I have been trying to find out more about this story before I posted on it. But I can't get anything other than what everyone else already knows, so I will give you my thoughts.
Unfortunately, It seems there was another alleged rape on another upper crust American college campus. This time the alleged rape occurred at Villanova University -or as I like to call it; Vanilla-Nova-which is located on the "main line" section of my hometown of Philadelphia. Now for those of you familiar with Philly, you will know that the main line is Philadelphia's equivalent to Beverly Hills, or West Palm Beach, if you get my drift.
As the story goes, three randy freshman football players did indeed have sex with a college coed in one of the dorms, while they should have been learning their play books and getting ready for the rigors of college life. (What the hell is wrong with these kids? Rape or no rape, could you keep your dicks in your pants until you have played one home game at least?) Now here is what bothers me about the whole story: After an internal college investigation all three men were booted off campus and their football scholarships rescinded. Coach Andy Talley, who has been at Nova since 1985, says he spoke to all three of the players and got their side of the story. I for one am really curious to know what that story was. And, I hear the Radnor police won't be pressing criminal charges because the victim in question does not want to press charges. And frankly, without the victim's cooperation in these cases you have zilch. 
So why isn't the victim pressing charges?
So why isn't the victim pressing charges?Now let me say for the record; that if these young men did rape this young lady, she should press charges, and they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for their alleged criminal behavior. See, I am consistent, I felt that way about the Duke case too. Oh, did I say the Duke case? Well so far the only similarity this case has to that one is that they both occurred on a college campus of the privileged, and multiple athletes are being accused of rape. I wish I could tell you about some of the racial similarities, but every one is clamming up on this one. I mean everybody. The local press, the University, the families involved, everybody. Even my contact in the prosecutor's office out there isn't saying anything about these individuals. So what does that tell you? It tells me that they don't want bloggers like the damn field Negro making a racial issue of this. After all, it was just an unfortunate incident with some college students right?
Boy I sure hate to speculate....but....hey, we will wait to see what happens. Somehow I doubt the victim involved here will press charges, and somehow I doubt the players involved will make an issue of it, because they are not being charged criminally. They will pack up, go home, and hope for another chance somewhere else. And the alleged victim will chalk it up to a bad experience, go on with her life, and just hope it all goes away. Kind of like those Dukies wish that stripper had done in their case.
Let's hope that this is the last of me blogging about this, although somehow I am feeling like Arnold in the Terminator when he said: "I'll be back."
Love the picture.
ReplyDeleteJocks rape women because they think they can do whatever they want. Most jocks don't rape, but most I suspect also secretly still think they're better than everyone else.
And yes, society encourages this, because we put them at the top of the social pecking order from a young age, where they stay for years and years.
They're like famous child actors: give a young kid a lot of power and privilege, and they end up like Danny Bonaduce.
That doesn't excuse their behavior, but it doesn't excuse ours either.
Jimbo
I agree. I don't want to speculate, but I've seen these cases here in Kentucky turn out to be different at the end than where they started. And for sure, there's still an innocent until proven guilty clause in the law somewhere. I know it's there...somewhere. Now wait a minute ...I just saw it somewhere. Maybe it wherever justice left it's car keys or under that damned Patriot Act. Hell, if it's there there, we'll never find it.
ReplyDeleteAbout the Eye Opener - It's IDAHO. IDAHO.
ReplyDeleteCome on...he can't be surprised.
As for the football players, does nobody sit these young men and talk to them about the social mores on a college campus.
And the latest killing in Philly - I'm with you....I was in COLLEGE before I was up at 3:00 in the morning. Dr. Jawanzu Kunjufu has a series of numbers that he talks about with these young men, but these are the ones of interest here.
10
2
10 and 2. He says that most trouble occurs for young men between the hours of 10 pm and 2 am. Knowing where your sons and daughters are during this time period is crucial for them. NO responsible parent is going to have a child be out at 3 in the morning.
LOL at nick stump, and rikyrah, the kid being out at 3:00 AM bothered me too.
ReplyDeleteOn the 15 year old being out at 3 in the morning... you know what the answer is Field. The Parents (more likely ParenT Singular) are not on the job. There is very little parental accountability.
ReplyDeleteAnd folks actually wanted to come down on Cosby... who was just telling the truth?
People like to sidetrack Cosby's arguments by taking things out of context, etc... but at the heart of what he was talking about was Parenting and restoring some sort of Family order.
