Drinking alcohol puts people at high risk for all kinds of misfortunes. Exposure to date-rape drugs, however, doesn’t seem to be one of them.
In a study published in the British Journal of Criminology, more than half of the 200 university students surveyed said they knew someone whose drink had been spiked. But judging from evidence in police and medical records, these numbers are probably highly inflated. For instance, one Australian study of 97 men and women who’d been admitted to an emergency room and claimed their drinks had been spiked found only 9 “plausible” cases. Forensic evidence supported none of those claims; for the most part, the complainants were simply drunk.
Alcohol can be dangerous enough without bringing date-rape drugs into the picture. Drinking is commonly implicated in sexual assault. At least 50 percent of rapes on college campuses are associated with drinking, among both perpetrators and victims. Still, too often, fear of a spiked drink outstrips fear of one drink too many.
“Young women appear to be displacing their anxieties about the consequences of consuming what is in the bottle on to rumors of what could be put there by someone else,” said Dr. Adam Burgess, one of the authors of the British study, in an interview with the Telegraph.
Why the displacement? Guarding against drink-spiking can be a proxy for discussions of problem drinking. Or, as Bruce Schneier wrote in a blog post about the study: the drink-spiking myth serves as a way for “parents and friends to warn young women of excessive drinking without criticizing their personal choices.”
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G. Long, you have no idea what you’re talking about. Being drunk does not absolve you of decisions you make, morally or legally.
If a girl passes out, THEN she can’t consent, and that constitutes rape. But at a BAC of .08%, or 3-4 drinks for the average 125 lb female, sex does not automatically become rape.
The fact of the matter is that young women DO have drugs slipped into their drinks. 5% of the young people surveyed had plausible claims – that is a significant number! We shouldn’t be accepting drinks that we didn’t see prepared by the bartender, we shouldn’t be leaving drinks unattended, and we should always be aware of ourselves and our surroundings and avoid risky behavior.
That having been said, I am completely disgusted by the flippant answers here. I am horrified. What kind of misogynist claims that young women use the spectre of date rape drugs as an excuse to “hook up” while avoiding judgment?
I am not denying that young women can be irresponsible and get themselves into situations that could have been avoided. That is absolutely true. But when it comes down to it, the aggressor is the aggressor, and the victim is the victim.
Also–@NotARapist420: great point. However, the damage is really done when you’re so high you can’t talk to a girl and end up missing out on an opportunity to (consensually) hook up
I read too quickly: it was 10% of those surveyed. TEN percent. And you are trying to tell me this is something we don’t need to be concerned about? Unbelievable.
How is it if a girl has sex while drunk she is not responsible for her actions? If one is driving while drunk, they are responsible for their actions.
Having been a sober member of AA for 32 years, I have heard the stories of many thousands of people who in the aggregate drank many millions of drinks. I can only thing of one guy who ever said he was slipped a mickey. And he wasn’t sure.
So the stats are probably true.
BTW: I always knew my limit. When the car was in a ditch and I was sprawled on the ground and the cop had his boot on my chest, his flashlight in my eyes, and Taser electrodes in my back….I knew I could have exactly two more drinks….
Anonymous, In other words, by projecting their fears onto their children, parents have conveyed their belief/suspicion that all men are the immoral equivalent of the slut i.e., sluggers (who take advantage of girls at every opportunity. Hence the anxiety associated with the potentially spiked drink.
This takes the cake.
@sarahmas: From the post: “only 9 “plausible” cases. Forensic evidence supported none of those claims; for the most part, the complainants were simply drunk. ”
9 cases may have plausible, but when investigated further the forensic evidence didn’t support that. So they weren’t slipped anything, they were just that drunk. The author’s point stands