The Right and Rape

Kathy G [1] writes this:

if we lived under the kind of legal/political regime Palin has spent virtually her entire life working to bring about, and if my 11-year niece were raped and became pregnant as a result, she would then be compelled, in Sarah Palin's America, to carry her pregnancy to term and to give birth.

And one of her commenters [2] writes this:

I've long thought that conservatives do not think there is as much of a difference between sex and rape as liberals do. Certainly there have been studies that show that people who believe strongly in traditional sex roles (who tend to be conservative) are much more likely than the general population to think that if a girl lets you take her out on a date and pay for everything, and then invites you back to her apartment, that this is an implied contract for sex, and that if she backs out you are justified in forcing yourself on her. (And there are studies that, depending on how you ask the question, can get between 20% and 50% of men to admit that they'd consider raping someone if they knew they wouldn't be caught. For a good little list, see: http://www.holysmoke.org/fem/fem0286.htm [3] . Terrifying, isn't it?)

If that is the case, then this attitude is perfectly understandable and self-consistent. Of course, the premise on which they are reasoning is obviously insane, but the conclusion they come up with does logically follow the premise.

Discuss.

But before you do so, read this. [4]