Dutch moral panic over "Slut Lists"

Two weeks ago, a 13-year-old Dutch girl committed suicide. Soon, a rumour spread that she had done so because her name appeared on a "slut list" - a list of girls who are supposedly easy to get into bed. This turned the nation's attention to these lists, and caused a small moral panic over the phenomenon. Apparently, they are compiled by teenage boys, and distributed over the Internet. The lists usually have no relation whatsoever to the girls' Real Life behaviour.

The rumour quickly turned out to be false - the girl's suicide had nothing to do with any such list - but it makes for an intriguing story nonetheless. It has all the required elements for a good old moral panic: sexualisation of barely-pubescent girls, online bullying, and teens being monsters.

Various experts have said that the phenomenon's scale and consequences are being badly exaggerated. Indeed, the rumour about the girl's suicide may well have sparked a classic self-fulfilling media hype: if a relatively obscure practice is "inflated" like this, people who had never heard of it before may start doing it.

The police seem to be divided on the issue; various local departments have encouraged girls who are named on a "slut list" to report this to the police as libel. Several girls and a secondary school have done so. In response, the country's Joint Chiefs of Police issued a statement saying that the police should only be called in as a last resort if lesser authorities (parents, teachers) can't handle the problem. Considering that the Dutch police already have much more work than they have time, manpower or money for, I sympathise with the latter position.

Thoughts? How evil is it to make such a list, and how bad is it to be on one? What do you think girls who appear on such lists should do?

edited 11th Apr '12 5:34:28 AM by MidnightRambler

Mache dich, mein Herze, rein...

Personally, I dislike any and all public listings of people that in any way can negatively affect their lives. Though this is more about the publicity than anything else; if you want to joke about people with your friends, then that's sorta diiferent.

Stuff happens. Post it here so we can laugh at you >=D

Way to shoot your own feet, kids.

Sure, publicly shaming "easy" girls is certainly going to improve your romantic prospects. Even from a stereotypical fratboyish point of view, this sort of thing is too stupid for words.

But on a more serious note... I don't like to throw around the term "evil", but making such a list or adding somebody to it is certainly an extremely despicable action. If I happened to have a child, and I learned that they were part of this kind of nonsense (not as a victim, I mean, as a culprit)... well, I don't really believe in harsh punishments, but I would definitely have to take urgent measures in order to prevent them from growing into first-grade bloody idiots.

It isn't, obviously. And I don't know what girls who appear on such lists should do (nothing, probably, except refuse any contact with people who wrote or circulated those lists); but it would be great if girls (or guys, heh) who don't

1. Added their names to the lists, both as a show of solidarity and as a way of making such lists even more useless than they already are;
2. Refused to have any interaction, romantic or otherwise, with the people who circulated such lists until sufficient chastisement is obtained (and it would take more than a few years.)

edited 11th Apr '12 6:00:37 AM by Carciofus

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.

Utterly detestable. And I do not care one bit whether it's a "slut list" or a "spastic list", it's not the sexual content that matters (though that might make it worse). After all, we're not talking about grown-ups who might make a stance of it and present themselves as proud sluts or proud spastics. We're talking about teenagers who are insecure anyway.

I'm not sure if it's a case for the courts, though. I hate the overuse of the law that seems to be rampant these days. Let the "perps" have a police officer with a very stern look talk them through what they did, for 3 hours straight. Have them publicly humiliated themselves. I believe that this can go a loooong way to have them not repeat their offence.

Yeah, I don't see much necessity for the courts here either.

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.

It's not a list of a brothel's 'Top 10 workers of the week' , and it's not a list of 'actual porn star sexual skill'

THIS, is an utter list of personal image assault, had sex or NOT! No one, male or female, should EVER have a list be made for them because of their promiscuity even if true!

What profit is it to a man, when he gains his money, but loses his internet? Anonymous 16:26 I believe...

First of all, this is disgusting. It's another sad reflection of the "women are around for the pleasure of men" mentality.

