What do you find abhorrent?
If you're Duke University President Richard Brodhead, it appears that what you find abhorrent depends on just who you're having the conversation with.
On Thursday, as reported by the Durham Herald-Sun, Brodhead told the Durham Chamber of Commerce:
Speaking to a group of alumni on Saturday, as reported by the Associated Press, here's how the exchange went:
Okay, Dick, which is it? Did the Duke lacrosse players practice behavior that was abhorrent to you, before we even consider whether or not they are responsible for the alleged sexual assault? Or is that just something you say to the good folks of Durham to get them to think that you actually give a fuck about what goes on east of Buchanan St. and north of Markham Ave? And if you really think that the lacrosse players acted in an abhorrent fashion, and engaged in behavior that the University is not in the habit of condoning, why couldn't you stand up to the alumni and tell them how you really feel?
Are those contributions that good that they're worth being a shill for?
On Thursday, as reported by the Durham Herald-Sun, Brodhead told the Durham Chamber of Commerce:
Whether the accusations prove to be true or not, other acts of misbehavior attributed to the lacrosse team were "abhorrent," Brodhead said.
"It's not the kind of behavior we have the habit of condoning," he said.
Speaking to a group of alumni on Saturday, as reported by the Associated Press, here's how the exchange went:
Kent Bishop, who said he lettered in lacrosse in 1960, asked Brodhead about lifting Seligmann's suspension, citing a timeline offered by the defense team they have said indicates the player did not have enough time to participate in the 30-minute assault described by the accuser before leaving the party."
"I think that would simply be Duke following the rule of law and more importantly, supporting a student apparently, or maybe obviously, falsely accused," Bishop said.
Brodhead replied, "If these students are guilty of what they've been charged with, they're guilty of something abhorrent. If they're innocent of what they've been charged with, then it is abhorrent that they should have been held guilty for it in the press.
Okay, Dick, which is it? Did the Duke lacrosse players practice behavior that was abhorrent to you, before we even consider whether or not they are responsible for the alleged sexual assault? Or is that just something you say to the good folks of Durham to get them to think that you actually give a fuck about what goes on east of Buchanan St. and north of Markham Ave? And if you really think that the lacrosse players acted in an abhorrent fashion, and engaged in behavior that the University is not in the habit of condoning, why couldn't you stand up to the alumni and tell them how you really feel?
Are those contributions that good that they're worth being a shill for?
Since 1949, Durhamites have slept soundly, secure in the knowledge that, in our town, erection can be depended upon. Now, thanks to the power of the internets, we can spread that security all over the world.
1 Comments:
I remember the quotes at the time, but I didn't make the connection of what a double standard Brodhead had depending on his audience.
I have abstained from venting about the lacrosse case over the past couple of days, lest I get swarmed by Dukies who talk of the three cleared players as if they're Nelson Mandela. In general, I find the players', attorneys', and Duke officials' lack of regret over the pre-alleged-rape abhorrent behavior to be reprehensible. The players may not have deserved the ordeal of the past year, but they don't deserve martyrdom, either.
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toastie, at 1:31 AM
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