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Comment by matthewmacleod | Hacker News Reader

If that is truly the case, then why do many feminists believe that every man on the street must be treated as a potential rapist?

Let's be clear - the phrase "many feminists believe" is a weasel phrase worthy of being placed alongside Fox News and their infamous "some people say" thing.

You've demonstrated that one woman is so concerned she's going to be attacked that she assumes every man is a rapist. That's a terrible state of affairs, but not for the reasons you think.

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Please explain how "many feminists" is a "weasel phrase."

>That's a terrible state of affairs, but not for the reasons you think.

Explain.

Because it's a passive statement meant to cast aspersions on feminism as a whole by associating the movement with these hypothetical feminists you speak of, while at the same time citing no evidence whatsoever to back up the statement. It's a typical tactic used for demagoguery and yellow journalism, allowing the author (you, in this case) to make an inflammatory statement without having to take credit for originating a ridiculous idea that most of the time can only charitably be considered anything but an outright fabrication.

>these hypothetical feminists you speak of

>citing no evidence whatsoever to back up the statement

>outright fabrication

I provided a link to the source. I recommend you review both it and the hundreds of comments agreeing with it. Most major feminist sites picked up on it at the time as well, and it is also listed as a source on the "geek feminism" wiki.

http://geekfeminism.wikia.com/wiki/Interacting_with_women

That's not a source demonstrating that many feminists are afraid of being raped. Its a piece of evidence that a woman fears this, and a lot of women agree with her. By conflating their gender with the feminist movement, you're intentionally conflating the two, and implying that non-feminist women are not afraid of being raped, and further that feminism is itself at the root of their fear.

>By conflating their gender with the feminist movement

...what? The author is a feminist. The whole site is.

From the site's FAQ:

"Feminism and fat acceptance have always been, and will always be at the heart of this blog."

>you're implying that non-feminist women are not afraid of being raped

wat

Please stop.

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