Cosby is considered by many "Black" folks as being a "sellout" or "uncle tom" for saying what needed to be said...yet he continues to be proven right as more and more Black youth end up in jail or dead. It's all playing out right there in his own home city.
It may be bad parenting, but it can be hard to physically to keep a 15 year old in the house. Some kids are willing to do the time, to do something they want to do.
ReplyDeleteI have a feeling that the reason the girl will not press charges, is because she feels that her name will be leaked and she will plastered all over the net. I do think the Duke case has a chilling effect on report of rape. Especially if the victims think they aren't 100% pure, regardless of what the law says. Before the ink was dry on the complaint, the bloggers made it their business to investigate and put Ms. Mangum on trial. I just came across this article, from the quote it doesn't seem men of privilege understand rape.
Summary: Tucker Carlson asserted that the testimony of a woman allegedly raped at an off-campus party hosted by members of the Duke University men's lacrosse team "is to be taken ... a little differently" from that of "an ordinary person" because she is "a crypto-hooker" who "hires herself out to dance naked in front of and ... sometimes sleep with ... strangers."
One of the so call victims, Reade Seligmann has been admitted to Brown University. What reputation of theirs have been destroyed?
@ hathor: yeah, that's why you can't wait until they're fifteen to start laying ground rules and instilling the 'what i say goes' understanding in them. when you learn that as a young child, at fifteen you will already know not to test it.
ReplyDeleteas far as the vanilla-nova, lol.(hey my friend went there and she's black). i am willing to bet the girl in question is white. i'm almost sure of it. and the players, also white. i'm almost sure of it. why she isn't pressing charges? well my theory is this, ....well let me not start airing my conspiracy theories just yet. lol.
On a different tick (and I'm bound to get attacked for this) Nova ain't as "upper crust" as all that. I recall running into a LOT of thick-necked Irish and Italian Catholic knuckleheads from South Philly, rural (Allentown-type) Pa., Cherry Hill, NJ etc.
ReplyDeleteI'm just being contrary. lol
natural muze,
ReplyDeleteI am not exactly sure of what you mean. But let me say those white bloggers would not necessarily be on a white woman's side, when it come to rape; it would only be if the players are black and if the players were crucial to the team, she would have to go down too.
"Summary: Tucker Carlson asserted that the testimony of a woman allegedly raped at an off-campus party hosted by members of the Duke University men's lacrosse team "is to be taken ... a little differently" from that of "an ordinary person" because she is "a crypto-hooker" who "hires herself out to dance naked in front of and ... sometimes sleep with ... strangers."
ReplyDeleteI don't like Tucker Carlson! In my opinion, he couldn't believe the rich white dukies were capable of raping a stripper...period. And he sucked on Dancing With The Stars.
I hate to bring race into it, but I find I must. If that victim is white, God help those players she accused if they are African-American.'Nuff said.
ReplyDeleteAt my college, a cheerleader got raped by some members of the football team (I attended a private, liberal arts college which was 85% white). The girl and those she accused where white. A Black guy, editor of the school newspaper, put her story on page 1, when the school tried to play cover up (one of the accused was the starting quarterback, dontcha know?)
The school kicked brotha-man off the paper, and the few of us of color (15%) were united, along with the white girls, scared to death of being assaulted by the football team, threatened to leave St. Mary's and tell everything we knew to the Associated Press, if the brotha didn't get his editing gig back, and if those players weren't exposed and punished.
The San Francisco Chronicle had a reporter on standby, because they editor had a daughter attending St. Mary's.
Well, the brotha got his gig back. But the football players weren't punished. And they gave the victim six figures to shut up about the whole thing.
I think she tried to commit suicide, and then she finally left St. Mary's and went somewhere else.
What is with these kids is that their parents aren't teaching them that "No" means "No" and even if the girl is being a cock-tease, leave her alone and pretend her "No" really means "No".
Hathor, I appreciate your empathy about why the Duke case might have had a chilling effect on rape victims and influence their decision to press charges or not. I also want to say that historically and at present, the experience of reporting rape is what has a chilling effect on people's willingness to press charges. I didn't need the Duke case to keep me from doing it a decade and a half ago, nor did/do most other people, who mostly do not report sexual assaults to police. Mostly you know the person/people who did it. Mostly you already think it's at least partially your fault, or you are sure that other people will, and really? all that on top of everything else? No motherfucking thank you.
