OK y'all, let's talk about this...
I generally take people at face value, often to my own detriment. And yes, I want to believe survivors. But I want to believe actual survivors.
No, it is not easy to tell who is lying and who isn't.
Except when it is.
I generally take people at face value, often to my own detriment. And yes, I want to believe survivors. But I want to believe actual survivors.
No, it is not easy to tell who is lying and who isn't.
Except when it is.
When someone has an ulterior motive, they usually have a hard time concealing it. If they even try, or realize they should try.
There's always a tell.
Always take note of anything that seems incongrous, out of context, and most importanly, overly or inexplicably emphasized.
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There's always a tell.
Always take note of anything that seems incongrous, out of context, and most importanly, overly or inexplicably emphasized.
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With the Aziz Anzari girl, it was the wine. She was furious he didn't order her the right wine - I'm not going to go look it up and give them clicks but apparently she had mentioned what wine she liked at some point but that's not what he ordered at dinner.
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She mentioned the wine more than once, giving it the same level of importance as that weird claw move he was doing or how he didn't read her mind when she said yes but secretly meant no.
To her it was a major smoking gun. To the rest of us it made no sense.
That's the tell.
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To her it was a major smoking gun. To the rest of us it made no sense.
That's the tell.
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With Lucy Flores, her article was fine. Someone sniffed her hair and she was traumatized. I don't get it, but sure. She has the right to tell her story, and she did.
(I'm not linking that picture but we've all seen it.)
Then she hit the talk shows.
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(I'm not linking that picture but we've all seen it.)
Then she hit the talk shows.
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Flores, who everybody knows is a Bernie surrogate, told her story to several media outlets, as is her right.
But she kept forgetting to mention how traumatized she was. She kept pivoting to "Joe Biden should step aside because it's time to elect a woman."
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But she kept forgetting to mention how traumatized she was. She kept pivoting to "Joe Biden should step aside because it's time to elect a woman."
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So is he stepping aside because he has wronged you?
Or is he stepping aside because it's time to elect a woman?
And oh look, it turns out Ms. Flores is working for Elizabeth Warren.
This type of thing does women everywhere - especially women candidates - a disservice.
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Or is he stepping aside because it's time to elect a woman?
And oh look, it turns out Ms. Flores is working for Elizabeth Warren.
This type of thing does women everywhere - especially women candidates - a disservice.
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"Jackie" at UVA
Disclaimer: I went to school in Virginia and spent a LOT of time at those fraternities back in the day, but this is not about that.
This case is slightly different, but still noteworthy...
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Disclaimer: I went to school in Virginia and spent a LOT of time at those fraternities back in the day, but this is not about that.
This case is slightly different, but still noteworthy...
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What immediately jumped out at me was when she quoted one of her assailants as saying, "Grab its leg."
I mean, who talks like that? We're talking about college students, not mafia hit men.
I wasn't shocked at all when the real story came out.
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I mean, who talks like that? We're talking about college students, not mafia hit men.
I wasn't shocked at all when the real story came out.
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What's weird about that - For some other people, that was the quote that made them "know" it was true.
Which I guess is why she included it.
But little embellishments like that, a little too "on the nose" - that's the tell.
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Which I guess is why she included it.
But little embellishments like that, a little too "on the nose" - that's the tell.
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Susan Smith was (of course) a white woman who was in love with some guy who didn't want kids.
Problem was, Susan had two of them.
So she drowned them in a lake.
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Problem was, Susan had two of them.
So she drowned them in a lake.
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Susan claimed she was carjacked "by a black guy" and that's who did it.
It didn't take long for everyone to notice that for some reason, the carjacker let her keep her purse.
A lot of you are too young to remember this but it made a major impression on my generation.
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It didn't take long for everyone to notice that for some reason, the carjacker let her keep her purse.
A lot of you are too young to remember this but it made a major impression on my generation.
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Ashley Smith was a 2008 McCain volunteer.
She loved being a part of something, the sense of belonging. That's a really nice thing about campaigns.
Ashley wanted to help McCain. Everybody she knew hated Barack Obama.
Ashley hatched a plan. She would be a hero to the cause.
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She loved being a part of something, the sense of belonging. That's a really nice thing about campaigns.
Ashley wanted to help McCain. Everybody she knew hated Barack Obama.
Ashley hatched a plan. She would be a hero to the cause.
