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    IAMBlastedBiggsLostBurnerGabrielle Bluestone
    4/27/16 12:03pm

    See, this is the sort of thing that’s so fucking infuriating about jackasses getting lathered up about ‘WATCH OUT YOUR KIDS DON’T GET MOLESTED BY THESE CREEPY PEDOS WHO WANT TO GO TO THE BATHROOM WITH THEM OH EM GEE!!’ sorts of things. ‘Stranger Danger’ is a (rare) thing, but the vast majority of molesters are people who actually know their victims. It’s a critical component of the crime, in fact—establish a relationship, cultivate it via the gradual expansion and blurring of borders, and then have it cross into abuse gradually and slowly enough so that the victims aren’t shocked into denial and reporting. Pearl-clutchers get so worked up over a non-issue that they won’t even pay attention to the really heinous shit right here. Oh, but wait....that’s just because they wish to label, humiliate, and isolate those that they find disgusting, and exclude them from inclusion into mainstream humanity. It's not really about the potential for pedophilia anyway. Never mind...

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      c_lamotteIAMBlastedBiggsLostBurner
      4/27/16 12:23pm

      “Protect the kids from pedos taking advantage of tolerance” is the new “gay marriage weakens straight marriage.” The people saying it think it sounds less backwards than “Eww! Gay/trans people gross me out!”

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      Rayford_SteeleIAMBlastedBiggsLostBurner
      4/27/16 12:26pm

      “Did you say someone was getting ‘lathered up’?”

      -Hastert

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    Pink SkullGabrielle Bluestone
    4/27/16 12:21pm

    Here’s a great new addition to the law: How about we drop statue of limitations on rape and molestation charges? Won’t help here, but something tells me it’ll come in handy down the line. If you’d molested somebody, fuck you man, I don’t care how long ago it happened.

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      cheerful_exgirlfriendPink Skull
      4/27/16 12:59pm

      There are no limitations on many lesser crimes in most states too. Parking tickets for example. It’s absurd.

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      sickofcreatingburners_cantkeeptrackofpasswordscheerful_exgirlfriend
      4/27/16 2:15pm

      For fucks sake, you can’t get student loans forgiven no matter how long you’ve had them, but if Bill Cosby goes on a raping spree in the 70s, 80s and 90s there’s nothing we can do about it now.

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    DR honkhonkhonk, tyvmGabrielle Bluestone
    4/27/16 11:51am

    The fact that Hastert would even ask shows just how unseriously his generation and class takes this crime. That’s appalling.

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      hotoynoodleDR honkhonkhonk, tyvm
      4/27/16 11:54am

      yuk, no. i think plenty of old people understand how horrible his crimes are. however, it shows how warped hastert’s mind is for sure and that so many people were willing to write letters on his behalf speaks more to their personal lack of scruples and compassion. but hey, ya know, republican power brokers! all about family values!

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      DR honkhonkhonk, tyvmhotoynoodle
      4/27/16 11:55am

      Yeah, that’s pretty much the class I mean.

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    zombiepandaGabrielle Bluestone
    4/27/16 1:38pm

    The question at the back of my mind is, how many victims are there who haven’t come forward? I’m not an expert, but there seems to be a consensus that pedophiles rarely stop abusing altogether. Is it crazy to assume there are probably cases out there that haven’t passed the statue of limitations? Is there any chance he’s being investigated for the abuse itself?

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      dkfree2zombiepanda
      4/27/16 5:17pm

      I was going through comments to see if this one had been made.

      Just how many victims did this guy leave behind? Gotta believe way more than 4.

      I have no fear of my daughter changing in her school locker room next to a transgender girl.

      I do have fear of assholes like this passing discriminatory policies and using family values rhetoric while continuing his hypocritical and criminal behavior, even if no one I know is in his path. His damage is to his direct victims and to all of society.

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      zombiepandadkfree2
      4/27/16 5:33pm

      The injustice of his “LGBT = pedophiles” shtick just KILLS me. There literally aren’t enough rage .gifs in the entire world to express how angry this makes me. He denied an entire segment of this country their humanity based on who they love, while simultaneous committing the very crime he was fear-mongering to the public. I actually know a gay man who lost a job at a school in the mid-’90's because of that bullshit even though, obviously, there was zero hint of any sort of impropriety.

