Thanks for taking the thread down, I am very relieved

Thanks for removing it.

I had my suspicions, which is why I never even responded.

But a hoax??!? What kind of "game" were they playing exactly?? Can we talk openly about this because its pretty messed up. What was their excuse for making rape entertaining?

I swear anyone who has HALF a clue what its like to have rape impact your life could and would never attempt such a thing. We are all WAY to close here to hurt each other like that (I like to think.)

Im sorry to everyone who put themselves out there and may have gotten hurt, but your heart was doing the right thing.

Some people are just asses.

Yes, why would someone even do that? I would not wish this journey on anyone.

It would help me to understand a little.

You know, I understand that it probably wasn't a "game" to her, that some people just feel the need for attention and this is how they get it, but she has been around here for a while. She's SEEN how we all care for each other and then this.

I don't think there's really any understanding to it, Catroot. Butterfly is right, this journey is no cake walk and that's why I said anyone who has been a victim of rape knows you don't go there. She obviously is naive (good for her) to the effects of rape and it's depth of potential destruction. People should really, really consider theres a reason why they say rape is the second most devastating violation behind homicide. Seriously, if they just thought about that...

Good riddance.

What does this teach us if anything??!! Not to believe everything on the internet of course. But for me I spent some emotion today. Well that doesn't change anything. I still feel horrible for anyone who has been raped and will always support those who need it if I can. SO someone elicited some "care" without cause. Oh WELL. It doesn't belong to them.

I have not been paying a lot of attentiion, but when I was reading that one..I thought??? What??? This is all too weird for me. parts of it sounded like they knew what they were talking about, and then parts of it were like??? they had no idea ???? But, I was trying not to judge. It makes me think, what did they get out of that?

What I hope it teaches us is that it is okay to doubt someone's story. I know a lot of people, myself included, felt very guilty to even suspect a survivor's story. Particularly someone who has been a member in rar for a while and was on mine and many other people's here friend's lists.

Unfortunately, this time, it turned out our guts were correct and someone had manifested a story for attention or just to be malicious.

I don't think we can ever truly understand why someone would do this but we are strong enough to survive it. If you feel guilty for believing them, you have no reason to feel guilty for trusting someone. It is difficult to imagine someone would create such a horrific rape and not be telling the truth.

Sorry I can't be as eloquent as the rest of you guys...Those kinds of people just SUCK!

In spite of these sorts of people being out there, the reaction to the post and how it was ultimately handled was incredible...thanks everyone for that. It really does show what kind of group we have. Hugs guys

Well I guess I am a little traumatized cause my suspicions were so faint that I really didn't believe them and wondering why they aren't louder and more forceful and how come I can reason them away so fast. And why I wanted to defend against others suspicions.

Oh and that I was feeling so great about the boards cause I was thinking that it was helping someone. And I can only identify my suspicions in retrospect as to why i had different feelings about this and mistakenly attributed it to an improvement in society.

or not an improvement in society. Actually I was feeling bad for the person if they went through that. I guess that's the problem. Is maybe I should spare myself the emotion from being on the internet cause it might just be bogus.

Cat (hugs)

Yes there are people who are insincere on the net who happen upon this group from time to time but there are so many wonderful and genuine people here. This is what makes me sooo mad at the people that abuse our trust so heinously. It makes us doubt ourselves and others. It makes us scared to trust.

There is nothing wrong with you for wanting to protect someone from further hurt when they have shared such a story. Even if there is a quiet voice saying there is something not quite right...we all want to believe that no-one would dishonour our truths by creating a story that mocks our pain and suffering.

Cat, all any of us can do is offer our best. Most people will appreciate it; a few won't. Offer it anyway. Never regret any effort you've made to help another. I've had MY best efforts to help others thrown back at me by phonies I didn't recognize until it was too late, but I'll still never regret the effort anyway. The grace you show others defines you well.

The first clue was easy: nobody who'd been drugged on Friday evening is going to be online at 1 AM the same evening writing about it online.

Wow...I missed this by being out of town, but...I'd like to add something here.

Cat, I throughly understand the feeling of "how could I not have seen it?" I too have been duped, right here, along with others who held out their hearts and their support to one who saw for to deceive. It is unfortunate, and I would like to think she eventually came to love us as a group, but she had already put so much out there that was so telling of her...her...her I don't know what to call it. But, she had made a mockery of her own self. She could NOT make a mockery of this group.

Matt helped me see, immediatley following the issue, that the love I had spent on her was not wasted. I had trouble with that one. You see, in my life, true love has been a "commodity" in short supply. So, when I see one come along and receive the comfort and support of others, at times in the lives of these people when they had so little energy to spare, it made me very upset that I was so easily and throughly fooled.

But, as Matt points out here, it isn't a sign of how naiive we are. It isn't a show of how easily duped we are. It isn't even a fair test of our ability to read another's intentions and come out on top, having readily seen through their ploy. We are NOT the fools - they are.

It took me a long time to let go of my embarrassment over the ruse this girl played on me. It took a longer time to "erase" the love I felt for her from my heart. But, you see, she lost, in the long run - not me. She lost out on a very powerful and devoted group of loving friends. She lost out on a very, very commical friendship with a very positive influence...she lost a very good friend. She lost out on a mentor. She lost out on so very much. And me...? What did I lose? I lost many words to prayer for her...about her...on behalf of her. I lost out on the potential longevity of a friendship...I lost words of support to ears who didn't need to hear them...BUT---

In the course of all of our attempts to aid this wolf in sheep's clothing, others who read our words of comfort - they received comfort. In our words of wisdom...of understanding...of acceptance - they benefitted by just those things. No, we do not lose when a false one invades. They lose. But, in the course of the encounter, the words and depth of feelings from our hearts still shines through - untarnished.