[xsmommy]

so it really wasn’t out of bounds to infer rape from what he originally said because he pretty much admits that was his intent, in his apology.

[VRWCmember]

I hope I'm not giving the impression that I am soft-pedaling Dave's joke, or that I do not find it outrageous and offensive. There is nothing funny about joking about a 14 y/o getting "knocked up". I think Letterman should be excoriated for this ugly joke about statutory rape. I think A-Rod should be condemning Letterman for joking that he would molest a 14 y/o girl. I think the Professional Flight Attendants union should be protesting Letterman for calling them "slutty". But I also think that our outrage and our condemnation of Letterman would best be served by making sure we did not characterize the joke as being about a "violent rape of a child" or even as simply "rape" without using the appropriate term of "statutory rape". We don't have to sacrifice on accuracy just to evoke a more emotional response from Middle America. In fact, I believe that if we are careful to make sure we express our outrage accurately and specifically, we improve our ability to convince Middle America of how prurient Letterman and other liberals are in their hatred of all things conservative.