Chill, women, says Colorado Democrat Rep. Joe Salazar. While arguing for the disarmament of college students, Salazar says that even if women feel like they’re going to be raped, they may not, so who needs a firearm for protection? From Revealing Politics:

Said Salazar:

“It’s why we have call boxes, it’s why we have safe zones, it’s why we have the whistles. Because you just don’t know who you’re gonna be shooting at. And you don’t know if you feel like you’re gonna be raped, or if you feel like someone’s been following you around or if you feel like you’re in trouble when you may actually not be, that you pop out that gun and you pop … pop around at somebody.”

This is the real “war on women” I’ve talked about: the progressive insistence that women disarm. Women, according to Rep. Salazar, are hysterical things which shoot indiscriminately at any and everything.

Some statistics, My emphasis:

In the vast majority of those self-defense cases, the citizen will only brandish the gun or fire a warning shot.
In less than 8% of those self-defense cases will the citizen will even wound his attacker.
Over 1.9 million of those self-defense cases involve handguns.
As many as 500,000 of those self-defense cases occur away from home.
Almost 10% of those self-defense cases are women defending themselves against sexual assault or abuse.

This “feel like you’re going to be raped” nonsense is as poorly-worded as the “shut that whole thing down” drama from last fall. If Democrats don’t swiftly condemn this, I see this used as a tactic to showcase the vast lack of respect Democrats have for a woman’s right to self defense.

*UPDATE:

Here is Rep. Salazar’s legislative contact info, with which you can give him your feedback with more courtesy than he’s demonstrated for women above.

State Representative – District 31
Phone: 303-866-2918
joseph.salazar.house@state.co.us
Facebook

*UPDATE #2: via Erickson and Jesse Byrnes, this is advice the University of Colorado gives to women to repel attackers. If an attacker isn’t grossed out enough over the prospect of raping/beating/murdering a woman, it’s doubtful that any of this will do the trick:

1. Be realistic about your ability to protect yourself.
2. Your instinct may be to scream, go ahead!  It may startle your attacker and give you an opportunity to run away.
3. Kick off your shoes if you have time and can’t run in them.
4. Don’t take time to look back; just get away.
5. If your life is in danger, passive resistance may be your best defense.
6. Tell your attacker that you have a disease or are menstruating.
7. Vomiting or urinating may also convince the attacker to leave you alone.
8. Yelling, hitting or biting may give you a chance to escape, do it!
9. Understand that some actions on your part might lead to more harm.
10. Remember, every emergency situation is different.  Only you can decide which action is most appropriate.

*UPDATE #3: KDVR reports that Salazar has apologized:

“I’m sorry if I offended anyone. That was absolutely not my intention,” Salazar said. “We were having a public policy debate on whether or not guns makes people safer on campus. I don’t believe they do. That was the point I was trying to make. If anyone thinks I’m not sensitive to the dangers women face, they’re wrong.

“I am a husband and father of two beautiful girls, and I’ve spent the last decade defending women’s rights as a civil rights attorney. Again, I’m deeply sorry if I offended anyone with my comments.”

If Salazar was truly sensitive to the dangers we face then he would understand how statistics do not work in our favor — unless we level the playing field by exercising our Second Amendment right. Salazar also doesn’t explain his insinuation that women basically ditzes who are incapable of proper reasoning and capable of handling firearms, in fact, he backhandedly defends it by saying it was a justifiable example for his prejudice against women’s defense.

Salazar claims to have a record of defending women’s rights but his actions to disenfranchise them of their Second Amendment rights are completely contradictory to that claim. One in four collegiate women report rape and one in five are raped. Salazar wants to deprive women of their right to defense with these odds? Just blow your rape whistles and pray that an attacker represents the “safe zone” boundaries? The best apology is a reversal of his war on women.