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    Yoga Nerd, Maybe DeadJia Tolentino
    12/05/14 5:25pm

    Gotta be honest, Jez, I'm disappointed that everyone is so quick to give credence to some silly letter issued by a frat. Your friends over at Gawker have at least cast SOME aspersions. I'm disappointed that the response is "WELP! Guess she lied!"

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      captainkittypantsYoga Nerd, Maybe Dead
      12/05/14 5:32pm

      The credence isn't being given to the frat. It's being given to the extensive reporting done since the story came out by both Rolling Stone and the Washington Post that shows her story is, if not entirely false, significantly different than what actually happened.

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      VodkaRocks&aPieceofToastYoga Nerd, Maybe Dead
      12/05/14 5:34pm

      THANK YOU! Could not be more disappointed in Jez's response right now. Especially this paragraph

      As for me, I think that Jackie's story was always doubtable, as all stories are doubtable. All stories are unrealistic if your lived experience is sufficiently distant.

      WTF does that even mean?!

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    PatBatemanJia Tolentino
    12/05/14 5:25pm

    I just downloaded Yik Yak last night, and can say without a doubt that it is one of the worst outlets of social media to ever be invented. Burn it to the ground.

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      ClementinePatBateman
      12/05/14 5:39pm

      You're reading your local one, then. Peek at a school that has smart people and you'll laugh and laugh. Smart people are funny.

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      rockoutwithyourbockoutPatBateman
      12/05/14 5:41pm

      Yup. Our student body responded to Ferguson recently by threatening to burn down the black culture center on YikYak. Our Chancellor publically shamed people for posting things.

      One of my students had asked in class the day the shaming happened (but shortly before), "You mean, we don't live in a post-racial society?" Yeah, I weep.

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    devilthecatJia Tolentino
    12/05/14 5:22pm

    Am I missing something? I read the original article and the retraction. There is nothing in the retraction that would make me think a tape didn't take place, just that some of the facts are off. Could be whom she reported to, the occasion of the rape, or even if it was truly a gang rape.

    I hate it when shit like this happens. It confirms asshole's observer biases. Ignore the fact that 3 other rapes are mentioned in the story. One is fake now every girl always lies about rape.

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      jbl56Jia Tolentino
      12/05/14 5:16pm

      yeah, i mean, i would wager my left nut that plenty of unreported sexual assaults happened in that frat house...

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        peasandriceJia Tolentino
        12/05/14 5:21pm

        Is someone seriously trying to quote Omar Little about Greek life?

        Also, I'm so old because I have no idea what YikYak even is.

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          fortheloveofmaude2peasandrice
          12/05/14 5:25pm

          Oh thank god I'm not the only one. I was like, YikYak? God damn it, I just got caught up on Snapchat and emojis. (Also, yesterday I yelled at a driver to slow down in my neighborhood, so I'm not feeling especially youthful today.)

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          peasandricefortheloveofmaude2
          12/05/14 5:27pm

          Yes! I thought they were all into the Vines now, but apparently it's YikYak? Get off my lawn!

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        VinJia Tolentino
        12/05/14 5:26pm

        TIL:

        1. People thought Rolling Stone was a credible news/reporting source (LOL!)

        2. Fraternities (and sororities) still need to go the way of the dinosaur.

        3. YikYak is a thing.

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          calamityjane23Vin
          12/05/14 6:11pm

          Rolling Stone is actually a pretty important news source. Matt Taibbi wrote some excellent stuff there about the recession and some truly evil housing foreclosure policies by the banks. Not to mention that article Michael Hastings (RIP) wrote about General McChrystal that single handedly ruined his career. (Which is craaaaazy.) And many other influential articles I could list! But yes, I agree with points 2 and 3. :)

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          Vincalamityjane23
          12/05/14 6:31pm

          Playboy also had some stand-out articles/interviews as well...but I wouldn't feign surprise if they cocked up a big story either. Expose-type journalism isn't their bread and butter, nor is it Rolling Stones.

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        Flame Princess, Garbage-MongerJia Tolentino
        12/05/14 9:54pm

        So hold the phone. Their evidence, and the evidence that made Rolling Stone retract, is that there was no official pledging activity or party that night as evidenced by the fact that there was no official report? NO FUCKING SHIT. You don't report unauthorized ragers to nationals unless you're trying your damnedest to lose your charter. I'm sure the JKL*'s at my college (who were otherwise the biggest nerd frat on campus) didn't report their Jell-O shot parties to nationals either. That said, my school had no Greek housing on campus, but you could still find a bunch of unofficial parties any night of the week.

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          HermionePondFlame Princess, Garbage-Monger
          12/06/14 10:45am

          Seriously. My school didn't have frats, but it did have a policy that all parties must be registered with a report of the number who would be there, a promise that there would be no underage drinking, and an RA check to confirm those details. Guess how many people registered their parties? NO ONE, because of course there would be underage drinking and more people than were allowed.

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        AnnieW50Jia Tolentino
        12/05/14 5:27pm

        So, the frat says there was no official party that weekend so obviously that weekend no one possible could have been drinking and partying there. Jackie may have embellished, may have lied, may have misremembered, but so far all we know is RS is afraid of a lawsuit.

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          albatross_YJia Tolentino
          12/05/14 10:52pm

          EXACTLY.

          If there are no records of whether they had a party or not that night, then who the fuck knows what happened at this point? We need more information to be able to say with certainty what happened, but because UVA sucks dog balls at handling sexual assault, so much time has passed that it might never surface.

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            Common SenseJia Tolentino
            12/05/14 9:13pm

            This is why the issue isn't taken seriously by a number of people. People like "Jackie" and the "accuser" in the Duke Lacrosse case are reasons why men don't take it seriously. The fear of a false accusation. I remember when my ex threatened to go to the cops and tell them I raped her if I didn't get back with her. I got so pissed not only because it was vindictive and untrue but would also make it harder for TRUE victims to come forward.

            We have to respect the rule of law for this reason. Just because someone accuses another of a sexual crime doesn't mean they did it. And it doesn't mean the accuser is telling the truth. Integrity of the system is important or people lose faith it in. Kudos to RS for retracting a false story to preserve Integrity.

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              EasttoMidwestCommon Sense
              12/06/14 10:00am

              No, that's not the REASON, that's the EXCUSE.

              I'm going to assume that you don't mean what you wrote — that it's a reason not to take RAPE seriously — but rather a reason to doubt accusations.

              But somehow this is the only crime that people routinely doubt eye witnesses, despite the fact that anyone can accuse anyone else of any crime. "He mugged me." "Are you sure?" "Yes." Works in every other crime, barring exculpatory evidence.

              Also, I would encourage you to see your ex's threat — and it was just a threat — as inline with threats to kick your ass or make sure you never work in this business again, etc., etc. She did it to scare you with what little power she thought she had. Given that it's unlikely that anyone in law enforcement would have pursued her claims, it's very little power, indeed.

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