Hofstra Gang Rape Wasn't Rape—but It Wasn't OK

Four men released from jail after accuser admits sex was consensual

(NEWSER) - A reported gang rape at Hofstra University wasn't a rape after all, the local DA says. The accuser "recanted her claims against the five young men," a school official told students in a text message. The four men who had been charged—and publicly identified—were released from jail last night, Newsday reports. The 18-year-old accuser hasn't been identified. More»

(NEWSER) - A psychiatrist who was part of a presidential committee that recommended raising the US drinking age to 21 now calls those efforts “the single most regrettable decision,” the Los Angeles Times reports. Morris Chafetz, in an opinion piece being shopped for publication, says seeing the “collateral, off-road damage”—binge drinking, date rape and the like—wrought by the1984 law has left him disillusioned. More»

Double X scribe says untamed 'lifestyle' feminism hurts cause

(NEWSER) - It's second-wave feminism vs. the "Slut Machine." A writer on Slate's women-oriented Double X site recently blasted bloggers on Jezebel for shrugging off date rape and boasting about boozing. Self-indulgence furthers no political goal, cried feminist Linda Hirshman. Retorted Jezebel: "I have seen misogyny and, most of the time, it looks a lot like the ideology Hirshman has the audacity to call 'feminism.'" More»

St. Patty's crackdown turns profs into bouncers at Illinois

(NEWSER) - University of Illinois officials will search students’ backpacks and confiscate containers they suspect might contain alcohol during tomorrow’s “Unofficial St. Patrick’s Day,” the Chicago Tribune reports. Students typically pack campus bars for green beer as early as 8am, and some take drinks to class. “It is surprising that students would actually decide to both celebrate ‘Unofficial’ and go to class,” a spokeswoman said. More»