud and clear that Claire and her ilk have no time for lying and liars and the lies they tell!
Clare illustrates this point by quoting American statistics for false reports of rape, and as we all know, Ireland is closer to Boston than Berlin! So any more we can just quote American Statistics and use them to make Irish points, for instance
Did you know that 1/3 of Irish people do not believe in evolution, and 13% of us think the President is really the Antichrist, our population in Ireland can be of course be broken down into white 77.1%, black 12.9%, Asian 4.2%, Amerindian and Alaska native 1.5%, native Hawaiian and other Pacific islander 0.3%, other (The Hawaiian contingent being banished to Achill in the mid 90's)
So Claire, when you decide to side with the people who think most rapes are just a girl looking for attention or being vindictive you forfeit your right to be tolerated. American Statistics do not reflect Irish life and should not be used to illustrate your opinion as facts. Rape is happening every day in this country, and its not just women who are victims, by furthering the belief in lies you side with the community in Listowel who shook hands with Danny Foley after he was convicted of raping a young women. Or the Italian judge who ruled that it was impossible for a young woman to be raped wearing tight jeans.
Its why I despair of Joe.ie with its manly manly stance...I know lots of men who are sensitive, considerate, caring, fathers, parents, lovers... and not just some impulse lead morons that wont read anything without a pair of tits or an arse dangled before him. Grow up Joe and cop on Claire.
As the saying goes: location location location.
ReplyDeleteTo make the argument she makes on Joe.ie of all places is especially bad form.
That's the kind of place where men really need to hear anything other than her rant
Ollie
Not saying I agree with her, but also not disagreeing.. rape is a very serious issue, and its hard to justify her stance on people lying about it. It does cause serious damage, and damage rightly deserved for rapists, but those of us who get accused falsely. it has serious reprocussions. I knew a girl who falsely accused someone of raping her, the guy went through hell because of a drunken hookup he regretted. But because she felt rejected, she lashed out. Obviously it all came out in the end when her parents tried to press charges, and the guy faced some serious jail time. But even after his name was cleared, he still bore the stigma attached to the situation. lost his job, went on the drink. hes still pretty much a mess. And she has a new boyfriend. Im not disagreeing with you, but she raises a point about false rape accusations.
ReplyDeleteJust a few points to make here Annie:-
ReplyDeleteThe opening quote from Lady Gaga exhibits such an ignorance of feminism that her point as to the subject can be disregarded. Her statement serves only to show how ill-equipped she is to comment and, not being regarded as a bastion of common-sense or current-awareness, I don't think her comment reflects the general perception of feminism.
Claire is not holding herself out as a psychologist. Further, her degree does not disqualify her from social commentary.
She does not mention "her balls shriveling [sic] up"; she states that the lack of morals involved in a false accusation of rape is "enough to make ones balls shrivel". Your reaction to her use of words is juvenile and in sharp contrast to your call for the website to "grow up".
Your paragraph on her use of American statistics has no point of relevance that I can make out. She was using the statistic to demonstrate the prevalence of false accusations of rape. Taking issue with the use of American statistics as opposed to making a point on the subject is a waste of time. Find an Irish statistic yourself if you have a problem.
My final, all-encompassing point is that you have failed to understand the point of Ms. Tully's article. At no time does she "side with people who think most rapes are just a girl looking for attention or being vindictive". Her point is not that all accusations of rape are invented; she is stating that false accusations of rape occur.
All that being said, I found the original article to be pandering and ineffectual - why not discuss the failure to preserve the anonymity of the accused in rape cases or any of the other issues raised rather than simply mention them and shy away from any analysis?
David, thanks for the comment, and I brought reference to her use of American statistics as a method by which her point could be construed as being based in facts. To the typical reader it is interpreted as 'probably the same here' the 'dont be redundant' pedantics and rules of arguments noting that facts are only to be presented if they indeed support what you are saying. This article is about Irish women for Irish men by an Irish woman. Thus my point remains. I’ve read Chomsky and Pinker on this and believe I know a little about presentation and ordering in linguistics.
ReplyDeleteThere are currently no known statistics for such accusations in Ireland but we do know that less than 2% of rapes get to court. This is in part because of the stigma and shame involved for the victim, as cited in the Rape Crisis Centres reports.
I believe that Claire is not only attempting to identify with but also emulate her chiefly male audience with statements such as the 'shrivelled balls'. Im sure theres a Booker in the offing.
I’m not offering a journalistic analysis of this piece only my 2 cent, its a blog after all.... Im not a journalist, I have however worked with Victim Support for a number of years so I guess Im coming at it from the hand holding reality side of things.
Here here Annie, its a pity that a piece that might reach a lot of guys that usually don't or wont engage with that debate was so pointless and biased. Its as if she sees men as superior with all the pandering to them, its a pity that she is trotted out as 'intelligence with tits attached'
ReplyDeleteAnnie,
ReplyDeleteYour comment is riddled with hypocrisy and you are distracting from the subject at hand. Ms Tully's article concerns false accusations of rape, and does not contain any reference to genuine victims of rape - stay on point.
You state "facts are only to be presented if they support what you are saying". Ms. Tully's use of statistics does support what she is saying - that fallacious claims of rape occur. On the other hand, your statistic concerning the low rate of prosecution is irrelevant and does not in any way support your attack on the article.
You suggest that Ms. Tully's use of American statistics is an attempt to mislead readers to believe that her article is "based on fact". Unless you are saying that false claims of rape do not occur, then you have to accept that the article is based on facts.
Further, nowhere does the author state or suggest that she is limiting the scope of the article to Ireland. She is writing about a phenomenon that occurs throughout the world.
Perhaps if you read the article as closely as you have the works of Chomsky and Pinker you might have understood what Ms. Tully was saying rather than completely missing the point.
Thanks David for your words of encouragement. I wonder can a phenomenon that occurs in America occur with equal frequency throughout the world?
ReplyDeleteI’m glad your engaging with the debate, but my point is that statistics should be included that are relevant to where and what you are discussing, are 40% of rape accusations false in this country? Even with our unique cultural and social heritage? Her article was from an Irish woman in Ireland, I question the legitimacy of using American statistics which bear little or no relationship to an Irish situation, it begets distrust and to the uninitiated only further cements the growing conviction that the victim is at fault.
Perhaps Claire could preface her pieces buy stating clearly that these statistics have nothing to do with Ireland, or ideally perhaps she should present them on American sites.
The fact that her article contains little or no reference to genuine victims of rape also further detracts the reader, improving the chance that this message will be accepted unquestioned, that 40% of rapes are just a woman acting out against a man, potentially ruining his life. (which I in no way want to belittle)
I have no problem with the concept, by all means raise the issue, but do not do it in a way that furthers the stigma that real rape victims have to deal with. By citing 40% you tar many victims in this country unfairly. Why bother including that statistic? What editor made the call on that statistic and for what reason, was it just for the sake of free advertising, I’m sure I’ve done Ms.Tully and Joe.ie more favours than harm…… For somebody that found the piece ineffectual and pandering I wonder why your engaging with this little blog so excitedly….what’s your angle?