Raise your hand if you’ve ever heard of a rape whistle? Raise your hand if you’ve ever owned one or know anyone who does? These whistles are designed to ward of a rapist, like warding off a bear in the woods, and according to Democratic Colorado Lawmaker Joe Salazar, female college students should rely on these instead of guns to protect themselves in the event of an attack.
The Colorado House passed a bill on Monday that bans concealed weapons on campus. While I’m on the fence about the “guns on campus” debate, I find it absolutely preposterous and blatantly idiotic that anyone would suggest a whistle over a gun for protection. Taking away student’s guns and throwing them a whistle isn’t a fair exchange Mr. Salazar. That’s like taking my Xbox 360 and offering me a Gameboy. It’s not as effective Mr. Salazar. What’s even more disturbing is that there are no overtly distinguishable differences between the rape whistle and other whistles. Websites selling the whistles are claiming that it’s very loud so other people will hear it and come to your rescue.There a few problems with this claimer.
First, on a campus like Georgia State, surrounded by busy streets and traffic cops, I doubt you’ll think a rape is taking place if you hear a whistle blow. Second, if you’re in a parking lot alone and its 1 AM, the whistle is merely music at this point. Some websites are claiming that the whistles will startle the attacker. These attackers aren’t aliens from another planet who haven’t heard such a noise so I doubt they’d be too startled. So what do you do next?
A public safety “What To DO IF You’re Attacked” list was put out and “peeing and vomiting” was among other suggestions on the list. I’m not a psychologist or have any knowledge on the mental state of rapists but I’m going to guess that if someone is willing to rape you then they’re probably willing to put up with a little extra body fluid. Once again here, no effective resolutions are being offered up. But there are solutions.
What I didn’t find on the list were Taser guns, pepper spray, or any other kind of non-lethal but effective weapons. Have you ever seen a person get Tasered? After convulsing on the floor in a fetal position, they don’t usually get up and continue their predatory actions. You see, there’s a medium we can come to folks. We can both have our slices of cakes here. So, while we’re still tirelessly debating on the “guns on campus” issue, there’s still effective protection against crimes for students.
