USAFA Rape Investigations.

[Sammy Sandbag]

I know it's not directly related to Army cadet life, but the amount of problems involving rape or sexual misconduct seem to keep piling up over in Colorado Springs. Check out the Academy's own graduate association web site (http://www.aog-usafa.org/Sexual_Assault_Issue.htm) dedicated to covering the rise in sexual assualt at USAFA.

I brought this up, because this eventually led to US Senate involvement and removal of the famous "Bring Me Men" (http://www.aog-usafa.org/Article%20Archive/Bring_Me_Men.html) sign at the campus. I'm not sure how that sign had anything to do with the rape or how removing it will prevent further damage.

http://www.aog-usafa.org/images/Photoshop%20Images/Bring_Me_Men.jpg

Maybe I'm just old school, but I tend to put traditions and customs over contemporary events and being PC just to be PC. Does this come down to bad cadets or cadets making bad decisions. Or is it a problem that will just be a commonality whenever you have a small percentage of women at a largely male school? It's already too late to close the doors to females, especially when they are allowed in almost all branches/mos's. So, what can be done? Just some questions for thought.

[AirborneAli]

You'll always have oversensitive people that care more about political correctness than the rich history and traditions that military schools bring. It's instances like this, Shannon Can't-Make-It-Through-One-Week, and others that make all females look whiny and feminist.

On the other hand, I don't think the rape investigations and this sign have much to do with each other. The sign-changing makes women look whiny (regardless if it was a woman that wanted it changed or not), but reporting rape should make them look strong. Strong enough to stand up in a place where tradition might pressure them to keep quiet.

I promise I'm not a feminist Nazi, so hats off to women strong enough to report sexual assault. Hats on (well, it's the opposite of hats off!) to women that destroy tradition.

[Sammy Sandbag]

Well yes, hats off if the situation warrants it. More times than you'd think, the story doesn't hold water. Do a little research into the cases, and you'll see most of the time it was the woman regreting something she had done or she was trying to shift the blame for something she had done that would have got her kicked out. Anyways, I do agree in saying that it takes a lot to stand up and report it.

[Domer]

gI don't want to be a whiny little bitch about this, but I have to stand up. All I'm going to say is that the way society (not just the military) is today, no one knows when exactly to stand up. I grew up, a did most of the rest of you, in the "turn in your parents to the feds" phase of after-school programming. Kids were told how easy it would be to tell on their parents for mistreating them. Soon, it was of epidemic proportions, with kids calling the local authorities because they were sent to their rooms. Parents, good parents, mind you actually lost custody of kids because they refused said brats a second helping of cheesecake at dinner. Furthermore, when I was in AFROTC, decades ago, we were encouraged not only to turn in possible sexual offenders, but to rat out others who may be in an uncomfortable position. Not that this was not a good program, but the extreme it went to was insane. I was afraid to shake hands with a woman for years. Which may explain my "bad luck" with the ladies.

I'll end this here, because this is a touchy subject. I just think people should take a step back, look at things as how they are, and exercise some personal responsibility. Just because a male coworker asks you how your day went dosen't mean he wants to sexually assault you.

One last thought: I don't want to make it sound like I'm aiming this at the women, but the whole issue is already skewed that way. There are countless cases of females sexually harassing and assaulting male subordinates and coworkers everyday.

Can't we all just get along?

--Domer out

[TheChick]

I have to agree, personal responsibility has gone by the wayside, and too many people want to be able to blame everything on someone else. And honestly, after all the women's lib crap that's females have done to get to where they can be a part of these military traditions, they should EXPECT to have some issues and difficulties. I'm not saying that anyone deserves to be raped, but concurrently, no one deserves to be falsely accused of rape simply because the female decides that she regrets doing whatever she did with said male.

[Sammy Sandbag]

So TheChick does exist. I was beginning to wonder, considering how long ago it was since you registered. But back to the subject at hand. It's always good to hear from a female with the sensiblity to say:

personal responsibility has gone by the wayside, and too many people want to be able to blame everything on someone else