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That's because (hopefully) if you find them distasteful you're not the sort of person who thinks violence against women is awesome. The thing is, there are people out there who do think it is awesome. They tend to have a very different response to these sorts of "jokes" and imagery.

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Good point.

You might say that this kind of thing validates a particular way of thinking for people who already lean that way.

It's not likely to inspire rape, but it has the potential to reinforce a negative perspective of women.

There have been some studies that indicate these sorts of jokes may increase negative behaviors towards women, such as victim blaming. This is troubling because even if these jokes don't inspire someone to rape or assault someone, they may encourage them to act in a way that enables others to get away with doing so.

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