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Permalink Reply by Dallas the Phallus on March 14, 2011 at 12:55pm

Twenty-two year-old Mark asks 20 year-old Jessica out on a date. They go out for dinner and drinks and then go back to Jessica’s place. They have a few more drinks, and when Jessica goes to the bathroom Mark slips a date-rape drug into her drink.

Jessica comes back and finishes her drink. She then tells Mark she’s very interested in having sex with him, and she invites him into her bedroom. They undress and get into bed. The engage in a little fore play and start having intercourse, but the drug starts to affect Jessica and she passes out.

Mark continues to have sex with Jessica, finishes, and the rolls over and goes to sleep.

The next morning, Jessica can physically tell she’s had sex but cannot remember doing it. She’s a bit embarrassed that she drank so much that she can’t remember a night of sex. Nonetheless, she tells Mark she had a good time and would like to see him again.

So the question is: Did Mark rape Jessica?

Permalink Reply by T A A on March 14, 2011 at 1:57pm

Of course, in our legal framework one is not allowed to impose sex onto an unconscious person. Each participant needs to retain their power for the entire course of the "sex" which in this case might encompass many sexual practices she may NOT be agreeing to. It is doubly true in the case of our legal framework as the drug indicates intent to rape.

Permalink Reply by Unseen on September 7, 2011 at 12:28am

@Dallas Gaytheist   I'm surprised there's any question in your mind of whether he raped her. It became rape with the drug. She didn't say "Slip me a mickey and have sex with me." She wanted to experience lovemaking with someone she felt she could trust. This isn't even a dilemma.

Permalink Reply by Dallas the Phallus on September 7, 2011 at 10:18am

It wasn't a personal issue I struggled with. It was just a hypothetical situation to encourage discussion. We actually talked about it quite a bit, but several people left TA and their responses went with them.

Permalink Reply by Unseen on September 7, 2011 at 4:11pm

I understand. I just am used to much more hairy problems to be solved. To me, that one was just a no brainer.

Permalink Reply by Unseen on September 7, 2011 at 12:28am

I have an MA in philosophy and one of my special interest areas is the ethics of counseling.

 

A typical ethical situation might be as follows...

 

Someone comes to the counselor guilt-ridden. They have had an extramarital fling. Should they confess to their partner or not? Typical counselor responses would be that the #1 priority is to save the marriage and that a confession might feel good to the offender, but might end the marriage at the same time.

 

The philosopher in me has many questions. First, I understand that the precepts counselors work under place their client ahead of anyone else (barring very extreme cases such as the abuse of children, an intention of murder, and so on). I'm not sure that these professional precepts have any real ethical weight,however. Does the offended party have no interest in knowing? How much weight would the offended party give to saving the marriage? It might not be the #1 consideration to him or her. Does being exposed to everyone the offender's partner may have slept with and all the people they may have slept with not come into consideration? What about the role of truth in marriage. Is not telling the partner a truly "white" lie or just a lie?