This is really shaping up to be a "back-to-bed" day of the highest order.

Canada, Dec. 13: "Nothing like some good old victim-blaming. A judge ruling a Canada rape case called the 18-year old survivor 'stupid' and 'naïve' for getting into a car with the offender, who then brought her to a cemetery to rape her."

Cue my refrain, first said here, about victim-blaming: Left to my own devices, I never would have been raped. The rapist was really the key component to the whole thing. I was sober; hardly scantily clad (another phrase appearing once in the article), I was wearing sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt; I was at home; my sexual history was, literally, nonexistent—I was a virgin; I struggled; I said no. There have been times since when I have been walking home, alone, after a few drinks, wearing something that might have shown a bit of leg or cleavage, and I wasn't raped. The difference was not in what I was doing. The difference was the presence of a rapist.

Consider for a moment, how stupid victim-blaming really is, when rapists are, if nothing else, opportunists who exploit the goodness of people's natures and prey on weaknesses.

Rapists rape children.

South Africa, Dec. 13: "A man has claimed to have sexually abused his small granddaughters because he could no longer afford to pay prostitutes."

Rapists rape babies.

Massachusetts, Dec. 11: "A former Somerville police officer has been sentenced to life in prison for sexually abusing and burning a 23-month-old girl more than two years ago."

Rapists rape people who trust them, because of their position.

New Jersey, Dec. 12: "Seven state troopers in New Jersey have been suspended with pay after they were accused of sexually assaulting a university student."

Rapists rape people who couldn't consent even if they wanted to.

Minnesota, Dec. 13: "The last of four people charged in the gang-rape of an unconscious 16-year-old girl three years ago in Winona has pleaded guilty to felony sexual conduct."

Rapists rape vulnerable people.

California, Dec. 13: "A man who allegedly raped a 24-year-old woman who became stranded on the San Diego (5) Freeway early Saturday morning following an accident has been charged [following a positive DNA match] with forcible rape, two counts of sexual penetration, sexual assault with the intent to commit rape, dissuading a witness and making a criminal threat."

Rapists rape the elderly.

Texas, Dec. 11: "Two boys aged 11 and 14 have been charged with breaking into a 60-year-old woman's home and trying to rape her in what police said was an apparently premeditated and cold-blooded attack. The boys wore bandanas and gloves and carried a 'rape kit' that included items to restrain the victim when they broke through a window of the woman's home."

Rapists rape the disabled.

Oregon, Dec. 12: "Benjamin Keylin … the executive director at Youth Theatre Northwest since 2003, allegedly raped an 18-year-old woman who has a mild form of autism, investigators said. According to detectives, Keylin raped the woman multiple times… Investigators said Keylin also [sexually assaulted] the victim's 16-year-old sister."

Rapists rape pregnant women.

Florida, Dec. 13: "Police are seeking help in identifying the suspect in the rape of a pregnant woman and theft Monday."

Rapists rape people in their own homes.

Australia, Dec. 13: "[A man] has pleaded guilty to 3 counts of rape and one each of unlawful imprisonment, theft and stalking [after entering his victim's bedroom, tying her up with a cable, and raping her three times, before removing the door handle so she could not escape]. A statement read to the court on behalf of the victim said she had nightmares since the attack, her hair had fallen out in clumps and she was afraid to be alone. … The County Court was told the man apologised during the attack, and blamed it on the medication he was taking."

Rapists rape strangers who happened to be nice to them.

Utah, Dec. 13: "Police have arrested a man they say stalked a woman and violently raped her. … Farmer met the victim at a Wal-Mart, made small talk with her, then followed her home. He allegedly returned to her home the next day dressed as a package delivery person and forced his way inside. Police say the woman was tied up and raped while her 3-year-old son was in the home."

Rapists rape their peers.

New Zealand, Dec. 13: "Matamata residents are angry at the release of a 16-year-old from police custody for the second time in recent weeks, after he allegedly raped a 15-year-old girl at the weekend while free on bail for another serious crime."

Rapists rape anyone they can get their hands on.

Ireland, Dec. 13: "More than 30 women who were raped last year went on to give birth as a result of their attack, shocking new figures from the Rape Crisis Network Ireland reveal. In all, 47 women who were raped or disclosed a previous rape in 2006 became pregnant as a result—including a third of all rape victims who were raped by a close family member. Nine of the rape victims who consequently became pregnant were under 18 at the time of their attack."

That's the thing about rapists, you see. They rape people. They rape people who are strong and people who are weak, people who are smart and people who are dumb, people who fight back and people who submit just to get it over with, people who are sluts and people who are prudes, people who rich and people who are poor, people who are tall and people who are short, people who are fat and people who are thin, people who are blind and people who are sighted, people who are deaf and people who can hear, people of every race and shape and size and ability and circumstance. The only thing that the victim of every rapist shares in common is bad fucking luck.

Quite literally, the only thing a person can do to avoid being raped is never be in the same room as a rapist. Since they don't announce themselves or wear signs or glow purple, that's not a very reasonable expectation, is it?

Enough victim blaming. Enough.

[Note that every example used in this post is no older than two days. There are this many stories about rape in the news every. single. day. In fact, there are lots more than I even used.]