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Yes I do remember it happening back in High School. I know that the FFA, ROTC, Football, and Band people did their own things. In the band, we actually used to take incoming freshmen in the low brass section out to a former Air Force Afterburner Test Site facility that had been abandoned since the Cold War. It was way out of the city limits and ran adjacent to a runway from the Airport. To get there you had to drive through a dirt secluded road and had to climb underneath a fence. When the freshmen were taken to the facility, upperclassmen would be hiding in the station that was pitch black and would pop out to scare them as they made it through. The only thing that could be heard was dripping water and the slightest echo. Sight was virtually impossible except for the light coming out of an open door at the end of the station. They were not allowed to take flashlights and were told to stick to the main pathway and always look forward to the backdoor light. After they exited the station they had to climb a ladderwell that extended out to a tower where the scenery was priceless. Next their physical strength from marching season was put to the test where they had to climb ropes and climb through obstacle courses to get to the other side of the station. Balance and coordination was tested by having them walk across narrow strips of metal that were suspended from roof to roof. A senior was always behind the freshman and other seniors were monitoring below to prevent any type of accident. Looking back at this now it seemed pretty pretty darn crazy and dumb. The only time that I think that hazing is acceptable is for the purposes of military training. I am a veteran and understand the importance of military readiness. The Department of Defense opposes hazing as well but does not consider the challenges we were put through at basic training as hazing but rather survival training for war. Everything there from the physical exhaustion, sleep deprivation, gas chamber exposure, etc happens for a reason and it's more a mental game than anything else. If you have a good head on your shoulders it's not as difficult as people make it out to be. Organizations such as the Order of Skull and Bones, a secret society based out of Yale, actually favor former servicemen to enter the Order because of their mental and physical readiness. These essentials, the ideals of War, are crucial to the making of the world leaders that Bonesmen tend to "tap". George Bush was actually drafted right out of the New England Prep. School he attended and joined the Naval Air Corp. Upon returning from the War and attending Yale he was "tapped" his Junior year. Most of you have probably seen the movie "The Skulls". The movie is based off of a real Order that originated at Yale. The movie distorts things and makes it seem as if it is negative. To sum it up I don't think that High School or Colleges should haze. It is wrong.
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