The connection between Warfare and Rape.

The recent news out of Iraq has angered many people in this country and around the world. Including this humble blogger who feared that this kind of behavior would be coming soon if we continued our occupation of Iraq. (You can find my predictions and reasoning here in my March 26th post.)

The fact is that the recent atrocity that was perpetrated on that Iraqi girl and her family by American forces is just the sort of thing that has been going on since the beginning of human history. Indeed it is even something that is found in the animal kingdom as well.

Since man first waged war on man, (which we can be sure occurred almost immediately) he has killed and raped the women of the conquered. It has never been enough simply to take their valuables. The men also feel compelled to brutalize, dominate, and even impregnate the females left behind.

The Vikings are probably the most recognized group of warriors that engaged in raping and pillaging, but they were certainly not the first not the most prolific. The Romans often took mistresses as they occupied a foreign land. They did not bother to woo or seduce these women, they simply took them. If they were married it made no difference to the conquerors. We have all heard the saying "to the victor go the spoils", that includes everything.

And why not? These women had no problem raising the children of their rapists just like they would the children of their husbands. What better way to gain immortality then to leave your seed across the world as you slaughtered all of those in your path? It is a compulsion that is deep within our biological makeup.

For example, males may have evolved to seek out many sex partners, to be able to enjoy non-committed sexual relationships, and to be physically aggressive. These traits allow men to compete with other males and mate with many women, increasing the odds that pregnancy will occur. Under certain circumstances, such as an absence of willing sex partners, these traits could conceivably lead to rape.

Even in the animal kingdom there are horrible examples of the conqueror enjoying the spoils of his aggression. It is not uncommon for a male brown bear to murder the cubs of female which will trigger the females reproduction cycle again, at which time the male will impregnate her with his own offspring. She will then raise the cubs as if they were not the product of a horrible crime against their half brothers. Her maternal instinct will protect them until adulthood (given that another male does not pull the same trick on them) and they will go on to continue their father's bloodline.

It would be wonderful to assume that we have evolved past this primitive compulsion but the evidence suggests otherwise.

Often, the troops are specifically told to rape women, (as it was with American troops in the Vietnam War) as a way of demoralizing the people who were being invaded. Other times women were taken and raped as trophies and prizes. Recently, as we have seen in Bosnia-Herzegovnia, rape has been used as a way of "ethnic cleansing".

It seems that in times of incredible stress, which waging war must surely trigger, we find ourselves reverting back to very primitive behaviors. I truly believe that most 21st century males would be appalled at the notion of raping women. (Though it might be interesting to note that many women hold a secret rape fantasy which they rarely if ever share with anyone. Could this be some left over biological need to be submissive?) Yet in the heat and stress of battle they find themselves making almost inhuman choices.

Now I am in no way excusing or attempting to justify what these soldiers did to that poor Iraqi girl. I am just trying to understand how it could happen, and how it can be kept from happening again. It is important to point out that the Iraqi women are not the only victims of American sexual aggression.

Since the eve of the invasion of Iraq in 2003, some 508 women serving in the military have complained of sexual assault, says the Miles Foundation, a private advocacy group. "Sexual harassment and sexual assault is an epidemic in the army," said Larry Hildes, Spc Swift's lawyer. "There is an attitude in the military that has been there as long as there have been women in the military that they are not real soldiers unless they suck it up and take whatever is dished out to them."


Is it any surprise that these men have turned their frustration on the Iraqi people? It also seems likely that there are more of these incidents just waiting to be revealed.

So if this is so pervasive how does one address the problem?

Aggressively!

No man should ever take what is not offered! If you stole somebody's money they would arrest you. If you force yourself on a woman then you are taking from her and should be punished. No real man hurts a woman! It is an act of cowardice and weakness.

I have never been able to truly understand how men can rape or abuse women. It is just not part of my makeup. I am so concerned with taking advantage of a woman that I have refused to engage in sex for the first time with a woman if she is intoxicated. I just don't want to feel that I have taken advantage of her even if she appears willing.

Now the reason for my attitude might be that I was raised by my mother in a single parent home. The idea that anybody would hurt her would have thrown me into a rage. I guess I just imprint that feeling on all other women as well. Whatever the cause, I wish that all men could have my limitations when it comes to forcing themselves on women.

We will never truly respect each other if we do not understand how others might be affected by our actions. We all deserve to be treated like human beings regardless of our race, our gender, our religion, or our financial circumstances.

We should strive to understand each other and resist the urge to dominate those who are different then ourselves. Wouldn't that make the world a far, far better place?