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To Avoid Rape, Should Women Drink Less? SMU Student’s Column Sparks Controversy

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An SMU student recently wrote an opinion piece about how women should drink alcohol responsibly to reduce the chance of being sexually assaulted.

Five stories that have North Texas talking: A controversial column at SMU, today is Veterans Day, learn more about JFK, and more:

A column about sex assault has created a stir at SMU. Kirby Wiley, a student at SMU, recently wrote an opinion piece about how women should drink alcohol responsibly to reduce the chance of being sexually assaulted. “Of course the perpetrators are the ones responsible for the crimes, but to solve the problem they can’t be the only ones taking blame,” she wrote. She continued: “If the media would focus more attention on the fact that the majority of the women who are sexually assaulted are intoxicated, as opposed to stating and restating how horrible the perpetrator is, then maybe young women would start to listen.” That’s caused a stir at SMU. Hundreds have signed a petition that criticizes the SMU student newspaper, The Daily Campus, for publishing the piece. The column has generated national attention. The newspaper defends its decision, telling The Dallas Morning News that the opinion page should be “an open forum for students.” Wiley told the News that she should have chosen her words more thoughtfully. “I would have definitely reworded things because I don’t believe in blaming the victim at all,” she said.

Today is Veterans Day. The 2013 Dallas Veterans Day parade starts at 11:20 a.m. in downtown Dallas. The parade starts at Young and Houston streets and ends at Marilla and Ervay streets. Capt. Charles De Bellevue and Col. Bernard Talley, both retired from the Air Force, are the grand marshals. The speaker is U.S. Rep Sam Johnson, a retired colonel in the Air Force and a former Vietnam prisoner of war. This year’s theme is “Honoring the Veterans and POWs of Vietnam." Before the parade, an Oath of Enlistment ceremony starts at 10:50 a.m. at Dallas City Hall. Fort Worth's Veterans Day Parade starts at 10 a.m. in downtown Fort Worth. Here's a listingof area Veterans Day events. KERA's Bill Zeeble interviewed homeless veterans who reflected on the day.

Who should get credit for the natural gas renaissance? North Texas. After all, it was here where a group of geologists “made a small mistake that would help change the future of fracking.” That’s according to The Atlantic magazine, which recently published an excerpt of Gregory Zuckerman's The Frackers: The Outrageous Inside Story of the New Billionaire Wildcatters. Mitchell Energy unlocked gas from shale, “a dense rock deep below Mitchell Energy’s acreage in North Texas. Larger rivals, such as Exxon and Chevron, already had shuttered operations drilling in challenging shale, however, all but giving up on the country.” The Barnett Shale field, where Mitchell was focusing its efforts, had been described as “moose-pasture land” unfit for exploration. “Texas’s Barnett region would become the nation’s largest onshore natural gas field, representing about 6% of the nation’s energy supply in 2013,” Zuckerman writes. “Mitchell, who believed natural gas in shale could quench the nation’s desperate thirst for energy, would inspire a group of wildcat­ters to drill in shale formations around the country and in nations around the world, producing gushers that would put the U.S. on a path to energy independence.” Zuckerman will talk about his book at noon Tuesday on "Think" on KERA 90.1 FM.

A closer look at JFK: Tonight and Tuesday, PBS airs a four-hour documentary that explores the life and legacy of President Kennedy. PBS offers this description: “This new four-hour portrait offers a fresh assessment of the enigmatic man, his accomplishments and his unfulfilled promise. … Forever enshrined in myth by an assassin's bullet, Kennedy's presidency long defied objective appraisal. Recent assessments have revealed an administration long on promise and vigor, and somewhat lacking in tangible accomplishment.” Throughout November, KERA is taking a look at the 50th anniversary of the assassination.Today, KERA looks at 9 things you should knowabout the former president.

Here's a preview of "JFK":

A sneak peek at Capturing Oswald: The film “Capturing Oswald” explores the JFK assassination “through the eyes of the men who caught Oswald – the officers of the Dallas Police Department.” A screening happens tonight at 7 at the Texas Theatre, where local police caught Oswald soon after Kennedy was shot. The film was co-produced by Kate Griendling, the granddaughter of Jim Leavelle, the homicide detective handcuffed to Oswald when Jack Ruby shot him. Following the screening, a panel discussion will feature Griendling and co-producer Jim Leavelle. We’ve been told that the event is sold out, but the film will air on the Military Channel on Tuesday at 9 p.m.

Here’s a preview:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JPuYgj-fA4

Eric Aasen is KERA’s managing editor. He helps lead the station's news department, including radio and digital reporters, producers and newscasters. He also oversees keranews.org, the station’s news website, and manages the station's digital news projects. He reports and writes stories for the website and contributes pieces to KERA radio. He's discussed breaking news live on various public radio programs, including The Takeaway, Here & Now and Texas Standard, as well as radio and TV programs in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.