Page 2AThe Battalion/Monday, September 5, 1988
Opinion
Sorority rush in desperate need of change
The week be
fore the fall se
mester began 651
women partici
pated in sorority
rush as “rushees”
at Texas A&M. Of
those, about 500
were accepted into
a sorority, while
more than 100 —
including rush
dropouts — were
rejected and will not be a member of
any of the 11 sororities at A&M.
The majority of these young women
were freshmen who were looking to
find their niche at a large university and
establish a group of friends with which
they could identify. That they would be
prohibited from joining any social orga
nization on campus is a testament to the
serious flaws from which rush is suffer
ing.
The most disturbing aspect of rush,
which could eventually be the downfall
of sororities, is the criteria for which
members are chosen.
For years, women have complained
about being treated as sex objects and
being judged on their looks rather than
their abilities. Many women hate men
for this and, especially in the work
force, proclaim, “Do not think of us as
women. Judge and evaluate us as people
— the equal of men — considering our
abilities first and foremost.” And that’s
fine. That’s the way it should be.
But five years from now, the women
who will be saying those things will be
the very ones who just last week were
saying, “We only want the cutest girls in
our sorority” or “I want to be in Beta
Omega Moo because they have the pret
tiest girls.”
Although most members of sororities
would deny it, the rushees are judged
primarily on their looks, hairstyle,
makeup, clothing and weight. Why else
would rushees spend literally hundreds
of dollars on dresses for rush week?
Now I ask you: Is a fashion show
really the best way to choose your
friends?
' Personally, I like my friends for what
they are on the inside, not the outside.
In fact, as long as they don’t smell bad, I
could care less about what they look like.
Some of my best friends haven’t nec
essarily been the most handsome people
I’ve known. But I wouldn’t trade any of
them for Tom Cruise or Paulina Poriz-
kova.
In a strange way, the petite, frail
young women who go through rush are
similar to the hulking, brutish young
men which A&M’s athletic department
recruits. Both come to this large institu
tion and are wooed by organizations try
ing to impress them. They visit fancy fa
cilities, meet successful alumni and are
pumped up about becoming a part of
that organization’s hoopla.
But there is one cruel difference. An
athletic recruit knows for sure when a
university wants him. However, a ru-
shee can be rushed hard by a sorority
which can later decide that it doesn’t
want her.
That’s extremely tough for some 18-
year-old women to handle mentally. Of
course, if she isn’t accepted, she takes it
personally. How else can she take it?
For so many of these women, becom
ing a part of a sorority is extremely im
portant to them. They don’t know how
to get involved extracurricularly at a
large, state university.
So naturally they look to join a social
organization. That they would be re
fused acceptance into a social organiza
tion is a great misjustice.
Although most sororities do partici
pate in service events such as Big Event,
they are not service organizations. They
are social organizations which are more
concerned with meeting people and
having mixers, parties and a good time.
And that’s fine.
However, just as other social organi
zations such as the Waterski Club, the
Katy Hometown Club and the Sports
Car Club don’t reject members, neither
should sororities. Anyone who wants to
be in a sorority ought to be able to be in
one.
Of course someone would then ar
gue, “Why can’t anyone who wants to be
an Orientation Leader, Muster commit
tee member or Ross Volunteer be one?”
Anthony
Wilson
| Mail Call 1
Future frat rats beware
EDITOR:
Are fraternities really the salt of Texas A&M? Yes, fraternities are quite like the
salt on your table. If you have a little bit, it’s great! Your life has been seasoned.
But, if you get too much, your life could be ruined, or seriously injured.
I would like to present a complaint, a compliment, and a warning. First, my
complaint is against a fraternity here in Aggieland. I became involved with a
fraternity in the Fall 1987. In the Spring 1988, I went through the whole rush
scene to become one of that fraternity’s little sisters. By mid-February, I was saying
my good-byes to the fraternity life. I was battered by a member of that fraternity. I
was assaulted inside the fraternity house with many of the members present. Some
of them watched while others looked the other way. I think that it’s disgraceful that
a fraternity would put brotherhood ahead of the health and well-being of a human
being. I was humiliated, not to mention physically hurt. My next day was spent at
Beutel Health Center.
Here’s the compliment. Because of the assault, I encountered many A&M
employees. They treated me with respect, sympathy, and the utmost
professionalism. I give them my thanks. Dr. Brent Paterson in Student Judicial
Affairs was instrumental in my assistance. He helped me find justice.
My assailant has been blocked from registration pending further litigation. He
could be suspended or expelled.
My warning is addressed to anyone contemplating involvement with a
fraternity. I found out the hard way. Fall 1988 rush is quickly approaching. Be
very careful in choosing, or buying, your friends.Make your own decision,
PLEASE!
Eva Nichols ’90
Holy Cow! It’s a Brian Frederick fan
EDITOR:
The Battalion’s heyday was not the times of Sullivan or Pallmeyer. They
wanted to overthrow the restraints of established ideas.
The times when I really thrilled at opening my Battalion were to read the
scathing atacks on the Godless by Brian Frederick. He tore down ideas with
something better to put in their place.
Frederick gave thought to the consequences and aftermath that unthought
ideas can have. Sullivan and Pallmeyer wrote for kicks. Frederick had vision.
