J.K. Trotter's Joe Asch IvyGate Meltdown!

IvyGate editor J.K. Trotter today unleashed a mouth-foaming, veins-bulging, pants-crapping diatribe more worthy of IvyGate heroines Sara Ackerman and Margherita Viggiano against DartBlogger Joe Asch. Trotter, whose IvyGate Blog makes its name (and money) by publicly embarrassing private students of the Ivy League, took issue's with Mr. Asch's nefarious attempt to "ruin a student journalist’s life"(!) by posting --get this-- a picture of her with --drum roll-- a cup of alcohol! In a frat basement? Oh S**T! That's, like, as damaging as being outed as a communist in the '50s... or having sex at BYU... or having nudie pics taken by your jilted ex-lover published on IvyGate!

Earlier today, at 4:15 AM, prolific Dartmouth blogger Joseph Asch (D ’79, YLS ’83) tried to ruin a student journalist’s life...

Asch attached a grainy picture of the student holding a small plastic cup at hip level, and standing in what Asch claimed to be the house of Sigma Alpha Epsilon...

A fifty-something Dartmouth alumnus taunted and intimidated a young college student and campus journalist by implying that the student had broken the law for underage drinking. Using a grainy picture of the student holding a clear plastic cup, with nothing in it, as proof.

Due only to said staff member’s age, Asch’s post—and its suggestion of underage drinking—placed the staff member “in very serious legal danger..." IvyGate, 30 March 2012

In his since-deleted post, Mr. Asch criticized The Dartmouth's lack of investigative journalism on recent very-public hazing allegations, when other Ivy League papers routinely devote such coverage to their scandals. It was patently wrong for Mr. Asch to insinuate that the paper's silence was due to its editors being in bed with the fraternities. And it was even worse for him to prove it by reprinting a private photograph that paper's editor uploaded of herself on the extremely public website Facebook, showing her holding alcohol, at a party, in the house against which all the nationally-covered hazing allegations are directed.

Jim Wright to be Acting College President?

Rumor has it that President Jim Kim's immediate predecessor in the Wheelock Succession -- Jim Wright -- will return to Dartmouth as Acting President while JYK goes around the world 'remaining president of Dartmouth' while pursuing more "global" ambitions.

I for one always had warm feelings for President Wright and, if this rumor proves true, welcome him back to campus. When I spoke to him upon his departure he said he was sticking around nearby, so he and the wonderful Susan Wright will have a pretty short commute back to Webster Ave. However, when he arrives he will find a campus in turmoil on the very issue he made the cornerstone of his early presidency -- the behavior of fraternities. Time will tell what he makes of this opportunity to revisit this old issue.

I doubt that any 'Acting President' would feel at liberty enough to make a substantial move-- just holding together what remains of his old administration and the Kim one built atop it will occupy most of his time. But then again, the temporary nature of his term is itself a tremendous opportunity to administer some bitter medicine. I hope he acts.