Butt Slap University

A hot topic among our students and faculty of the past week has been that of the Ass Slapper. I know a lot of people have probably posted on this, but I just wanted to get my two cents in.

I know that the situation is wrong, and that whoever did it shouldn't have done it, but I just can't get over my frustration with how ridiculous this whole situation is.

First of all, I really don't believe it's a newsworthy story, and I blame all the news networks and companies that have published stories on it. I think that news needs to focus more on things that affect me, and I really don't think that this affects me. Many people talk about how it does affect me, because it's sexual harassment, sexual assault, etc... but in all honesty, I think someone calling this sexual assault is just ridiculous.

For me, when I think of sexual assault or sexual harassment or things of that nature, I believe that a sexual advance needs to be made in order for it to be a sex-related crime. A slap on the ass is wrong, yes, but I have not heard or seen on piece of evidence that the slapper was making a sexual advance on the women.

Regardless of whether or not the women felt so inclined to call the police doesn't matter, but I feel frustrated at the fact that if I were to have called the police for a similar crime committed against me, I would have been ridiculed. Because it was women, it now becomes sexual assault.

Everyone talks as though this is just reinforcing mysogenistic ideals, but personally, I think this is a case of empowering women more than it should be. I really do believe men and women should be equal, but I know, as does everyone else, that it's not how the world is. I really wish it were, but it isn't, and because of that, many women and feminists attempt to make up for the inequality by empowering themselves more than it needs to be.

I saw one newscast where the female field reporter questioned many people on campus, and only one male. All of the women that the reporter interviewed seemed to feel as though this was a negative situation and that it was sexual assault, but when the one male was asked his opinion, he said he didn't think it was a big deal. The reporter asked the male if he was only saying it because he was a male, and I think that that is really rude. I think that if a male's opinion is expressed and someone says that they only feel that way because they are a male, that's reverse discrimination against men.

I am confused about how this whole situation has been construed so badly.