I suppose that the president’s characterization of the “shared facts” of the matter could theoretically be correct and that the plaintiff and judge and jury and the overwhelmingly vast majority of the non overtly partisan analysts could have erred in their review of the evidence/testimony presented at trial and that the application of pertinent law that yielded the resultant verdict could be flawed and without substantial merit.
Consider a scenario where the defendant appeals this verdict and receives a similar finding for the plaintiff.
And in this exercise extend and repeat this process with a like outcome.
In this mythology could there exist a point where the appellant might look at the multiple sets of “non shared facts” of the matter and the subsequent errant rulings and perhaps question their previous holdings?
I submit to you that the defendant may have ready access to funds for the cost of protracted appeals that don’t appear on their balance sheet.
And it’s not outside the realm of possibility that the plaintiff might not also end up being the recipient of a similar largesse dedicated to cross purposes of the previous.
This matter may be propelled a little or a lot further down the course without the conventional constraints or impetus of prudent financial risk/reward analysis than would otherwise be anticipated in absence of third party intervention.
The nonchalant attitude towards shoplifting of the students interviewed in the linked article, and the apparent willingness of the school to ignore and downplay such activity, bothers me more than all the negative info I’ve seen about Oberlin recently. But I went to an LAC with a strict honor code that was actually applied, where students were kicked out of school for shoplifting in town. So my prism is quite different.
I find it interesting how different campus cultures can be and how they have evolved over time, not sure what school you are referring to with the honor code, but I know I would prefer that type of environment for my kids rather than one with students like those interviewed for the Grape article (as well as the author).
I think the Oberlin lawsuit and its varied reaction among students, administrators, and alumni would make for a fascinating Harvard Business School case study.
I expect it is only a matter of time before a similar incident reoccurs at Oberlin. The board of trustees and administration seem incapable of understanding basic tort law, so they will continue to violate it. What a very odd place to send a student.
“I think the Oberlin lawsuit and its varied reaction among students, administrators, and alumni would make for a fascinating Harvard Business School case study.”
Sorry, but I don’t see it. Broadway musical? Absolutely. Maybe a 2 to 3 year run. The protest and courtroom scenes would be showstoppers.
My son just graduated from oberlin. Given the schools liberal reputation and the lawsuit, it’s easy to dismiss or ignore the first class education students receive. The kids are not spending their “woke time” (btw, according to my son, no one uses the term “woke”) and fomenting the next revolution, classes are difficult and the school is a grind.
Also, stereotyping the student body as “social justice warriors” is just silly. 150-200 of the 2800 kids that attend the school showed up for the protest. My son, like many of his friends, read the court documents, analyzed legal precedent and came to his own conclusions about the incident.
@quietdesperation, I agree it’s unfair to paint all Oberlin students with the same brush, and personally I hate the term "social justice warrior” but the students at the protest were chanting “Wake up, stay woke.”
@Sue22 whether students still use the term is really meaningless to this conversation. However, since you make the point, the protests occurred in 2016 not 2019 and, according to my son, has fallen out of favor.
the graduation speaker this year used the term and my son and his friends thought it “cringe-worthy”.
^ If the student body at Oberlin is so independently-minded, then why aren’t there comments posted to the student news articles about this case? Or are they debating the merits over coffee or dessert? Where exactly WERE they discussing it? It’s not small news, even if yesterday’s protest is now “out of favor.”
“^ If the student body at Oberlin is so independently-minded, then why aren’t there comments posted to the student news articles about this case? Or are they debating the merits over coffee or dessert? Where exactly WERE they discussing it? It’s not small news, even if yesterday’s protest is now “out of favor.””
Egggggggggggggggsssactly!
Where is the dissent and the counter protest from the opposing student SJAs?
Regardless of anyone’s opinion on this, the facts of this matter are that there are huge amounts of money that Oberlin will have to pay and bad PR, to boot. This did not go down well I would not be happy if I had a child at this school and for now, it would be off my list. Those responsible for the verdict and damages have done so , and it’s going to be expensive dealing with this. I’m inclined to think it will be negotiated, but for far far more than anticipated.
That’s a decent % of the student body – probably higher % of the college than the conservatory – that showed up to protest against a local store owner (or to make the point that shoplifting is ok?).
@JBStillFlying you’re applying a metric of independent thinking based on lack of comments in student articles? Do other articles garner a lot of comments? What about other universities? My eldest wrote for the u mich student newspaper and rarely saw a comment.
Where do they talk about it? I have no idea but I suppose it’s not too different than when I attended school: cafeterias, parties, dorm rooms.
It seems to me, perhaps I’m wrong, that you have some sort of ax to grind?
@quietdesperation - no axe, it’s a legitimate question. As an Oberlin parent you should have the answer. You don’t know where they discuss and debate it? What does your son tell you?
