Lifetime?

[SPEDipstick]

I am a brother at a BMP chapter. I joined last semester and went through Epsilon last weekend(the equivalent of finishing pledging for anyone in a traditional chapter). I was on such a high until today when one of my pledge brothers was talking about getting a tattoo of the founders badge and an older brother told him to wait until he graduates because he could get kicked out.
Then I remembered that my chapter kicks members out frequently, about 2 or 3 a semester will be suspended and 1 or 2 a year expelled. The thing that gets most guys is our grade policy. We have a very strict policy and if someone screws up they are gone.
I understand that there should be a process to remove guys because some time it is necessary but should it not be much more difficult to remove guys? It says lifetime member on my card but I am advised not to get a tattoo because it is truly for life. Also national bylaws say that if a man makes below national standard GPA for two semesters they are "subject to expulsion." Most of our guys read that as saying that they must be expelled but to me it says that they could possibly be expelled but the chapter is not forced to do so.
I was wondering what guys from other chapters thought.
I love my fraternity and I love the guys in it I just think that some of them don't understand what for life means. I think that when someone is my brother them making bad grades does not change that.

[SPEmike]

I see what you're saying...we are all lifetime members, but we join this fraternity under the stipulation that we will keep its traditions alive. There are rules that must be followed...a pledge wearing the founders badge is not something that people at my chapter would look very highly upon either...not to mention getting it tattooed on his body just because it looks cool.

[SPEDipstick]

We are both full brothers. We would never let someone who is a pledge wear the founder’s badge. When I called him my pledge brother I meant that we joined together.

[Alaska_SigEp]

My chapter kicks out members quite often as well. I feel that a lot of this is attributable to the BMP system and its tyranny. Nationals doesn't care about the brothers anymore, only the numbers and dollars that are coming in. When I joined the chapter, I made a lifetime commitment, not a commitment to be a brother as long as I meet certain demands of my chapter. I think it's rediculous.

[SPEmike]

I'm in a BMP chapter and the only brother we've kicked out in our recent history deserved it. BMP or not it's up to recruitment to get people who are worth the effort and will pull their weight

[TrueSPE]

I'm from a traditional chapter, and we've never kicked anyone out. Don't give into nationals and their bullshit. Your fraternity is about brotherly love more than anything else, and if you guys truly bond there's no way you'd even think about kicking someone off because of something as meaningless as grades.

[SalisburySPE]

Im from a BMP chapter and we have never kicked anyone out bc of grades. There is a medium between national bullshit and what your chapter wants to do. I cant imagine kicking any of our brothers out based on grades alone. We have made brothers go get help within the fraternity to bring thier grades up and things but never told them that they are no longer a brother and to get the hell out, that is insane. The BMP is too new to follow exactly, nationals has laid out a good blueprint but your chapter has to make it thier own in order to work right.

[sigepsal]

but isn't true brotherly love holding one another accountable for the oath you took? if we can not call each other out and hold each other accountable for the standard that have been set forth by our predecessors how will our fraternity succeed? when you join you are told of the gpa standards, the social standards, and the moral standards you are held to as being a part of SigEp. you accepted those standards and agreed to uphold them. if you do not uphold your end of the deal then why should the fraternity and the brotherhood uphold theirs?