Richard Hill ’89
Letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words in length. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit letters for style
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Lydia Berzsenyi, Editor
Becky Weisenfels, Managing Editor
Anthony Wilson, Opinion Page Editor
Richard Williams, City Editor
D A Jensen,
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Jay Janner, Art Director
Leslie Guy, Entertainment Editor
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For those organizations, an applica
tion and interview process is necessary
to be accepted. And not everyone who
applies is accepted, but with good rea
son. Those organizations are dedicated
to service. Their members are chosen
based on unique abilities which will help
that organization achieve its goals, or in
the case of the RVs on past perfor
mance.
Unlike being in a sorority, these posi
tions are an honor to hold. They require
a dedication to hard work, commit
tment, and possession of talents, which
many of us lack, to perform specialized
functions.
The purpose of sororities seems to
meant for the organizations to be a com
mon ground from which friendships
could grow and leadership qualities de
veloped. And if that’s why you’re in one
or trying to get in one, that’s great.
But, most people seem to rush a so
rority or join one so that they can walk
around campus with the Greek alphabet
on their chest or be a part of the “in”
crowd at Zephyr’s three nights a week.
And that’s just assinine. (Then again
maybe those people should stick to
gether. They deserve each other.)
The solution is simple. Let all women
who want to join a sorority do so.
Rush week could be continued, but at
the end of it, instead of all the sororities
choose one rusl
were selected.
Or, divide the
the numljer of
each organizatic
of women.
The current r
a disaster. Rushet
and spend an cuti
actives, trying to
not. Actives public
iate rushees for
which are usually
iiumbci oi l.. ‘
i in hf
ioronUes and
noose x i
ish
■tall
corulni
bf'i
K>t o
H. in
iblt n
“:
v criticize and | j vl(
unimportant ^ e i
out of the :® er
be
item hash
on applK
*ek kissin:
iomeone i
control. Unless the
pettiness could br
a stem char mothe
ng about
ale Greek:
tfte
have become skewed. In the beginning " competing for the same group of girls, a
I’m sure the founders of sororities draft could be held. Each sorority would
downfall of the fern
Texas A&M.
Anthony Wilson i» a seniorj
lism major and opinion page edii
The Battalion.
Tire tooling could soon be back in vogu
Bobby Hum-
phrey of the Uni
versity of Alabama
is one of the top
collegiate football
running backs in
the country.
More impor
tantly than that —
in my mind, at
least — is the fact
he’s the first per
son I’ve heard
him.
Lewis
Grizzard
about in years who’s been tire-tooled.
Bobby Humphrey was in some sort of
late-night bistro in Tuscaloosa and fell
at odds with another gentleman, who
settled the argument by taking a tire
tool and breaking Mr. Humphrey’sjaw.
I have no idea what the disagreement
was about, but I do know one of the
quickest ways to settle a dispute is to
break the other guy’s jaw with a tire tool.
Not another peep will be heard from
Before going any further, however, it
occurs to me there may be those out
there who do not know exactly what a
tire tool is.
A tire tool is thqjt thing in your trunk
you use when you have to change tires
on your car. It’s long and made of steel
and you pull hubcaps off with it.
Not long after the horseless carriage
came upon the scene, somebody in
vented the tire tool, and it became an in
stant hit as something with which one
could do enormous damage to others.
My late father told me of a rather
large young woman in his boyhood days
who wore overalls and carried a tire tool
strapped to one leg.
“One night at the dance,” my father
said, “this of girl asked a boy to dance
with her and he made fun of her abun
dant personage.
“She bent over and reached up her
pants leg and pulled out that tire tool
and beat the voting man urnnenj
and ended the dance.”
I’m not certain what happ
lighting with tire tools ovei thei
eral years.
I guess all that kung fuandkan
( ame |><>pulat and it is a lot ('.werl
pull out the pistol vou houghi
pawnshop and shoot somehodvi
than have to go all the way badj
parking lot and get your tire tool
Maybe, however, the fact a|
athlete like Bobby Humphrey fe
to a tire-tooling, it will mil
comeback.
It’s less expensive than sti
somebody. You’ve got to buy I
and then the ammunition, lirel
come free with cars.
Plus, it’s the right of every An
to bear a tire tool. That's not in tb
stitution, I don’t think, but it's|
in all Ford truck drivers’ manuals.]
Copyright 1988, Cowles Syndicate
BLOOM COUNTY
by BerKe Breat
oseTK up, Misrep
FARMER/ HPRB'5
YOUR CROP-INSURANCE
semeMENT'
' PLUS,
OF COURSE,
YOUR REOULAR
GOVERNMENT
3U&5IPY/
PUT I
P/PNT
GROIN
ANYTHING
RUip/RT
ANT YOUR
GOVERNMENT
APPRECIATES,
THAT/
BLOOM COUNTY
by BerKe Breat
THOUGHT FIRE. LOCUSTS.
FLOOR. EARTHQUAKE.
POLL AR PLUMMETEP.
GRAIN EMBARGO. BANK
FORECLOSEP. COINS GOT
THE FLU. P/0 BIT THE
MAILMAN.
J&liM
PLUS A TORNAPO HIT
PURlNO THE TOMATER
HARVEST.