# once again, I'm missing the fucking joke **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 28, 2003, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014 "2003-05-28T14:21:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Tomcat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Tomcat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tomcat)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/41 "2003-05-28T16:23:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by betenoir \* > \*\*So rape is a deserve comeuppance for selling pot or writing bad checks? > > Why do people keep pretending it’s only the monsters who get raped in jail? \*\* This is the most valid point, as I see it. I would assume (yes, just an assumption) that killer’s and rapists are on average the larger, meaner types of criminal. Yes you get the little wimpy guy who lashes out with a 12 gauge, but on the whole I’d expect the more serious offenders to have the physical means to do what they did. Therefore, they are probably the ones that are least likely to meet the ‘comeuppence’ that **DTC** and **Bandanaman** are so willing to accept. This broad brush applied as a “deterrant to prison” fails to strike the ones you so desperately want to affect. You really think a 300 lbs killer is going to go “Hmmm…I’d better not cap this guy, I might get raped in prison!” Yeah, right. Go take another bong-hit. He’s the one who will be doing the raping. No, it’s the bad check writers, it’s the 18 year old caught with an ounce of dope on him, it’s the person who stole money from his boss, it’s the middle-aged guy who accidently killed someone in a car because he was speeding…Those are the ones who get raped. So don’t delude yourself thinking that it is an effective deterrant to committing heinous crimes. AND, possibly more importantly, it doesn’t only happen after someone has had their day in court. People get raped when thrown in jail for a computer glitch or while awaiting trial. So you are advocating punishment before due process. Let’s see how karma treats you when you are taken to jail for the night because a parking ticket wasn’t paid on time. It is considered a form of torture in international law, the US Supreme Court has held that it is against the 8th amendment baring cruel and unusual punishment, and it is, in and of itself, a criminal act. So quit trying to justify it. Just quit it. It doesn’t happen to those who you want it to (as if _that_ should be any justification) and it is wrong in and of itself. There is no moral ground to stand on with it. -Tomcat ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/42 "2003-05-28T16:31:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jarbabyj \* > \*\*How the hell do you know my position on the death penalty? Is it just POSSIBLE that I’m outraged by both rape and killing? \*\* My comment was addressed rhetorically to the room, not you specifically. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/43 "2003-05-28T16:33:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diogenes the Cynic \* > \*\*And why isn’t there the same outrage out the the death penalty? How can we say that someone doesn’t “deserve” to get raped but they do deserve to be killed? How is that logical? \*\* Actually, I’m just as outraged by the death penalty. It, however, at least is _legal_ in some states. Rape, on the other hand, isn’t legal anywhere in the US, as far as I’m aware. ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/44 "2003-05-28T16:37:31Z")
Diogenes, there are plenty, hundreds of posters on this board outraged by the death penalty. That’s nothing new. I assumed you were directing the question at me since I am one of the one who started the thread and am obviously the ‘most outraged’. I apologize. ---
**Author:** ![Bandanaman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ab097/32.png) [@Bandanaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bandanaman)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/45 "2003-05-28T16:39:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tomcat \* > \*\* > No, it’s the bad check writers, it’s the 18 year old caught with an ounce of dope on him, it’s the person who stole money from his boss, it’s the middle-aged guy who accidently killed someone in a car because he was speeding…Those are the ones who get raped. So don’t delude yourself thinking that it is an effective deterrant to committing heinous crimes. > > \*\* Crime is crime. Nobody “accidentally” writes a bad check. Crimes are committed willfully, and with forethought. Criminals deserve what they get. ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/46 "2003-05-28T16:41:11Z")
Bandanaman, are YOU. FUCKING. KIDDING. ME. Someone who writes a bad check, even willfully, deserves rape? Does he deserve also to be beaten to death in prison? How about abused by guards? ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/47 "2003-05-28T16:41:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bandanaman \* > \*\*Criminals deserve what they get. \*\* ?!??!?! This has **GOT** to be a joke, right? ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/48 "2003-05-28T16:45:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Rysler \* > \*\*Crud, I have succumbed. > > I think the non-consensual aspect of rape is a large part of the “punishment.” The purpose of rape is victimization, which is the whole point. Proponents of comeuppance _want_ the criminals to feel the same degredation, shame, and physical pain that innocent rape victims do. > > Otherwise, it wouldn’t be a horrible punishment. > > No, it should not be institutionalized in prison. > > Yes, wishing it on the worst members of our society as a way of revenge is an understandable psychological reaction. \*\* Yeah, you’ve succumbed, but there is still hope for you. You just need to realize that not institutionalizing rape while still allowing it to happen because it is “part of the punishment” is a semantics game. The two are mutually exclusive. Consider that the most common offenses that result in prison terms are property theft and drug charges. You are too enamored of this idea that we are only talking about violent abusers getting their comeuppance. ---
**Author:** ![Tomcat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Tomcat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tomcat)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/49 "2003-05-28T16:47:20Z")
No, **alice** , it is not a joke. **Bandanaman** is an idiot of the first degree. I hope and pray that he is not allowed to reproduce. I’d hate to see what his punishment is if he catches his kids drinking underage or getting caught shoplifting. Rape as a just punishment for writing bad checks…man, you really have some fucked up ideas. -Tcat ---
