Does your HQ *really* want to know about hazing?

[Elephant Walk]

The trouble is at all too often "Hazing" is done just because.....NOT to build "Brotherhood" and "Personal confidence" ( which from your own prior posts is only your chapter house and NOT your National group).

As we've mentioned many times before, the hazing in Southern chapters is primarily to build values (that one should have anyways before the fraternity and so therefore not difficult).

[shinerbock]

Jon, I understand much of what you're saying. As a former risk director for our IFC, I know the situation universities and HQ's are in. However, I don't feel that covering their bases is an adequate reason for a lot of the rules they impose. Much of it has little to do with physical hazing, and more on the idea of protecting self esteem. Basically, this is what I think should be done. I think HQ's should obviously be against hazing, but should take action only when the hazing is dangerous. The same with the Universities. Basically my problem is not with them covering their ass, but rather with the general sentiment coming from our HQ's and Universities. I don't want them to go "We recognize the value of beating kids," but I would like to see the end of them interpreting pledges as some fragile impressionable youth they have to protect from emotional damage. These guys are men, and they should be treated as such. Another reason I argue for the value of hazing is that many on this site really don't understand that it does work. Ask the military. Ask politicians, lawyers, doctors, and our fathers. I'm not asking that we be given free reign to beat the crap out of kids, I'm simply asking to not get in trouble for making pledgeship a journey rather than cakewalk. I think pledges should come out of pledgeship as changed, fraternity men. Thats how we operate, and we consistantly see our new brothers have more confidence,more loyalty to one another, better manners and improved social ability.

[shinerbock]

On another note, a lot of people accuse us "fratty" posters of wanting to return to the 1800s, or 1950's, or whatever. You're not entirely wrong. Sure some things are better, but many things are not. I wish we had the respect for one another we had during those times. I wish the personal responsibility of earlier times existed today. I long for lower crime and better social etiquette. Just because things bring about diversity or are "progressive," does not make them good for society. So while I obviously recognize improvements we've made from previous times, I also recognize where our society has declined.

[blkwebman1919]

Originally Posted by shinerbock

On another note, a lot of people accuse us "fratty" posters of wanting to return to the 1800s, or 1950's, or whatever. You're not entirely wrong. Sure some things are better, but many things are not. I wish we had the respect for one another we had during those times. I wish the personal responsibility of earlier times existed today. I long for lower crime and better social etiquette. Just because things bring about diversity or are "progressive," does not make them good for society. So while I obviously recognize improvements we've made from previous times, I also recognize where our society has declined.

Exactly....

[DeltAlum]

Originally Posted by shinerbock

Just because things bring about diversity or are "progressive," does not make them good for society. So while I obviously recognize improvements we've made from previous times, I also recognize where our society has declined.

So bringing back some sort of segregation to limit diversity is going to improve something? I don't think so. As one of a very few members who actually remembers the 50's (I don't think any of us were here in the 1800's), things are a hell of a lot better today.

Medicine has improved giving us longer lives and better lifestyle, our kids don't worry about global nuclear war and have disaster drills sitting in the hallways of their schools covering their heads with their hands, technology has given us better appliances, better transportation and a lot of other things. We are, as a whole, better educated and much better off economically.

As for respect, if there's less now (and there well may be), I believe that has more to due with the highly competitive nature of our society than anything having to do with diversity. Peoples lives and professional careers are much more intense. I can't prove it, but my feeling is that, because of many of the factors above, we're much more driven and take less time for "neighborhood" stuff. That's not diversity.

I suppose there are some things that are worse, but I'm having trouble thinking of them.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by DeltAlum

our kids don't worry about global nuclear war and have disaster drills sitting in the hallways of their schools covering their heads with their hands

Heck no! They just worry about their parents going to work and not coming home because terrorists blew up the building!

In all seriousness, I remember thinking one day how cool it was that little kids were looking at the "fallout shelter" signs and having no clue what they were, not too soon after that 9/11 happened. We're never going to be free of danger totally.

Sorry to hijack, but I thought I would get that one before someone else did and was a lot meaner about it.

[DeltAlum]

Originally Posted by 33girl

In all seriousness, I remember thinking one day how cool it was that little kids were looking at the "fallout shelter" signs and having no clue what they were...

Trust me, we knew what they were.

Sure, there will always be something to worry about...but the doctrine of two or three "superpowers" overbuilding their nuclear capacity to the point of destroying everything on earth two or three times over, and the spectre of Kruschev banging his shoe on a podium yelling "We will bury you," was pretty terrifying for a kid.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by DeltAlum

Trust me, we knew what they were.

I meant little kids NOW, silly.