By Laura Woodhouse | 1 October 2007, 17:43

According to Londonist, some arsehole sticking a camera on his shoes and filming up women’s skirts with the intention of putting the images on the ‘net is really damn funny. Oh, and British women wear shit underwear.

Well this woman would be pretty pissed off if she was on the receiving end of Peeping Dave’s high jinks - having my privacy violated and being used for some dickbrain’s sexual gratification really isn’t my idea of good comedy times. The refusal to view incidents like this seriously feeds into the general lack of importance given to sexual harrassment and violence against women, one of the reasons why many women feel unable to report it.

Having said that, had I read The Whole Woman before I was flashed at Barcelona train station a few years ago, I think I would have taken Germaine Greer’s advice and tried to laugh at and mock my assailant rather than screaming with fear. However, for me it is up to the individual targetted to choose how best to react to and contextualise their experience, and unfeeling, “witty” analysis like Londonist’s does nothing to help anyone.

For the record, my star spangled boxers are just about the finest pair of pants around, ta very much. Gah.