Quote:
Originally posted by MereMere21
This isn't the first time a unit of the Corp has been in the hot seat for hazing. Y'all know the beginning scene in "A Few Good Men" with the Marines and their rifles? They were from A&M's Corp of Cadets and their particular unit was disbanded shortly after for hazing - 1994? I can't recall the exact date.
I'm not going to pretend I know the inner workings of the Corp, but this isn't the first time I've heard of such atrocities. Most of it is swept under the rug by A&M officials afraid of bad publicity.
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Close.
Actually, that beginning scene was composed of FORMER members of the Fish Drill Team. FDT was disbanded in 96, for major hazing violations.
Ok. You have the Corps of Cadets, think of it like IFC. Each individual Corps outfit is like an individual chapter. There is a Corps Staff, which is equivalent to your IFC officers. Parson's MOunted Cavalry is an "elite" (and i use the quotations for a reason) unit that you may opt to "try out for" after your fish year in your individual outfit. For your entire sophomore year you basically relive your fish year, being required to provide care and upkeep to the PMC facilities as well as it's horses.
Now, the problem is this. PMC USED to be the cream of the crop. When it was founded in 73, Col Parsons was the commandant of cadets. Over the years it evovled into a different sort of entity, mostly "good ole boys" or guys who weren't exactly your exemplary cadets. I almost joined my sophomore year, but instead i decided to 'stay' with my outfit to help out. Lots of my buddies did go out. The incidents mentioned, and others far worse that haven't been mentioned have been going on for at least 10-15 years and were considered part of joining the Cav.
To me, it wasn't worth it to get treated like isht for an entire year, just to wear a yellow cord on my uniform.
Now, we non-Cav cadets "knew" what went on out there, as we heard stories from our buddies, but none of us knew first-hand or would take the anecdotes that we heard to the Commandant's Office. For the same reason that MereMere said, most of these issues would be handled in house, as opposed to giving the Corps a bad eye. What's ironic, is that i always envied the 'frat' guys when i was in the Corps, cuz i thought they could get away with anything, when i joined Sigma Nu i realized just how truly free we were in the Corps.
On this issue. Those guys will get what they deserve. IMO, by cleaning house and dismissing these kind of 'cadets' from the Corps, A&M will make immense strides in improving the quality of the Corps and the cadets in it. I'm extremely proud of the Commander of PMC that blew the whistle, he was a member of my outfit and a fish when i was a junior. It's sad, but he's now considered an outcast by the rest of PMC and some of the other cadets.
Note that this case is merely to decided if the cadets right to due process was violated by the university, as i believe the Brazos County DA declined to press charges.
Kitso
KS 361 apologies for the decadence-type length of my post