Quote:
Originally Posted by TopSider
<snip> For instane, I met a group od SigEp's traveling through about a year ago, there were 6 of them, 3 were gay. I mean, seriously, is this what my fraternity is becoming across the country? Minorities, Gays, Low class white trash? It sickens me, and I am proud to be a Traditional Chapter and by the grace of God its in the South.
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I'd be remiss if I didn't start by saying "Screw you". I was born and raised in the Heart of Dixie, third generation Southern SigEp -
traditional - got a quality dose of "hazing with a purpose", was part of the exec board that took our brotherhood underground and off-campus when nationals kicked us out because we wouldn't submit to their Balanced Man bullshit, still talk to new brothers weekly and visit at least yearly. Oh yeah, and I can suck a dick better than all the sophomore sorority sluts you've hooked up with combined. If you got a problem with that, I suggest you look up the meaning of "brotherhood" one more time. The word "vagina" appears nowhere in its definition.
As for this whole Balanced Man v. traditional argument. I admit I have an instinctive distrust of the BMP. I come from a family of traditional SigEps and a proudly, indeed defiantly traditional chapter. Despite this, I understand the general argument that the more thoughtful BMPs make. While both programs have their advantages and disadvantages, in the end it comes down to how the individual chapter handles it. While that's doubtlessly in part true, my concern is one I haven't seen addressed so far: the value of tradition per se.
I joined a fraternity not just for the usual reasons - brotherhood, social opportunities, &c. - but because I saw value in the fraternity experience generally and the SigEp experience in particular. Part of that value comes from the abovementioned reasons, but a large part also comes from the unofficial traditions that have long been a part of fraternity culture. These range from traditions that everyone admires, such as standing up for brothers in even the toughest situations, to those that are no longer (officially) popular, like hazing. These traditions are precisely that, traditions. They were not ideas some sadist made up for pure joy of torturing teenagers. They developed organically over the course of a century or more and they have persisted because they are effective and have value. These are casualties of programs like BMP, and whatever the virtues of such programs it is pure hubris to believe that a committee-designed plan can ever fully replace such organic traditions.
George
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