I'm just chalking this one up to "People are Dumb"

[omorka]

. . . but this was really embarrassing for everyone involved.

Miss Todd, honey? Let me let you in on something. Any time any woman, anywhere, pulls a stunt like this, it (a) feeds into all kinds of ugly racist stereotypes - stories like this used to end with a noose, and not so very long ago that it's out of living memory, and (b) - more importantly, perhaps, to you and me directly - gives plausibility to every male rapist everywhere who claims his victim is lying. Got that, dearie? Bless your little heart, you've just potentially set every female survivor of physical and sexual assault back twenty years. Don't do that. Sexual assault is too damned important for you to use for a bit of psychosocial political theater. Or did you not go through the usual date-rape seminar up in College Station? If nothing else, imagine who'll believe you, personally, now if you're ever molested on campus (or anywhere else - gods help you if you ever really are attacked at an ATM).

--

In other news, Rangerdon's culinary arts classes are starting up "Cafe R" again, where they prepare lunches and sell them to the faculty and staff for reasonable prices. I have to admit - the next two weeks' menu is harvest-themed, and looks really good. I might actually order a lunch this time (I never did last year due to a combination of timing and never really liking anything on the menu - they're rather fond of bell pepper up there). However, one of the menu items - a salad - starts with pear halves poached in a citrus-vanilla bath, adds all kinds of yummy ingredients like goat cheese and walnuts (along with red onions, which I admit I am not so fond of) - and ends with a honey mustard dressing. I'll admit, I was stunned for a minute by the idea of vanilla + mustard. It seems like a hugely bad idea, especially since they could just as easily mix up something like an orange vinaigrette.

Comments

[greeneyedpagan.livejournal.com]

I do not think I have ever heard you sufficiently wound up to use that many Southernisms in one post, ever.
Honey! Dearie! Bless your little heart!

That idiot girl better thank what few lucky stars she might have left that you are not in the same room with her. Well, or that any of us are, bless her heart. I wonder if the scar will be permanent, or if the RNC will pay for plastic surgery?

[mordath.livejournal.com]

Yes, exactly. This means every real victim out there has less of a chance of being taken seriously, which is horrible.

[fionnghal.livejournal.com]

Not to mention she just marked up another example of McCain supporters as being fanatical nutjobs out to do anything for attention.

[quantumduck.livejournal.com]

Just to be fair, she didn't allege sexual assault. Not that her allegations won't hurt the cause of women everywhere, but you make it sound like she alleged sexual assault. I had to do a double take and reread the articles because of your comments.

Sadly I disbelieved her straight away. It felt too stereotypical to be real. I've seen too many muggers and too many victims. Her damage didn't match her story. The gender issues didn't even occur to me until after I'd read about it.

[omorka.livejournal.com]

Actually, in one of her (several, somewhat confused) versions of the story, she did allege that he molested her (here's a more detailed version of the story from The Pittsburgh Channel (http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/news/17789356/detail.html)). I hadn't realized that the TPM link didn't mention that; sorry, I'd've also included the local news link if I had. I guess all the websites are running together in my head.

The sexual assault aspect was in one of the mainstream news media versions I read earlier, too, but it doesn't appear in either Time.com's or CNN's version now. I guess that particular aspect of "protect our white women from the evil black men" squinked out enough people that they dropped it when the hoax aspect became clear.

[omorka.livejournal.com]

Guessing from the photos of her today when they charged her with making false accusations, if she takes care of it and keeps it clean it probably won't leave much of a mark, if anything at all. From her description of not being able to remember how she got it, I am vaguely wondering if she was drunk at the time - might explain her not remembering mirror-reversal.

[lolleeroberts.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the minute I heard that I thought it was going to be either a nutjob hoax or an urban legend "friend of a friend's sister who no one knows the name of". Evidently there's a history of mental illness.

And vanilla and mustard actually go surprising well together. I got it somewhere in a dressing recently and I was not expecting it to be as pleasant as it was.

[starcat-jewel.livejournal.com]

Jesu Christe -- not only is she from College Station, but she's wearing a UT Vols sweatshirt! How many more points of tangency am I going to find?

[quantumduck.livejournal.com]

I see. Yeah. I don't think I ever read anything about that on CNN (which is one of the few domestic news sources I'll read with a straight face). I guess she figured once you're lying about something you might as well press every button you can.

[doctorcaligari.livejournal.com]

IIRC, the police do suspect her of having 'mental health issues.'

Whether they are basing this theory SOLELY on the fact of her lying (and, I presume, carving up her own face?) or on other evidence they've gathered, I dunno.

But it may eventually develop she's not FULLY responsible for her actions.

Not that that changes the result at all...