Nice day today. The train ride up was quick and pleasant, and gave me some “alone time” in which to ponder. Trains. The only way to travel. Even when it is still way too early on a Sunday!!

Well I am satisfied for now, Mike was v. good. V. good indeed. That is all I am going to say. But seems my early start has left me with a lot of day off to fill!!!

Have to clean out my bottom draw today… am very scared what I will find, it has become my place of hiding stuff I didn’t want to face… time to face my past.

So you think things are getting better do you? It has been a while hasn’t it?

Today’s topic: Male Rape.

All of the below is the edited work of Johann Hari, writing a very emotive article in Attitude read it.

50% of all men who rape other men are “straight”… That is a shocking statistic, if you imagine how many men who rape women are “gay”, now isn’t it?

Let us hear from Jan Evans, Maidstone Prisons Sex Offender Treatment Programmes co-ordinator, about one such monster. “He was to all intents and purposes heterosexual… but then he found he had a crush on one particular bloke in his office.”

“This person was very quiet, only a lad, about 17 or 18… so he targeted this one bloke and really bullied him… [after an office party] he drove him to a car park and raped him. He was so disgusted at his feelings that he blamed the victim for the whole thing. He stabbed this boy and set him on fire.” The boy survived but was permanently disfigured.

Did you know that only 5% of all male rape is reported… 5%!!!!!!!!

In the prisons meanwhile…

“I’ve been sentenced for a D.U.I. (driving under the influence) offence. My third one. When I first came to prison, I had no idea what to expect. Certainly none of this. I’m a tall white male, who unfortunately had a small amount of feminine characteristics. And very shy. These characteristics have got me raped so many times I have no more feelings physically. I have been raped by up to five black men and two white men at a time- I’ve requested protective custody only to be denied. (The prison) said there was nowhere to run to, and it would be best for me to find a man I would/could willingly have sex with.”

“I probably have Aids now. I have great difficulty raising food to my mouth from shaking after nightmares. I’ve laid down without physical fight to be sodomised. My heart and spirit have been raped as well… that’s something I don’t think I’ll ever forgive myself for.”

And that dear Constant Reader comes from the supposedly most advanced nation on earth… the USA.

Things here are no better.

“…. A study by the respectable academic magazine Prison Journal surveyed prisoners and found out that an extraordinary 21% of inmates had been forced at least once to have sex in prison. Gay men are particularly targeted for rape on the spurious grounds that they will enjoy it or be more ‘practiced’”

Maybe we should think again before we make those “soap in the shower” jokes, don’t you agree?

I was so upset by this article I was almost physically sick… it contains many stories… And the scary thing is… what can we do about this? How can we stop those who rape other human beings (be they male or female)?

What to do if you’ve been sexually assaulted.

1. Get to a safe place as quickly as possible.
2. Call someone who can help you – a friend or relative.
3. Do not shower, eat, drink, or change clothes. You would destroy evidence, which you might need if you want to prosecute.
4. Get medical attention. If you go to a police station straight away and explain what has happened they will arrange this for you. Do not feel embarrassed about your injuries- doctors and nurses are used to dealing with injuries to the penis or anus, and they will treat it just like they would a broken arm or a burst eardrum. You might have internal injuries, or have contracted a STD that can be treated at this early stage.
5. Write down everything you can remember about what happened. It will be the last thing you want to right now but it could be vitally important as evidence.
6.Remember: YOU ARE NOT TO BLAME