Please note: I am not actually shocked. You can click through, if you like – the AP gets incredibly whiny if you quote more than five characters’ worth of their stuff – but the gist is that the University of Virginia will continue to study the situation* while keeping the suspensions standing. To be marginally fair about this, the suspensions were set to expire for the new school year anyway; presumably campus officials don’t want to spend their Christmas holidays listening to the 2014 Left’s answer to the anti-Satanic Ritual Abuse Crusade.
…Well, I could compare those people to, say, medieval witch-burning fanatics. Except that it’d be unfair; after all, the aforementioned fanatics were very possibly suffering from inadvertent ergot poisoning. Our home-grown crusaders don’t have the excuse of hallucinogenics to explain away their behavior patterns…
Moe Lane
*I know, I know: the ‘situation’ is that Rolling Stone put out what is being generally conceded now as being a fake story about a horrific ritual gang rape; and that the University of Virginia managed to grab that particular red-hot pot handle long enough to get a really wicked burn going. The problem there is that that particular story may not really end well for the University of Virginia. And for Rolling Stone, of course, but nobody in the university administration really cares about them…
Isn’t the University potentially setting themselves up for a lawsuit, just like Duke University did?
I would guess, legally, certain documents are worded such that the university can eliminate any student organization at a whim. Whether or not it would be wise, considering alumni donations would most likely crater, would be another question entirely.
… alumni donations would most likely crater …
Bingo. Something like one-third of UVa graduates are members of Greek fraternities and sororities. Even if the suspensions expire at the end of this semester, those alumni can — and will — HURT President Sullivan and the rest of the SJWs in her administration.
Apropos of nothing, I sometimes wonder how a chemical with as nasty effects as ergot wound up with people figuring out it does such a good job getting rid of migraines and the other things it helps out with.
Sexual assault panic and witch hunt!!! While it is probably only the second time I have ever been to Slate, Ace recommended this excellant article by Ellen Yoffre:
http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/doublex/2014/12/college_rape_campus_sexual_assault_is_a_serious_problem_but_the_efforts.html
It is also an amusing statement that Obama is an idiot and a liar. Really showcases the witch-hunt nature of college sex investigations. Suprise, suprise, the whole thing leads back to the Obama administration Dept of Education Office for Civil Rights (title unintentionally ironic).
Beat me. What a great article.
I must admit that UVA being a state school, I am kind of hoping for a 42 USC 1983 suit for denial of civil rights under color of law by the Fraternities and Sororities. Blanket punishment with no specific allegation of wrongdoing can be hard to defend in a real court. And that statute specifically voids the defense of sovereign immunity. However, I will leave off popping that popcorn until it is filed.
I do wonder a) what effect this whole thing will have on the number of males who apply to and attend UVA? And b) what effect it will have on the social life on campus. What male would knowingly take the chance of doing more than be civil to a female student? Yeah, I know, hormones. But there has to be some learning curve there.
The Greeks Strike Back:
http://www.politico.com/story/2014/12/uva-greek-system-rolling-stone-113385.html
I *am* shocked.
The University is putting themselves in more legal trouble than they were already in.
I wish the fraternities the best of luck with their FOIA requests, discovery, and their coming punitive lawsuit.
.
The UVA administration has declared war on the Greek system on the flimsiest of grounds.
There’s nothing to be done but fight and win, or yield and die.
But University President Teresa Sullivan emphasized last week that the new focus on curbing sexual assault on campus, catalyzed by the article, shouldn’t be compromised because of the doubts over the victim’s account.
.
So it’s a fake story but don’t let that get in the way of putting the witches on trial. I’m so looking forward to watching this play out.