First off, I'd like to assure you I won't always be writing about rape. Hopefully I'll also be writing about lighter stuff (that is also interesting).
I've been working on the Camden/rape reanalysis stats for a while, so it seemed fitting to post them here as an opener. You can also see it as a green paper at Scribd, and it has been covered at International Union of Sex Workers, the Camden New Journal, Women's Views on News, the Grauniad, and Hackney Citizen.
Part of what interests me about these topics is how entrenched the debate is in ideological and emotional reactions. Rape is but one example. Even writing about rape in a scientific manner, taking almost an epidemiological viewpoint, is a hot potato. It's a terrible thing, and tough to handle both effectively and sensitively.
But then, so is cancer. We gain little by sugarcoating it - better to tackle the hard stuff head-on. Just like all of you I would like rape to end. I happen to believe the best way to do it is to attack the problem with our methodical hats on. There are a lot of people doing exactly that: unfortunately, their work doesn't get much press.
I sincerely hope you'll keep reading. There's much more to come.
