Okay...if XYZ Fraternity makes their pledges stay up all night, etc., and as a result their grades suffer, is that considered "pledging hard"? Does that make it a better group than ABC, whose actives realize that community service, brotherhood, and academics are far more important than who's "paper" and who got "wood"? If it does, something is seriously wrong with a Greek system that promotes this lack of prioritization.
I'm sure there are people out there, members of my sorority, and other NPC as well as NPHC and NIC groups, who would probably think I am "paper", that my pledging process, since it did not involve any sort of pain, humiliation, etc (in fact, we were constantly asked if we were comfortable doing ANYTHING that was a new member activity). I'm very happy to say that I maintained my grades during the semester I pledged. And if anyone, regardless of letter, has any sort of disrespect for my pledge process, so be it. I was not hazed, and I think it was the fact that I was not hazed, forced to eat or drink anything I didn't want to, beaten, forced to stay up till all hours, or learn meaningless chants that has given me such pride in my sorority.
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