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    DukeOfAwesomrGabrielle Bluestone
    4/27/16 12:02pm

    Yet, Republicans are fine with him using a men’s room.

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      Sluicer's ghostDukeOfAwesomr
      4/27/16 12:08pm

      As he lingers around the child's urinal, the other "members" feign ignorance...

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    Dave Gabrielle Bluestone
    4/27/16 11:59am

    Well, as Denny used to say before pinning a page against the wall of the cloakroom*: “You can’t make a political career without breaking a few kids!”

    *I’m just speculating here

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      Masshole JamesDave
      4/27/16 12:00pm
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      Sluicer's ghostMasshole James
      4/27/16 12:07pm

      You win.

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    Lala11_7 (I'm in the grays, because this mouth DOES NOT PLAY!)Gabrielle Bluestone
    4/27/16 12:19pm

    “I am speechless. He is my friend, has been my friend [and] will always be my friend,” Rep. Cross told NBC Chicago.

    ====

    Hastert molests your brother and many other boys...and THAT’S the response you have? I...just...cannot...

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      YoSup is in League with the Raccoon MenaceLala11_7 (I'm in the grays, because this mouth DOES NOT PLAY!)
      4/27/16 12:33pm

      I got the impression that it wasn’t clear to him by that point that his brother was one of the victims, which would make his reaction less surprising but no less vile.

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    OMG!PONIES!Gabrielle Bluestone
    4/27/16 12:31pm

    I’m glad that Republicans care about protecting young girls from being raped in public bathrooms. But it’s not enough.

    Every man, regardless of occupation, social class, or religion, is a potential rapist. Even good and wholesome pious Christians like Josh Duggar and former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert are child molesters.

    So why are half of our nation’s children still being put in harm’s way?

    Don’t stop at women’s restrooms. And don’t just stop at genetic males who present as female. We need to ban all men, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation, from any and all public restrooms where children may be present.

    Protect our boys from men.

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      WhiteCherryGabrielle Bluestone
      4/27/16 12:07pm

      Dear Republicans,

      The people violating others in bathrooms is YOURSELVES.

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        CemnindustGabrielle Bluestone
        4/27/16 12:21pm

        Is it just me, or is different language used for these sorts of crimes depending on the gender of the victim? If it was a 17 year old girl, the headline would probably talk about “rape” or “sexual assault.” Since the victim was a 17 year old boy, and the perpetrator was male, the headline talks about child molestation, and the comments are full of “sick old pedophile” comments, etc. Which are fully justified, of course. But it’s still an interesting dichotomy.

        I think two overlapping factors explain this:
        The first involves sexism. Girls and women in general are viewed as sexual objects by a huge portion of society. So assaults against girls and women are incredibly common, and not very surprising. People essentially shrug. The idea of a male being assaulted is inherently more shocking to people, and seems to call for special words? The second factor is probably related to homophobia.

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          YoSup is in League with the Raccoon MenaceCemnindust
          4/27/16 12:40pm

          I think that’s about right. But on the plus side no one ever tries to pry into the sexual orientation of the boys and make them out to be sex-crazed whores who were “asking for it”, on the minus side they do with women.

          I’ve had several boyfriends who were raped as children, it’s distressingly common, and it’s not surprising to me that it goes so underreported given how easy it is to make the victim feel morally responsible for it. Remember that one of the victims apologized to Hastert after he started to realize what was happening.

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          EasttoMidwestCemnindust
          4/27/16 1:12pm

          I assume (and maybe that’s faulty) that Hastert didn’t penetrate his victims, hence the terminology. However, you’re right to point out that the term “molestation” is generally used for children while “sexual assault” is more often used for older victims, even while they may include the same acts. It’s also hard to imagine people getting as worked up when they hear that a 17 year old girl is “fondled” or “groped.” Hell, it’s hard to find a 17 year old girl who hasn’t been.

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