Likelihood for rape tied to menstrual cycle?

I think we can all agree that rape is bad. But apparently according to evolutionary biologists, a woman's reaction to rape depends on where she is in her menstrual cycle. Really?

Take that in for a minute.

Apparently women are genetically disposed to fighting back more against rape when they are ovulating, and less likely when they are at other times in their cycle. This seems like a slippery slope to me, and a justification for rape rather than what it is claiming to be, and evolutionary study. If we believe that rape happens for reasons other than the rapist being a rapist then how can we blame rapists that rape when a woman is ovulating. She is just in her most fertile period, and so he is just following his evolution, right?

Wrong.

 As human beings we have evolved a little something called reason. This means that unlike our ancestors, who probably did forcibly mate with their female counterparts we can CHOOSE NOT TO. That's right folks, rape is not a product of evolution at this point, but a choice that human beings make. There are lots of different reasons that people choose to rape other people (women do some raping too), but they all come down to a choice that a person makes. We have the ability, unlike other animals, to rise above our biology and instinct and make decisions. That is what makes us human. That is what makes us civilized. That is why we can exist. Human beings have by far the highest capacity for reason, and jugement.

All in all, I think we need to stop looking at weird biological reasons people rape, and instead look at the people themselves, and perhaps the culture surrounding them. I am not an expert on rape, but I do know that even though our cycles DO put off different pheremones, and DO (to a certain extent) change our physiology, biological processes probably have little to do with the act of rape, and certainly can't be used as a justification.

Hormonology

While messing around on the internet, I came across this.

With all the hubbub about the astrological signs changing I guess there's been a push toward other ways of predicting your day, and this is one that I found.

Unlike astrology, however, this one actually makes sense to a certain extent. Now I'm not saying (as this woman seems to) that our hormones account for every aspect of our behavior. Sometimes I feel like crap during my period, but other times I feel very productive and happy. It just depends. I do think that it's probably more reliable than looking at the stars and using those.

Everyone's body does go through a cycle though. I think that in lieu of this kind of generalization, it might be better to pay more attention to the cycles of our own bodies. I have always had to pay very close attention to my body in general (due to some medical issues) and there are things that are more likely to happen, though not for sure in any way.

However, I like this site if for no other reason than it seems to me that if you want to predict how your day is going to go it makes more sense to look inward rather than to the stars. Though it walks the line between useful, and being a gross generalization of the kind that I feel like women have to fight about their periods all the time. And it seems to me that this is only acceptable because a woman put it together rather than a man.

The lesson? Pay more attention to your body, and less attention to the movements of the heavens if you want to predict how you may react to things.

On second thought...

My last post was about PMSBuddy, basically a site for men to keep track of the lady-happenings of whatever women in their lives might let them.



But later, I also remembered sites like MyMonthlyCycles, which is a site for women who want to keep track of their periods. I've never used it, but it appears that you can also track other events relating to your body: weight gain or loss, fertility cycles, when its time for breast exams. I can see how this could be really helpful: it creates a very clear picture of what your cycle pattern (or lack thereof) looks like, thereby giving you a heads-up for next time.

Does anyone use a website like this?

PMS Buddy?

Feministing brought to my attention a new website called PMSBuddy.com. What is it, you ask?

PMSBuddy.com is a free service created with a single goal in mind: to keep you aware of when your wife, girlfriend, mother, sister, daughter, or any other women in your life are closing in on "that time of the month" - when things can get intense for what may seem to be no reason at all. ...Saving relationships, one month at a time!

Uhm, alright.

This website is geared towards men who want to keep track of women's magic times with the assumption that said magic time correlates with moodiness.

Firstly, as someone who has never really had any trouble with PMS, I can say that that correlation doesn't exist (in me, at least, and certainly in other women).

Secondly, PMSBuddy says it is "a great way to give people in your life a heads-up of when you might be feeling a bit irritable without having an awkward conversation". So instead of an "awkward conversation" (whatever that means), you can instead sign up for regular awkward emails?

Thirdly, maybe I don't want anyone or everyone to know when I'm having my damn period! This site kind of operates on the assumption that ladies will gladly tell you their bleeding schedules so you can avoid picking up on any social cues about if someone's grouchy or not. And for that matter, it also assumes regular bleeding schedules.

PMSBuddy, I hope, is intended to be a light-hearted joke kind of thing, so I'm trying not to get too analytical about it. Personally, I've never really thought jokes about PMS were funny. Although they're not always offensive (though most of the time they are), they just plain don't make me laugh. So this seems like a dumb idea to me. There are a lot of aspects of the website that annoy me: "During PMS women can feel bloated and unattractive. Show her how you really feel with some sexy lingerie". Ugh. Please don't. Odds are 999 to 1 that this website was made by men.

Thoughts?