Secondly, overreacting to something like this is not helpful. As the OP pointed out, this practice seemed to be relatively obscure before this news story, but because of all the media hype the practice may end up spreading.

Moral panics. The best way to make sure something small and uncared for catches on.

I am almost vindictive enough to think "Small Dick Lists" would be a fair countermeasure, but that'd just make the problem worse wouldn't it?

Share it so that people can get into this conversation, 'cause we're not the only ones who think like this.

Yes. One moral panic is bad enough.

Yeeah. Two wrongs don't make a right and all that.

So it's pretty much the guys version of a burn book; no big deal. If they were smart, they wouldn't of committed any of the info to the internet.

Well, it's not like a burn book is much better.

Insert witty and clever quip here. My page, as the database hates my handle.

Last I checked, you keep the burn book between a select few.

I don't know; I like the idea of listing the authors of such a list on the "Small Dick Registry". It satisfies a visceral desire for eye-for-an-eye revenge. That said, while Teens Are Monsters can be very much Truth in Television, it does not follow that all of them are monsters, nor should the response to bullying be more bullying.

edited 11th Apr '12 8:34:38 AM by Fighteer

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"

I like the idea of everybody, male or female, registering themselves on both of these lists.

Not only it would make them useless, obviously, but it would make a powerful statement against all forms of shaming.

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.

But what if you dont qualify for the Small Dick list?

Then whoever finds you in the "easy slut" list will be pleasantly — or unpleasantly, as the case may be — surprised.

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.

Isn't the list fake?

Aren't we getting a little too up-in-arms about this?

Nothing but moral panic and a list that means absolutely nothing. If kids actually do this, then the proper authority should handle it.

Kids make stupid lists all the time of kids' names. In the 1st grade it was the "Kool Kidz Klub," in the 5th grade it was a "Cootie List," in the 7th grade you had a "Burn Book," in the 10th grade you had a "Death Note," and now we have a "Slut List." Nothing more than stupid kids being stupid and insensitive as usual, except this time, the list doesn't even exist.

Up until, as the OP mentions, the media highlights it as a big thing and stupid kids get stupid ideas to do stupid things.

I'm pretty sure the concept of Law having limits was a translation error. -Wanderlustwarrior

Yeah, I mean does any actually care about this alleged list? parents of the victim aside.

hashtagsarestupid

Also how is this any different from people just calling each other slut in general? Once it's written on paper and passed around a bit through that scary internet thing, it suddenly becomes official or something?

This is literally kids' stuff.

I'm pretty sure the concept of Law having limits was a translation error. -Wanderlustwarrior

I can't bring myself to care one way or another. I suppose technically it's a form of bullying, but it doesn't seem like a particularly exceptional one. Essentially name-calling. It should dealt with using normal means, whatever those happen to be.

edited 11th Apr '12 11:12:38 AM by Clarste

Regarding the list being real: it's my understanding that while the girl in question was not actually on these lists, and the prevalence of the lists has been greatly overstated, the lists do exist.

I remember when rainbow parties were the new craze sweeping the nation.

Hell I remember when Dn D was going to turn your kid evil/gay.

So pardon me if I chuckle at the hysteria and move on.

Is using "Julian Assange is a Hillary butt plug" an acceptable signature quote?

Yeah, rainbow parties, butt-chugging, D&D Satanism, comic books, AIDS needles, jelly bracelets, poisoned Halloween candy... every year some new stupid hype comes up that gets stupid peoples' panties in a twist and it turns out to be just some stupid urban legend.

I want to come up with my own moral panic so I could write a book about it, sell a bunch of copies, and then get on a talk show and announce that I made it all up.

But the real tragedy about these things is that they distract people from the real problems around them. Bullying (cyber or otherwise) is an actual problem. Drug and alcohol abuse are actual problems. People need to stop buying into ridiculous stories and focus on the real things.

edited 11th Apr '12 1:33:03 PM by Lawyerdude

What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly.