Facebook rantings

I am completely worked into a gut-wrenching contempt for quite possibly the most IGNORANT person in Missouri. I hope with every fiber of who I am that voters in that state react as strongly as I have and so many other Americans to Representative Todd Akin following his ludicrous statements regarding whether he approved of abortion in the case of rape. "“It seems to be, first of all, from what I understand from doctors, it’s really rare. If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut the whole thing down.” (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/21/us/politics/rep-todd-akin-legitimate-rape-statement-and-reaction.html) Where do I even begin? Were I able to address Akin directly, I would insist he actually attempt LISTENING to the whole explanation he claims to have 'understood from doctors' before repeating it as fact. A woman's body does not 'shut down' to prevent pregnancy during rape any more than it 'starts up' to conceive during consensual sex for an infertile woman. It is NOT uncommon for a rape to result in pregnancy and that is determined by BASIC BIOLOGY. Ovulation and sperm, regardless of how the sperm is introduced, more often than not result in pregnancy. Forcible rape. Legitimate rape. I cannot stop shaking my head at the gall of what these terms imply. Rape is forcible. And anytime a person is forced to perform or endure sexual acts against their will it is legitimate. Rape is rape and needs no descriptive introductions. I am a survivor of rape. By definition, I was gang raped. Yet despite the repeated forcible acts by two assailants, the examining nurse noted only minor vaginal trauma. And still, three jurys convicted two men of raping me in Virginia based on the evidence presented. Minor vaginal trauma. My body's reaction to the forcible acts of rape was to protect itself anyway it could. By Akin's (and many other close-minded people's) thinking, the fact that my body produced vaginal lubricant (as has happened to many rape victims) in response to being forcibly penetrated by two unknown men would indicate I enjoyed it. If my body could 'shut itself down', wouldn't it choose to CLOSE ALL ENTRY POINTS to avoid being raped at all? The entire traumatic event of rape is base in LACK of control. What our bodies do or don't do in response to being raped does not legitimize or negate that rape occurred. There are those individuals who have claimed rape falsely. The presence of pregancy following rape does not mean the claim was false. Generalizations and stereotypes based on the few only serve to further skew the majority's reality. And supposed leaders like Akin continue to spread their ignorance and invalidate rape victims. And what exactly does Akin have to say in response to the backlash? "The good people of Missouri nominated me, and I’m not a quitter,” Akin told Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor who now hosts a radio show. “My belief is, we’re going to take this thing forward. And, by the grace of God, we’re going to win this race. To quote my old friend John Paul Jones, ‘I’ve not yet begun to fight.’ ” (http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/with-todd-akins-rape-comments-abortion-is-back-in-the-campaign-spotlight/2012/08/20/c497bae4-eac7-11e1-a80b-9f898562d010_story.html) SERIOUSLY??!? Well, buckle up Akin, because the voting majority, very much inclusive of rape survivors who both were and were not impregnated unwillingly by the violent, and forcible acts of criminals 'have not yet begun to fight'. I am LEGITIMATELY pissed off and want your FORCIBLE resignation from the public office that is meant to serve the American public (including myself and all American rape survivors) that you currently occupy. Emphatically against ignorance that stunts understanding and healing, Tammy Chamberland Rape Survivor Single Mother AMERICAN VOTER