ReplyDeleteI used to do rape counseling at the university I for, that was back in the '80's, I am discouraged to see rape survivors, (and that's exactly what they are) still suffer the trauma of being judged by everyone.
ReplyDeleteThe blame and the judgement are among the most difficult aspects to get through, not to mention the violence of the act itself.
I am stunned at the stupidity of those that do not know what they speak of when they judge anyone who has survived an assault so personal and so intense it feels like annihilation.
We're not getting any better are we?
@Christopher Chambers
ReplyDeleteWell, of course you have that belief of Villanova, you went to an Ivy League school!
Ahahaha!
Got ta love that good old educational elitism! This Smithie gets it!
L
IT'S OKAY TO HIRE "THEM" ~ IT'S NOT OKAY TO BE "THEM"
ReplyDeleteDon Imus used a racial slur on his talk show.
PUNISHMENT: Imus fired and lost his job.
Derry Aimo Schmidt, of Cary, N.C. dropped his child off in a school bus zone; school bus driver gets off bus and confronts him and he uses a racial slur.
PUNISHMENT: Schmidt arrested and charged with three misdemeanor charges of assault and a Class I felony charge of a hate crime (yelling racial slurs) and confined in the Wake County Jail Wednesday evening under a $175,000 bond. [THIS GUY WOULD HAVE BEEN PUNISHED LESS IF HE HAD BEEN CHARGED WITH SEXUALLY ASSAULTING A CHILD]
Duke Lacrosse player, Colin Finnerty screamed in a stranger's ear "SAY YOU'RE A FAGGOT!" because Colin thought the guy was 'gay'. Colin Finnerty raging and calling Jeff Bloxsom a homosexual along with other derogatory remarks chose to commit assault and battery and violent acts upon Bloxsom, and joined by his Lacrosse thugs accomplices, they beat Jeff Bloxsom and after Bloxsom fell to the ground, they continued to kick and beat him; four (4) large Lacrosse athletes beat up one (1) stranger!!
PUNISHMENT: None. Duke welcomed Finnerty back into the fold with open arms. A judge expunged Finnerty's record.
"Thank your grandpa for my nice cotton shirt." [Duke student yelling at THE ACCUSER from the Duke Lacrosse Party House overheard and reported by a neighbor.]
PUNISHMENT: unknown
Duke Lacrosse Team Captain McFadden #41 racially threatening e-mail: "To whom it may concern tomorrow night, after tonights show, ive decided to have some strippers over to edends 2c. all are welcome.. however there will be no nudity. i plan on killing the bitches as soon as the walk in and proceed to cut their skin off while cumming in my duke issue spandex.. all in besides arch and tack please respond 41"
**Why did McFadden feel it necessary to state there will be no nudity? - Can I presume that ''nudity'' was prevalent at other Duke Lacrosse parties? Ya think?
**The use of the term "bitches" is acceptable because ...................?
**''killing the bitches as soon as the (sic) walk in and proceed to cut their skin off while cumming in my duke issue spandex'' is acceptable because.............................?
**"cutting off their skin" implies, to me, that he is hiring black strippers. [shudder}
Taking into consideration the escalating and extremely high number of domestic violence incidents, abuse, and sexual assaults in North Carolina, NO WAY can this e-mail be considered evidence of innocence? IT IS NOT FUNNY! It is very very troubling. Beyond disgusting! But it does go to show how the media can spin racism, hate and crimes into innocent behavior of a few 'elite white boys'.
PUNISHMENT: None. Duke University took immediate steps to safeguard the 6'6" 225 lb Lacrosse Team Captain, McFadden.
Duke players yelled racial slurs at the dancers, using the "N" word.
PUNISHMENT: None
Duke Lacrosse players shouting racial slurs at strangers walking past the Duke Party House. Stranger calls 911.
PUNISHMENT: None. Duke University President, Richard Brodhead said, "I have now had the opportunity to listen to the tape," "It is disgusting. Racism and its hateful language have no place in this community. I am sorry the woman and her friend were subjected to such abuse.”
The 'only' player that did not attend the party was the single African American on the team. Was he just not invited?
Why on earth would Mike Nifong refer to these boys as "rogues?" DUH !!