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Ashley claimed "some black thugs" (something like that, you know the drill) saw her McCain bumper sticker and followed her car. When she stopped at an ATM they jumped her, told her to "vote for Obama or else," and carved a B (for Barack?) into her face.
The B was backwards.
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The B was backwards.
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There are cameras at ATMs. I'm not sure she even said which one.
There were also cameras in the convenient store were she went into the bathroom to carve up her own face.
To everyone's credit, including the McCain campaign, this one never got off the ground.
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There were also cameras in the convenient store were she went into the bathroom to carve up her own face.
To everyone's credit, including the McCain campaign, this one never got off the ground.
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These are of course extreme cases.
But these are events that- for better or worse- shaped the lens through which I view situations like this.
Also, I grew up in South, well-versed in the shameful legacy of Carolyn Bryant, the monster who falsely accused Emmett Till.
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But these are events that- for better or worse- shaped the lens through which I view situations like this.
Also, I grew up in South, well-versed in the shameful legacy of Carolyn Bryant, the monster who falsely accused Emmett Till.
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And this story right here? It has EVERYTHING.
1) White girl accuses black man
2) "Victim" doesn't decide she's a victim until much later when guy doesn't call her
3) "Victim" becomes a celebrity, uses victimhood to futher her career.
It makes me sick😠
1) White girl accuses black man
2) "Victim" doesn't decide she's a victim until much later when guy doesn't call her
3) "Victim" becomes a celebrity, uses victimhood to futher her career.
It makes me sick😠
So back to Tara. Her story changed so many times and is so full of holes, a 7th grader could tell she's lying.
She in contradicted by her own personnel record and her own contemporaneous blog.
A blog she deleted and then LIED about deleting.
You can't make this stuff up.
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She in contradicted by her own personnel record and her own contemporaneous blog.
A blog she deleted and then LIED about deleting.
You can't make this stuff up.
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I'm not going to rehash it. The receipts are out there.
But Tara had two MAJOR tells.
First, she claims Biden said, "C'mon, man, I heard you like me."
Seriously?
Or is that something you'd say if you were trying to sound like Biden.
Nobody was saying "C'mon, man" in 1993
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But Tara had two MAJOR tells.
First, she claims Biden said, "C'mon, man, I heard you like me."
Seriously?
Or is that something you'd say if you were trying to sound like Biden.
Nobody was saying "C'mon, man" in 1993
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That IMMEDIATELY reminded me of "Jackie" and "Grab its leg"
Also (I just remembered this) Jackie said her friends begged her not to go to the police bc they might not get invited to any more fraternity parties.
That's some serious After School Special melodrama right there.
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Also (I just remembered this) Jackie said her friends begged her not to go to the police bc they might not get invited to any more fraternity parties.
That's some serious After School Special melodrama right there.
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But the big one for me (I freely admit it's bc this speaks to my personal experience)
Tara's story changed many times but one thing stayed the same- she's super pissed off about "the window-less office" that she was her punishment for turning him down
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Tara's story changed many times but one thing stayed the same- she's super pissed off about "the window-less office" that she was her punishment for turning him down
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This went on longer than I meant for it to (and I had to take a moment to cry about Emmett Till)
My point is this:
It is not disloyal to women or MeToo to consider all available evidence with a critical eye.
It's disloyal NOT to.
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My point is this:
It is not disloyal to women or MeToo to consider all available evidence with a critical eye.
It's disloyal NOT to.
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We owe it to real survivors - and women everywhere - to trust our instincts and use common sense.
Women like this make all women look bad and make real victims less likely to be taken seriously.
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Women like this make all women look bad and make real victims less likely to be taken seriously.
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I was out on a limb on this issue for a long time. Plenty of people do not like what I have to say about this.
But you can't say I haven't been consistent.
And being "proven right" about Tara is nothing to celebrate or gloat about.
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But you can't say I haven't been consistent.
And being "proven right" about Tara is nothing to celebrate or gloat about.
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Here's the original thread/article that got me shunned by the Cool Kids of Twitter and basically kicked out of feminism.
(Keep in mind this was before KG got involved.)
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sallyal.ink/ListenToWomen
(Keep in mind this was before KG got involved.)
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sallyal.ink/ListenToWomen
Thanks for reading. I happy to keep the discussion going.
And as always, if I'm not following you and you'd like me too, please let me know.
And as always, if I'm not following you and you'd like me too, please let me know.
