News-Record.com

I admit to confusion about why Assistant DA Howard Neumann says, "I don't think we're going to take any action until the school completes its process."

Yeah, that is odd. Since when does the DA's office subjugate its duties to third-party investigations?

We demands the justice, not this college of kangaroo courts .We demands full immediate investigations of this incident by real polices. We know that these beatings are results of many many years of prejudice by both white and black peoples who has become nothings more than the Zionist lapsdogs against the Palestinian peoples. We demands higher wages, better houses and better opportunities and end to this hatreds against us.

Who is going to wins Super Bowl? I need to place by bets in Vegas Las.

I sorry I cut other bloggings short. I had to go shoot some Palestinians from other faction who are pissings me off.

So anyway, please stop these prejudices against these Palestinians peoples.

I really do needs to know who is going to wins this Bowl of Souper. Anybody have hot tip?

I was going to post a serious comment on this, but I'm laughing too hard right now.
You rock, Sheik...!!!

Roch, I would submit that perhaps the D.A. is hopeful that a resolution can be reached without the need for court intervention. If the parties can work out their differences, then there may be no reason to assign a criminal record (a life sentence) to any of those involved.

This is not only the Quaker way, but a way that should be preferred by most people.

Sam, do you suppose the DA hopes the plaintiffs will drop charges after the college deals with matters? After all this turmoil, I wonder if that's realistic.

Sheik,

Da Bears! Da Bears!

Thank you Windy. I call my bookie in the Vegas Las. May Allah grant you many virgin womens. Last time I in Vegas Las, I have great trouble with this.

We need money buy more AK47 from Chinese gentlemans.

We have moneys of liberal organization in USA but all gone now.

Da Bears!!!Allah Akbar!

Doug Henderson is not Mike Nifong. Doug was a defense attorney for many years and I doubt would give in to the pressure.

It appears that much of the "turmoil" may be unfounded. Settlements between parties in criminal matters occurs all the time when the circumstances warrant it. It is certainly possible that both parties would be satisfied with the way the school handles the matter and agree not to go forward. In some counties, we have a mediation for these type situations which is an attempt to resolve them without the need of court intervention. I suspect that if the parties agree to keep this out of court, the DA would go along.

Thanks, Sam. I hadn't thought about that possibility -- makes sense.

Thanks, Sam. We're slowly getting a clearer picture.

Only six football players are charged, meaning that there was not a mob of 15 laying it on three.

There are no weapons-related charges, casting doubts about the use of "brass knuckles."

Ethnic slurs likely were used during the fight, not before, meaning the altercation may not have been a "hate crime" motivated by ethnic animosity.

We don't know everything, and maybe we won't if the matter is handled entirely by the college to the satisfaction of everyone involved and charges are dropped. Expulsion from college, if warranted, perhaps would be a sufficient penalty for the instigators.

Doug, what if we learn that the Palestinian students were the instigators? Can we expect long, in-depth articles on the Palestinian culture of violence? Will the N&R delve into their backgrounds and bring us every juicy tidbit like they do with anyone white involved in something like this? Will we see editorials about how Palestinians/Muslims must respect the majority culture in the U.S.? Will your editorial staff suggest culture-awareness/sensitivity classes for Muslims at Guilford College so they can "fit in"?
What an interesting concept, placing blame on a violent minority...

jaycee, the N&R will report whatever it learns about this story. But there are been no reporting about the accused students' "culture of violence," nor have we delved into their backgrounds.

I just wonder if the celebrations that this was not a hate crime will be as prominent as the candlelight vigil's when the hate crime speculation was going around. I also wonder (not really) when the N&R will put a big bold headline reading "Hate Crime Hoax at Guilford" as prominently as they featured the claim that there was a hate crime, brass knuckles, mob, etc. Don't bet on it.

Doug, you are doing a fine and fair job on this story as has Joe Killian in his reporting. It's a shame that the editors in the News division aren't doing the same. They bought into the hate crime theme and all the other bells and whistles and made sure those allegations were prominently featured. Now that the wind has gone out of those sails, there is hardly a whimper.

