The following is a reply to Big Evil's blog: "A post about RapeLay: Not what you think....".

Original Blog:
http://www.destructoid.com/blogs/Big+Evil/a-post-about-rapelay-not-what-you-think--133179.phtml#story

I wouldn't be so quick to consider (Western) society's curiosity to be disturbing or shocking. We, as a society, are attracted to the socially and/or morally taboo. It's a common understanding in Sociology that Western culture is abundant with sadist tendencies. For example, watch how many people try to catch a glimpse of accident victims when passing by a traffic collision. Even drivers try to get a peek, putting their own safety and responsibilities (operation of a motor vehicle) aside. Look at all the people running around with tattoos and body piercings. This is a behavior that was incredibly taboo as little as 50 years ago (and still is, to some degree, today).

Whether or not people find this sort of thing (rape fantasies) curious or even fulfilling becomes an issue of culture -- which is defined socially. The Japanese do not have the same rules for sexuality, often embracing sexual fantasy and desire simply as a human need. Western culture has romanticized sex and created a stigma against sexual exploration. Hell, it's illegal in some states (U.S.) to practice oral or anal sex (i.e. oral in Florida).

In Western culture, we would assume that someone who would enjoy a game like RapeLay would probably be interested in actually participating in a rape. Japanese culture probably doesn't see it this way. I don't believe it's entirely a 4chan/internet culture thing. The net just makes this kind of thing accessible.

Amazon is a popular online retailer that sold this thing. If the internet did not exist, RapeLay would have been nearly impossible to find on store shelves in the States. Local police would have brought down the hammer, and I doubt that the controversy surrounding it would have been publicized much. If it had, people wouldn't run to their local import store to see if they had it. People who were only curious would feel ashamed, if not criminal, trying to buy this thing in a store. That's precisely why internet pornography is so huge. No more brown bags and shady parts of town.

I'm ultimately not surprised at all that this is getting attention. The news made a big deal about it and our society is curious. I find myself doing the same thing. When I heard about lolikon, I looked it up. When I heard about the Janet Jackson nipple-slip at the Super Bowl, I looked it up. When I heard about Michael Richards and his gratuitous use of the "N-word" at a comedy show, I looked it up. It's the culture we live in. It's a combination of oppressive moral judgment and repression that breeds this curiosity -- this desire to witness things that are taboo.

Take comfort that RapeLay, like most internet sensations, the majority of people won't remember it in six months.