**Author:** ![Bandanaman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ab097/32.png) [@Bandanaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bandanaman)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/50 "2003-05-28T16:53:21Z")
No, I’m not kidding. There are two paths you can follow. One leads to prison, and the other doesn’t. Nobody deserves rape, nobody. But rape is what happens in prison. This is why I’m not holding up a liquor store, or writing bad checks. ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/51 "2003-05-28T16:59:07Z")
Rape is illegal. Everywhere, Bandanaman. It is not supposed to be happening in prison. The are organizations, like the one Otto linked to trying to STOP PRISON RAPE. Saying ‘oh well, it happens’, is amazingly callous. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/52 "2003-05-28T16:59:45Z")
Hey, I’ve written bad checks. Broken the speed limit, too. And sometimes I trespass on my neighbor’s lawn. **Bandanaman,** there’s that whole “let those without sin cast the first stone” thing. You without sin, pal? Are you honestly saying that you haven’t committed any crimes, and that if you were arrested for, say, writing a bad check, you’d accept the possibility of being raped in prison as part and parcel of the punishment? Not for some hardened criminal, or somebody who snapped and committed a violent crime, but you, personally? Would you be okay with that? ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/53 "2003-05-28T17:01:55Z")
Hey, Dick Tracy, how does > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bandanaman \* > **Nobody deserves rape, nobody.** reconcile with > [@](#): > > **Criminals deserve what they get.** ? Especially when, as you say, > [@](#): > > \*\* > But rape is what happens in prison.\*\* ---
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/54 "2003-05-28T17:04:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bandanaman \* > \*\* > Nobody deserves rape, nobody. But rape is what happens in prison. This is why I’m not holding up a liquor store, or writing bad checks. \*\* If you were guaranteed not to be raped in prison, you’d be holding up liquor stores and writing bad checks left and right then? You really are shaping up to be a first-class assclown. ---
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/55 "2003-05-28T17:04:07Z")
OK, I can’t be the only one to find the SPR logo funny. Can I? Here’s the thing. Rape as a concept can be funny. Rape is not funny. The Holocaust as a concept can be funny. The Holocaust was not funny. Dead Babies as a concept can be funny. Actual dead babies are not funny. Humor can and will be found in anything. As **Rysler** has pointed out, humor is so closely related to shock that it can hardly be expected to separate itself. ---
**Author:** ![LibrarySpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f9ae1b/32.png) [@LibrarySpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LibrarySpy)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/56 "2003-05-28T17:16:46Z")
Thank you, **stolichnaya**! **Waverly** , I meant succumbing to the _thread drift_, which is far less interesting than the original OP. I was not succumbing to the idea that prison rape is correct. Rape sucks. Which is why we want our enemies to be raped. Which is also why we should not use it as a form of punishment. ---
**Author:** ![PaleRider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/2bfe46/32.png) [@PaleRider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaleRider)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/57 "2003-05-28T17:21:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bandanaman \* > \*\*No, I’m not kidding. > > There are two paths you can follow. One leads to prison, and the other doesn’t. > > Nobody deserves rape, nobody. But rape is what happens in prison. This is why I’m not holding up a liquor store, or writing bad checks. \*\* I would think you wouldn’t be doing those things because they’re wrong. ---
**Author:** ![wring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@wring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wring)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/58 "2003-05-28T17:22:47Z")
add me to the list of folks who don’t find the “bubba” type of comments humorous. and to add a couple (hopefully) sobering notes to the concept of “they broke the law, they deserve whatever happens to them” 1. As has been mentioned, the great bulk of folks inside a prison are in for (relatively minor) property crimes and/or drug offenses, and not horrific murders/assaults. 2. damn near every one of those in for (relatively minor) property crimes and/or drug offenses are **coming back out again** , we would hope to not reoffend. However, do you really believe that physical brutalization will **increase** the chance the person will make a successful transition back into society? 3. There are also, inside prisons folks who are completely innocent. Maybe not lots, but they exist. 4. Prison rape is a violent crime, often resulting in physical injuries. Guess who pays for their medical care? Still think it’s ‘ok’? ---
**Author:** ![Wolfian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/7ea924/32.png) [@Wolfian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolfian)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/59 "2003-05-28T17:33:03Z")
Many people in this country want to tell you what you can and can’t talk about. Or sometimes they’ll tell you you can talk about something, but you can’t joke about it. Like rape. People say you can’t joke about rape. They say rape’s not funny. And I say, Fuck you, I think it’s hilarious. How do you like that? I can prove rape is funny: Picture Porky Pig raping Daisy Duck. See? Hey, why do you think they call him Porky? -George Carlin Not the most eloquent man, but still. I have to agree with **stolichnaya** and everyone else who said the concept _can_ be funny, but rape in itself isn’t. I had a music teacher who said very seriously as the bell rang and we were all getting up to be careful. The entire class froze and looked at him. “Yeah, there was a body found at (a local shopping mall).” Dead silence. “She was in a dumpster with a banana stuffed in her mouth, strawberries in her ears, and cornflakes in her hands.” Dead silence. “The police fear there is a ceral killer on the loose.” Laughter, sighs of relief, and friendly booing. Is murder funny? No. Was that joke and the set-up? Yes, very. Well, I was in 7th grade at the time. I could have sworn we did this topic before. Maybe I’ll do some searching later. Side note: I found a series of quotes from my senior trip in the cover of Napalm and Silly Putty, the Carlin book I quoted from. My favorites: “They should make convertible airplanes” from a class clown and “EPCOT, not apricot” from a father to his daughter. ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2003, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014/60 "2003-05-28T18:15:07Z")
I am comforted by the thought that there is a chance that the asshole who killed my friend gets raped daily. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-again-im-missing-the-fucking-joke/178014.md?page=4)