On April 26, 2006, a month after the Duke Lacrosse party, a DUKE female student reported she was raped by a student who walked her back to her dorm from a party in his room in the Keohane dormitory on campus. Investigators searched his room where a group of students had gathered on the last day of school to drink and use marijuana, a traditional day of partying at DUKE. Police found possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and they took DNA samples. At this Keohane dorm party, a vaporizer was rigged to spew marijuana smoke into the air so everyone could get high. ~~ GO DUKE! It was reported that Duke officials are aware that parties where alcohol and drugs are served are customary and traditional on Duke Campus.
PUNISHMENT: Who knows? The story was killed for obvious reasons.
Now for a look at the First Responder Experts:
Expert #1, a female Kroger grocery clerk phoned 911 and reported a female in someone else's car who refused to get out. The Kroger clerk said "she's like, intoxicated, drunk or something." The grocery clerk later told a private investigator that, based on her encounter with the dancer that night. "There ain't no way she was raped." WOW! Kroger trains it's grocery clerks to diagnose whether a traumatic hysterical female in obvious distress was raped or not! Impressive!
Expert #2, a police/security officer, upon discovering an extremely hysterical female displaying major symptoms of a panic/anxiety attack and who had a death grip on a steering wheel, instantly diagnosed her condition and reported in that she did not need medical attention because she is not in distress -- she's just passed-out drunk".. The officer's visual diagnosis, apparently, concluded she was not in danger, had not been assaulted, that she had not been given any 'drugs', she had not been abused or assaulted, etc. Awesome! Law enforcement cross trains officers in on-the-spot visual medical and psychological diagnostic procedures in recognition of rape, assault, possible use of 'date rape drug', and hysteria. Freaking Amazing!
When, why, and who decided to finally take her to a rape unit? Was it just an after thought? Well, it was too late to identify the date rape drug, if it was used. Good Job! How long has this drug been around and was it ever used by an 'elite' DUKE student? In 1997, a second year DUKE medical student, David Coolidge, Jr., was believed to have given the well known date drug to a 13-year old boy and then he sexually assaulted the child in his DUKE dorm room. As is customary in North Carolina, he was only convicted of Indecent Liberties with a Child and given probation only. He is currently on the NC Sex Offender Registry and will be taken off the registry in March 2008.
In spite of it's epidemic use on campus and by young people in America, the date rape drug, rohypnol, was never reported to have even been considered in the Duke Lacrosse Rape Case. The use of the date rape drug is reaching pandemic proportions in America. This drug is not detectable after a short period of time. It is 'tasteless' drug rendering the victim totally unable to resist; causing major memory loss and inability to recall details of the rape; in some cases there is no memory at all; it causes major confusion, hysteria, panic, disorientation, etc. shall I go on? The second dancer reported that she did not consume the drink offered to her but the accuser drank hers and her demeanor and appearance changed.
As is usual in the great State of NC, DA Mike Nifong and the accuser were tried and lynched by the MEDIA, NC Attorney General Roy T. Cooper, those 'special expensive defense lawyers', and Congressman Walter Jones. Evidence that would never be allowed in a COURT OF LAW was allowed in the MEDIA COURT TRIAL. The EVIDENCE was never shown to the public. We are just supposed to believe and take the word of Attorney General Roy T. Cooper, serving as the Media Judge and Jury. I often wonder why all three of the boys didn't take a polygraph. I also wonder why the results of the single Evans' polygraph were not made public; we just had to take Evans word for it that he passed it. I wonder what questions he had to answer on the polygraph. I guess I'll never know.
One of the most egregious injustices committed was the action taken by a judge who blatantly violated the accuser's fourth amendment Constitutional Rights by ordering a paternity test without probable cause. Both prosecutors and defense attorneys agree there's no chance one of the three indicted players could be the father. The 'victim' has not made a claim against anyone, and no one has claimed to be the father, ergo, there is no probable cause and no justification for the judge's ruling, in my opinion.
I am 100% sure the only one trying to get at the truth was Mike Nifong; I am certain no one else was and there was all an all out war to save DUKE'S IMAGE and escalate these despicable rich elite Duke Lacrosse players to hero status. ~ Barf! ~ Roy T. Cooper was not concerned in 'justice' for all. This was blatant racism, class and culture good old boys versus low-income black, minority female. The South has risen, again.
NORTH CAROLINA - building a bridge to the 17th century!
The view from inside Uncle Tom's cabin.
Myra Kinderknecht