Sam, I think it's still premature to draw conclusions. And I think there's a distinction between coverage of initial campus reaction and promotion of that point of view.

Doug, you're not familiar with Palestinians???
Does bombing innocent women and children in Israel ring a bell??? How about indiscriminately lobbing rockets into Haifa to murder innocent Israeli citizens??
Come on, Doug...you can portary the Palestinians as innocent, frail, pitiful victims all you want...but their culture exists for violence against Jews and Israel's supporters.

Come on, jaycee! I'm not portraying the Palestinians involved in the Guilford College incident as anything. Period. I haven't portrayed the football players as anything. I don't know who did what and who's to blame.

As for the Palestinian cause, my most powerful and lasting impression was formed by the act of terrorism by Black September at the Munich Olympics in 1972. For some Palestinians, the tactics haven't changed. However, I refuse to believe that all Palestinians can be blamed for that or other acts of terrorism, nor that they all want to perpetuate an endless cycle of violence. Those who receive the necessary permits to come to the United States to work or study should be treated with respect and decency, as long as they behave in a like manner.

Doug,

The front page online stil has a link to a video entitled "Student and Faculty Protest Against Assault of Palestinians".

I would imagine that you would want to lose that since it now appears that there was no assualt on Palestinians.

I know that the News-Record would like to back down on their coverage and the perception that they helped paint, but there are a lot of casual observors of the event that read your newspaper who still believe what was originally reported - Football players are racists and they commit hate crimes against Palentinians. I know a few that fully believe that what you first reported is the gospel. How many people stil can visualize the kid with the "Stop Hate" headband? The question is what hate are we trying to stop?

Exactly my point, Doug, what if the Palestinians in this case DID act violently? Will you then pursue the Palestinian culture of violence aspect of this story? One of the Palestinians I saw on TV the other day was wearing a black-checked kaffiyah a la Yassar Arafat, which might be as incendiary as Hell's Angels colors or Bloods and Crips color-coded gang paraphernalia. I'd say he was outright shoving his culture of violence in our face. I never said ALL Palestinians were violent, but SOME are the most violent terrorists we know today, it's part of their culture. Do you know enough about the background of each of these three students to say definitively that they're NOT driven by culturally normal (for them) violent tendencies? I'd say beating an Infidel with a belt buckle might qualify as a violent act.

The newspaper coverage didn't cause students to draw conclusions or wear slogans. They had their own rumor mill over there and let their own prejudices drive their reactions. Our reporters covered what was happening on campus -- and important news story. It's still not determined whether what happened can be considered an assault or not.

Give it up, Doug. You are one of THEM and jaycee et al won't believe anything you say.

The news that has come out of GC is all the N&R's fault and nothing you can say will alter that opinion.

On the contrary, Mr. Hoggard. I agree with most of Doug's positions.
My question is one of relative content. If it turns out the Palestinian students were the instigators and assaulters, will the N&R go to the same extremes to characterize them as such that they go to when they report on whites attacking other minorities?
From the Duke Lacrosse case we learned there is a "culture of privilege" which apparently includes any white man in college. Is there a similar "culture of violence" which includes citizens of terrorist states? Will the N&R condemn the acts of persons from terrorist states as much as it does white men from the U.S.?

Thanks, David. I think this is fair give-and-take about coverage of an incident that has feelings running high. One aspect of jaycee's angle of attack that doesn't add up, though, is the fact that some of the accused are black. This is a multiracial incident, and if jaycee is correct our coverage is prejudicial against both white and black students in favor of Palestinians. I think, however, when it all comes out in the wash it may turn out to have been a fight among students, period, with the racial differences not a motivating factor at all.

Sorry, jaycee... you are right on the usual agreements.

Did you read the account of a previous run-in involving the two Palestinian students?

I posted it at my place. www.hoggsblog.com