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Logjam, I apologize for replying to your comment in another thread (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5501739) in this unorthodox way, but you replied to one of my comments in a recent thread and before I could reply to yours, the originator of the thread killed it, which action prevented any more correspondence and might have led you to believe I had no reply to your remarks. But I do. Here's your comment followed by my reply: >>...you're only adding to the perception that women lie [emphasis added] about sex crimes. And they do [emphasis added]...20%-40%...are simply false... blah blah > Oh. My. Lie. Speaking of sleazy, do tell us more about your oddly worded little insinuation, when the article you linked goes on to say: > "First, the category of 'false accusations' does not distinguish between accusers who lie and those who are honestly mistaken. Nor does it indicate that a rape did not occur, merely that the specific accused is innocent....Third, the 1-in-4 figure has 'fuzzy' aspects that could influence the results. For example, Neufeld and Scheck mention only sexual assault cases that were "referred to the FBI where results could be obtained." First, your comments aren't a reply to my comment, but to yours -- your having edited my remarks, and added emphasis not present in the original, changes its meaning. I never said that 20% to 40% of sex reports are lies, as you insinuate in your edit of my remarks, I said they are false, and they are. My claim is fully backed up by the FBI report. Second, when a woman identifies a man as a rapist in a criminal trial, but is not certain of her identification, in a legal sense she is lying, because to offer testimony in a criminal trial, a witness must be certain -- and judges and juries assume witnesses understand this responsibility. If the witness is uncertain, saying under oath, "He's the perpetrator" in a criminal trial is not an "honest mistake", it's a separate crime. Therefore a witness saying "I was mistaken" after the fact, after the legal system makes the assumption that the identification was certain, is unacceptable, and the original testimony constitutes a lie. The responsible-adult solution is obvious -- it's a criminal trial, someone may lose his freedom and be marked for life with the vilest kind of stigma, therefore if a witness is not certain, she absolutely must say, "I am not certain". Therefore the 20% to 40% figure quoted in the article consists of (a) liars and (b) people who are being criminally irresponsible. And believe me when I tell you, the prevailing FBI statistics can only hurt women who come forth to report real sex crimes. The fact that 20% to 40% of such reports are false is often used by defense attorneys to ruin a woman's chance to receive a fair hearing. As Wendy McElroy says in the article I linked, "False accusations are not rare. They are common." When a woman chooses to accuse any convenient suspect, she may feel a temporary vindication that some man pays for another man's crime, but in the long run, all women pay the price for that irresponsible act. |