Hacker News Reader

Comment by 3825 | Hacker News Reader

I find it absolutely despicable to make light of violent abuse, including sexual abuse, in prison. We should be doing all we can to make our prisons safer for everyone.

The fact that many people think it is OK to make and laugh at prison rape jokes sickens me. What would you think if I made rape jokes about your 90 year old grandma? Or your ten year old son? Or your wife? If that is not ok, neither is prison rape of adult men.

I am appalled to realize many people think prison rape is part and parcel of the "prison experience". Should rape be used as a deterrent to unwanted behavior? Where do we stop? Will you be ok with teachers turning a blind eye on students raping other students in detention for not doing their homework or for misbehaving in the classroom? Answer me.

View on HN

I don't think that this is a very reasonable response - making a joke and caring about something are not mutually exclusive.

Comedians regularly make jokes about some of the most abhorrent things that happen in the world. Racism, pedophilia, murder. Do you think that these comics therefore agree with racism, pedophilia and murder? No, of course not. They're making jokes.

It may not have been funny, and it may not have been appropriate (we're not in a comedy club after all), but it doesn't mean esquilax will be OK with "teachers turning a blind eye on students raping other students in detention for not doing their homework".

Basically, calm down, he made a bad joke, it's not the end of the world.

>Comedians regularly make jokes about some of the most abhorrent things that happen in the world.

Comedians who joke about raping women generally get booed and chastised and otherwise shunned. Comedians who joke about prison rape generally don't. Regardless of which you think is the appropriate response, it would be nice to see a little consistency.

This being said, I would like to point out that I also made light of violent, sexual abuse in prison in the grandparent post - I deserve the downvotes too.

I don't think prison rape is OK. But my jokes aren't going to change that. Your sanctimonious bullcrap isn't either.

I apologize for my rudeness. It was uncalled for and I really didn't mean it that way. I didn't mean to target you or put you on the spot. I understand that reforming people's views takes time. (I visited a freshman class in a South Asian university. If I was from there I presume I'd most likely think that cat calling women as they entered the classroom was normal and acceptable behavior.

I think we have a similar problem here. We've grown up with these jokes and lived with them for so long that it just doesn't bother us. I am glad you agree that prison rape is not OK. I am not trying to be sanctimonious (I actually had to look up that word). I just feel so helpless about this situation.

You can certainly feel the way you want to, but sticks and stones. Jokes make light of plenty of despicable things. That's the point of a joke: to make light of something.

A joke is a joke. Specifically naming someone is not a joke. It is personal and implies a thinly veiled threat. It's not apples to apples at all unless you are the personification of the concept of prison rape.

IMO prisons should be about taking away peoples freedom, not about treating them like animals. But many people seem to be more concerned about their utility or lack thereof, for example if having a death sentence for death convicts costs more than life in prison or vice versa. Or the idea of having them work as effectively slave labour.

Do you live in the real world? Prisons aren't safe because they are full of violent offenders! It's pretty obvious that when you densely pack the bottom tier of society into small spaces that the outcome will be a whole load of violence - of all forms, rape (which is about power and control), gangs (which is core to the human species), fights and murder.

Sorry, I have never been to prison so I don't really know. The statistics I read boggles my mind.

What can we do to help deter prisoner abuse?

>What can we do to help deter prisoner abuse?

#1 on the list would be to stop sending so many people to prison, one way or another. Then you can afford to spend more resources per capita to better rehabilitate/reform/etc. the smaller number of inmates that remain.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com