The article headline is a little late, Bill Cosby lost his appeal quite some time ago.
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The blunt definition is" to have sexual intercourse without the partnerâs consent". However, we often see rape as âforcefully having oneâs way with othersâ; Hence some people used rape as a metaphor since it was previously viewed as a fate worst than death (and to many victims, it is).
So yeah, Cosby did admits that he drugged his victims for sex; but to some, that pales in comparison to the horrific tales of prison rape.
Itâs the good kind of rape then? Rape Lite? IANAL, there might be a Rape-II category.
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Using âsadisticâ as an adjective in this case has a different connotation; it doesnât refer to consensual BDSM activity at all. Itâs certainly not as evocative to the general public as the word âslaveâ, which is also used to talk about a specific type of consensual sex partner.
Not everyone who rapes is a psychopath (as clinically defined), and there are lots of anti-social behaviors which are not criminal acts (reading a book, listening to music with headphones on, etc.), so neither of those terms work to describe rapists as a group.
Iâm open to hearing other possible ways to refer to such a group, if you have any.
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I think itâs interesting how modern values and methods are catching up to these people who committed infractions back when it was much easier for them to get away with it. I grew up in the 80s, and there were a couple of teachers at my high school who everyone knew were sexually attracted to kids. Itâs weird to say but it was considered kind of normal, or at least business as usual. I think that was mostly because it was so hard to prove anything against these people. It would always be one kidâs word against someone infinitely more powerful, and there was no easy way to rally a confrontation. The gym teacher for example was an insurmountably powerful figure.
Now in the era of social media and easily coordinated group outrage wealth and/or position arenât really protection anymore. Thereâs lots of examples of this besides Cosby: the whole Dennis Hassert thing (Iâm guessing lots of people knew what he was up to at the time), and one of those teachers at my high school recently got busted and prosecuted.
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Not really, all rapes are bad. It usually depends on the victim of rape: some of whom have difficulty dealing with the fact that theyâre raped, have trouble reporting that they been raped, and how the society responds to that report. What Cosby done is unacceptable, and he should face the consequence of that action: but what made it worst that he can afford lawyers to defend him in court just like O.J. Simpson (whom my brother compares Cosby to).
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Reading a book and listening to music with headphones on are examples of Asocial behavior. Antisocial behavior by the psychological definition is Against People. It is characterized by behavior that harms other people.
Iâm open to the idea of the term sadist being used as an adjective, though.
Oh, duh, how did I mix up asocial and antisocial? (Maybe because Iâm often asocial?)
I would argue that antisocial behavior does not necessarily harm others. If someone gets overwhelmed and starts yelling at everyone to go away, theyâre not actually harming anyone, you know?
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One the one hand, itâs good that justice may be catching up with Cosby.
But on the other, is it a good thing for prosecutorsâ offices to renege on deals? Suspects, especially wealthy suspects who can afford to, are just going to dig in their heels if they know the D.A. canât be trusted even when the offer is in writing, signed, and notarized. That costs us money and more importantly, increases the chance of justice being dodged entirely instead of just partially.
They shouldnât be making deals in the first place. The entire concept of the plea bargain is an unjust abomination.
Punish people for what they did, not what you can intimidate them into confessing.
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Indeed. And if you find youâve got an overburdened court system, and need plea bargains to save time and money, why not try taking some of the dumber laws off the books instead!
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For lower-status everyday people, yeah. Forcing an ordinary suspect to fold rather than put up a defense he has no way of affording is bullshit.
But if (and the following is a hypothetical for the sake of argument, not a reflection of the actual case at hand) you can put Bill Cosby in prison for a guaranteed twenty year sentence instead of the chance at forty (or the very real possibility of acquittal) without the expense of a trial and Bill Cosby agrees to it, it makes good sense to agree to that. Iâd rather he serve half of what he deserves than get a 50/50 chance at serving all or nothing.
No, I donât agree.
Even when the suspect is rich and famous, and even when itâs fucking obvious that theyâs the one wot dun it, they still deserve a trial on the merits. And so do the rest of us.
Either you prove it beyond a reasonable doubt and give them the full sentence, or you let them go.
If wealthy suspects who are blatantly guilty routinely go free, the problem is found elsewhere in the way your justice system operates. Fix that instead; the plea bargain system is a very dirty bandage.
Hereâs the thing, he might not live long enough to serve the full sentence; plus, 40 accounts of sexual assault might as well get you a life in prison.
However, in the end, itâs all about setting an example:
Commit a crime that ruins the lives of countless people, go to prison for life; no matter how old or rich you are, no matter how much you contribute to society, no exceptions.
As long as the suspect isnât being coerced into taking a deal I donât see the problem. Prosecutorial discretion allows for a lot of leeway. And if the deal involves getting other dangerous predators off the street (again, not specific to this particular case) then on balance good has been done. Of course this is an oversimplification, but so is your all-or-nothing proposal.
I disagree. I think presumption of innocence is a blight that doesnât do any other the things we pretend it does. In reality presumption of innocence has a very good chance of letting Bill Cosby get away with a many sexual assaults while it does nothing for the vast majority of people who encounter the American justice system.
You say thatâs a fault with another part of the system, but it is a result of the presumption of innocence approach. Presumption of innocence sets the prosecutor up as an adversary trying to win against the person accused. They have the resources of the state, which are somehow supposed to be balanced by presumption of innocence. But you tell people they are trying to win and they try to win. We have a Red Queen scenario - the prosecutor as the apex predator and us as the sheep. Sure, they donât come after most of us, but only because they are already full. The ones who actually face them have no chance.
A far better justice system would be one where the goal of the system is to arrive at the truth of what happened and understand the harm that has been caused. Truth ought to be a win not punishment. Presumption of innocence seems to apply only in sexual assault cases anyway (and murder cases in Stand Your Ground states). US prisons have plenty of people who plead guilty despite being innocent because the system is so heavily weighted against people. The only point of presumption of innocence seems to be that Bill Cosby can get away with rape, and George Zimmerman can get away with murder.
I think the current system is so unjust that I donât care about the rights of powerful rapists anymore. Imagine an (obvious unjust) society where women were believed in the strong sense that MRA idiots on twitter think - where accused sexual offenders were sentenced unless they could produce physical evidence that they didnât do it.
There would be plenty of men in prison for crimes they didnât commit, there would be a few women walking around sending men to prison because they werenât nice enough to them. Men would have to be careful where they went with women, careful not to be alone with women they didnât trust, very careful on first dates, etc. Basically, it would be exactly our society except replace âbeing sexually assaultedâ with âgoing to prison for a few yearsâ and replace âwomenâ with âmenâ. Honestly, I donât think it would be any less just than the world we actually live in. Presumption of innocence isnât working when presumption of guilt would produce equally just results.
And for anyone celebrating the news the Cosby will face trial, take a look at the Jian Ghomeshi verdict in Canada. Donât start celebrating yet.
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