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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 13, 1988)
i+ K" sas^as^-TJx x_ii.i/vx sa&x_ii.o +^“s ll'-'/T\»> UOpOLJ 33U3I3S UI /‘xxa/w p>ooS Clubs support alternative interests By Suzanne Hoechstetter Texas A&M has a culture separating it from the rest of the world. Students have a unique way of communicating — where else do people say “Howdy” on a regular basis and get 40,000 students to do the same yell at the same time? As a whole, A&M students celebrate, dress, act, and even eat and drink in ways similar to the rest of society. But within the A&M culture are people who do things differently from the rest of the student body. They unite to share common interests and hobbies or to discuss bizarre beliefs. The Church of the Subgenius is one A&M organization which strays from mainstream beliefs. Aaron Day, a senior computer science major, continuously enjoys the benefits of being a subgenius. He says that good things happen to him because he is a subgenius, and subgeniuses have s)ack. “Slack is when you get something for nothing, ” he says. “For example, I don’t study for a test but I get an A. I lost my library card and the library didn’t charge me for a new one because they didn’t have me in their records. I find money lying on the ground. If I am late getting a paper or project done, then the deadline will be extended.” Day says he always knew there was something different about himself but he didn’t know there was a term for it until he heard someone giving a speech about the Church of the Subgenius at a Houston concert. The founder of the church was J.R. “Bob” Dobbs, known to members as the perfect being and the supreme salesman. He was assassinated in 1984 by one of his own apostles in the Victoria Theater in San Francisco. Although the assassin was never caught, some believe it was his evil twin brother — the Anti-Bob. Day says people are either bom a subgenius or as part of the Anti-Bob’s Conspiracy. '''The Conspiracy invented MTV to try to numb the minds of the people, ” Day says. “They are in charge of Photo by Dean Saito A&M students play Dungeons and Dragons in the MSC on Friday nights. Page 10/At Ease/Thursday, Oct. 13,1988 everything that goes wrong. ” Day says he had a few days of bad luck when he got a piece of paper that mysteriously had the image of the Anti-Bob on it. “I got a parking ticket and no good things happened, ” he says. “I had homework. I knew something was wrong. It was anti-slack. ” Day says his bad luck went away as soon as he burned the piece of paper. “I’m in school because it’s easy,” he says. “I have a 3.2 average. I study about an hour per test. I’m not complaining. ” About 100 subgeniuses go to A&M, but they don’t hold regular meetings because that would not be slack, Day says. The church members believe the world will erupt in peace at 7 a.m. on July 5,1998. At that time all the subgeniuses will evolve into Overmen, or supreme beings, and all those in the Conspiracy will be destroyed. In the meantime, Day says he will become rich because a)) subgeniuses naturally become rich. The Society for Creative Anachronism emphasizes the past instead of the future. Ron Robertson, SCA advisor, says the Bryan-College Station chapter (called the Shire of Shadowlands) provided a lot of people for the recent Texas Renaissance Festival. The group gives demonstrations about using heavy weapons, such as swords and shields, axes, and maces. The weapons used at the festival are simulated with rattan wood, and everyone who fights must go through special training and leam first aid to lower the risk of injury. “We’re very proud of our safety record, ” Robertson says. The SCA has about 90 members, half of which are students, he says. Robertson is one of the original founding members of the A&M Society for Creative Anachronism, which was established nine years ago. At tournaments and festivals, SCA code requires members to wear clothing that reflect the styles of the Middle Ages. They must also use King’s English. “King’s English is kind of like Cockney,” Robertson says. “For instance, we say, ‘Greetings, my lord.’ Some people see it as play acting, but the emphasis is on ‘the dream,’ which is where you’re trying to recreate the Renaissance period at all times during an activity.” They achieve this by eliminating anything that would remind people that this is the twentieth century. “If there is an ice chest, we cover it up or decorate it to look like it would belong in the Middle Ages, ” he says. The SCA, an international organization, has a strict structure. The United States is divided into 13 kingdoms. The king is chosen by combat in the Crown Tournament every six months, and the queen is the lady whose favor the king was J.R. “Bob” Dobbs carrying. Texas and Oklahoma make up one kingdom called the Kingdom of Ansteorra, which means star without peer or lone star. Everyone in the organization must choose a name that would have been a typical name in the Middle Ages. This takes lots of research, Robertson says, because they have to make sure the name could have existed during the period, and the name can’t conflict with a name someone else has already chosen. “Most people concentrate on a specific time period within the Middle Ages, ” Robertson says. “We’re very serious about research and authenticity. We try to develop our own persona, name and device which then have to pass levels within the kingdom and the national SCA. ” Members make their own garb and crests, which must not conflict with others’ and must be authentic. Several nationalities are represented in the organization. “Anything is permissible,” Robertson says. “Some members concentrate on Great Britain, some on Scandinavia, Italy or China. Some have even chosen American Indian. ” Members can advance within the organization and earn titles by winning battles. Even women can become knights because there is evidence that there were women knights in history, Robertson says. “The SCA is very popular within the military because they like to study the history of warfare, ” he says. “We usually have two or three corps members in the SCA. Every Sunday we do drills, practice formations and train to do battle. ” Science fiction enthusiasts can also join campus organizations. MSC Nova members have an interest in science fiction, fantasy role playing and wargames. The student organization has been recognized by the MSC since 1983.
