Elevatorgate

Elevatorgate.
Oy.
Not as quick as I'd like recap:

One man, possibly clueless, probably drunk, asked one woman, who had already indicated that she was not interested in making any sexual connections that evening, back to his room.  They were in an elevator at 4am.
The woman involved (Rebecca Watson) happened to mention this in an off-hand way during a videoblog she was doing on other subjects.  It was casual, calm, and not in any way aggressive or whiny.  She said, "Guys?  Don't do that."  She said it made her uncomfortable and left it there, going on to other more interesting subjects, I believe it was robots.  At this point, there were a few people paying attention, mostly college kids and Skeptics (notice the capital S).

People in college are at a specific point in their psycho-social development.  One where they are still negotiating what is and isn't appropriate conduct for sexual advances and a few of the female students at a specific college strongly disagreed with the original blogger's stated preference not to be propositioned when she had already indicated she was not interested.
The original blogger (Rebecca) happened to be giving a speech at this specific college and called out one of the female students who had disagreed with her as an example of someone who undermines feminism.

And the internet began to roil.

There were lots of arguments back and forth about whether the speaker should have called out the student (who was present at the lecture) or whether that was an abuse of power\privilege.  There was another thread to the discussion that kind of took over, and that was whether any real offense had happened in the elevator.
Several well-regarded Skeptical blogs (capital S again) jumped into the troubled waters, usually on Rebecca's side.  A couple on the side of the student.  Apologists for the Elevator Guy (now referred to as EG) showed up.  Most of this was following along totally expected lines.  Until a best-selling author and revered Skeptic (Richard Dawkins) jumped into the mix with a completely bizarre comment comparing the elevator pass to genital mutilation and suggesting that Rebecca sit down and shut up.

Manure, meet Ventilating System.

The atheist and skeptical communities are filled to the brim with social misfits.  We're all geeks in one form or another.  Usually, that gives us a sense of connection and we celebrate it.  Unfortunately, in the particular areas of sex and romance, that lack of social understanding makes things...more difficult.
Turns out a lot of people have trouble with empathy on both sides of the gender divide.  Men, who can't see why the woman in question was uncomfortable, and women, who can't see why anyone would find it confusing.
It is confusing.  The guys are right on that much.  Social rules are complex and depend on a lot of things that don't translate well into bullet points - body language, facial expression, vocal tone, etc., etc. And even then, the rules change with each environment and each different person.
The situation in the elevator made the original videoblogger uncomfortable.  It was a personal reaction to a complex combination of factors.  She called it out in the way of giving a clue to future men who might be inclined to do the same thing in the same environment that this was not the way to approach her.
The exact same situation might have flattered the college student.  She's a different person in a different place in her life with different experiences and different expectations.
The exact same situation might have terrified another woman.  If her history led her to be wary and aware of the possibilities of sexual assault in an enclosed space with a stranger.
Social interactions vary.  It's tough to nail down specific rules that work all the time in every situation with every different person.  And it's difficult for lots of people to deal with that lack of clarity.

My take on the original video - Rebecca said nothing out of line.  She described a situation, stated her personal preferences and got on with her life.
My take on calling out the student - That seems a little awkward.  I would have taken another route but I can agree to disagree on that one.
My take on the response from Dawkins - Holy motherfucking shit, man!  What the fuck was that about, motherfucker?  (Sorry, my weird sense of humor is surfacing there.  I have also started carrying around packs of chewing gum in case I find myself in an elevator with the man, I intend to chew quite loudly.) - but seriously, while I can appreciate that the man was probably trying to bring a little perspective to a heated internet thread, those comments were tone-deaf given the absolute kindest possible interpretation.  He may have meant well, but what he did was tell another person that they had no right to speak for themselves.  All Rebecca said was that the encounter made her uncomfortable.  She wasn't screaming for anybody's head on a platter or calling EG a rapist.  She absolutely had a right to express her own feelings on the situation.  Period.  Dawkins, however much I respect his contributions on other subjects, is dead wrong on this one.