Not My Blog @notmyname92-blog - Tumblr Blog

Best Post/Reflection

I believe this http://notmyname92.tumblr.com/post/33036634925/in-retrospective-is-public-shame-considered-just was my best post so far, because it was a somewhat controversial subject and I looked at all sides of the argument. Not only did I look at all sides of the arguments but looked at the assumptions of these arguments and continued with the conclusion of the arguments of these assumptions turned out not to be true. It was also a subject that I find very interesting, the idea of how best to combat hateful comments or ideas. Is it better to shame them to make an example out of those comments or is trying to have a conversation more beneficial, even if it might not work.

When it came to the blogging assignment itself I felt there were two ways to look at it, the idea behind the assignment and how the assignment did in practice. As for the idea of the assignment I think it is great. Getting students to attempt and make often controversial arguments and discuss those ideas among themselves can be really beneficial to the class. Also by making the bloggers anonymous is made it easier for people to say how they feel or to try out an interesting argument. The assignment gave students something to talk about at the beginning of class as well. I felt as though most class periods the first 10 minutes was used discussing something related to the tubmlr posts.

However in practice this assignment did not go as well as it could have. As I am sure most people noticed many people, including myself, did most of their posts on Saturday. This gave students very little to blog about or respond to throughout the week. I know for me I often forgot about these assignments and remembered on the days they were due. It had nothing to do with the assignment itself, I have no problem with discussing argument or being told I am wrong it was just I did not find the tumblr post interesting to me personally. Maybe changing due dates around so they are not all due on Saturday may help in reducing the 90 posts on a Saturday evening. In the end I would say that the tumblr assignment, while not perfect, was a great idea and should be implemented again.

Congo Rebels Choose Diplomatic Approach

A good sign of a reduction in violence in Congo’s civil war occurred today when rebel fighters agreed to pull out of an area due to a deal brokered by presidents of the Great Lakes states under Congos leadership. The rebel group, named M23, said they would fight to topple Congo's President Joseph Kabila and march on the capital Kinshasa. Their leader said that “we are leaving for peace”. If there are no hitches, a full rebel withdrawal from lakeside Goma, which lies in sight of the towering Mount Nyiragongo volcano, will provide breathing space for possible follow-up negotiations between the rebels and Kabila.

This seems as though M23 he doing the just thing and reducing the violence in order to try and figure out a more peaceful solution to the conflict. It proves that this rebel group truly does find the political reforms they are looking for to be the key reason to their rebellion. There are other times where rebel groups will keep fighting a government but M23 is willing to back out in order to help the future or their country, which seems to be the main reason for the rebellion.

miscnerdings

So it seems that $55 million is too much for Chicago to try to cut down crime. The money went toward a program to help keep inner-city kids out of trouble by helping them expand their culture base, creating part-time jobs, and deal with stress. Sounds like fantastic program to me, but critics are second guessing. Some argue that it’s a waste of tax-payer money since the murder rate in Chicago has risen since the program’s beginning, and it would seem others believe it was just a bid for votes for the governor.

Seriously?! This program, from an outsider perspective, seems like a fantastic idea. The Criminal Justice System probably loves this! Youth gangs, especially in inner city areas, have become kind of a big issue to the CJS, so anything to reduce the possibility of delinquency/crime, right? There is nothing good, right, or just about criticizing a program that HELPS PEOPLE! If it helps kids keeps out of trouble, what’s so bad about it?

notmyname92-blog

I think the issue with this is there are two basic ideas as to how to deal with crime. There is one in which people use punishments to deter others from committing crimes and another using programs to reduce the amount of people who may be put in a situation to commit a crime.

Unfortunately in the United State criminal justice system we often find punishments as a deterrent to take the precedent over any other program. The problem with programs to help kept high risk teens of the streets is that it takes time for a program like that to start to be effective. As the article states it was put in place in 2010 and now it is being looked at to me removed. Two years is not nearly enough time to see if this program is being useful.

Because people are so results driven since the result have not been there people began to question the importance of this program but there is no way to judge the increase of violence as proof that the program is not effected. I would feel as though that the program would need to be in place for at least 10 years to truly see if this is effective.

Types of Characters in Julius Caesar

In the play Julius Caesar there are four main types of characters as I see it. We have Cassius who doesn’t care what other think about him, wants power, and will do what it takes to get that power. There is Brutus who doesn’t need power but cares about justice and honor. Caesar is someone who wants power no matter what but cares about what people think of him. Finally there is Antony who seems to care about honor at first but then changes into caring about power and not caring what others think of him. By exploring each of these types of characters we can see why they ended up in the situation they were in.

For Cassius we see early on that he does not care about honor but only gaining power. He is jealous of Caesar and believes that he should have as much power if not more than Caesar. Cassius talks about how he saved Caesar from drowning, pointing out how Caesar is not as great as others thinks. However because he does not have the credibility to take Caesar out he must enlist the help of Brutus. By doing this he forces himself to listen to Brutus even when he voices concerns about Antony. If he wasn’t so focused on getting power he would be able to look at the scenario and understand when he must remove Antony.

Brutus is so focused on honor and justice he finds himself blind to anyone who wants more then what is just or honorable. We discussed in class how he thinks everyone will act in the same honorable way that he does. This not only makes it possible for Cassius to convince him he must help remove Caesar but that Antony is not acting with alterative motives.

Caesar is a charismatic leader who the people love. His wanting to be perceived in a positive light is what makes him so powerful but ultimately leads to his demise. By understand how others perceive him he correctly denies the crown three times when the crowd offers it to him. This lends him more credibility to the people and he becomes more beloved. However when omens blatantly tell him he will die he is convinced to go to the senate anyways because he does not wish to be perceived as weak, which leads him to his death at the hands of Cassius and Brutus.

Antony is the perfect example of what Coralinus was afraid of. While Caesar may seem to be the type of person that Coralinus would be afraid of Antony seems more dangerous. Because he does not care about how others perceive him, he can pretend to be a dumb warrior who only cares about honor and glory and use this to his advantage. We can see this in his memorial speech about Caesar. He says how he is “not as good an orator as Brutus” making him seem more of a “common person” than he truly is. This is what Coralinus would be afraid of more than anything, someone who has the credibility of being an honorable person but truly does not care if he acts honorable or not.

lennythelamb-blog

I am a huge college football fan. As a Nebraska fan, I am enjoying a season where we have a 9-2 record, and a chance at a conference championship and maybe even a BCS bowl game. However, we are not undefeated like the days of old, and we would give anything for another shot at a National...

notmyname92-blog

First off what happened to your friend is horrible. I do not believe that has anything to do with being an underdog but everything to do with jealousy. Past that I agree that people often cheer for the under-dog however I don’t believe this is because we want someone who is doing well to fail it is because we want to see someone achieve more than is expected of them. When #1 Alabama falls to #15 Texas A&M the news story or average people, at least from what I hear, say “Wow look how Texas A&M took on a team that was supposed to unbeatable and headed to another National Championship” not “I am glad Alabama got beat they have been to good and I don’t like to see teams be excellent”. I at least know for me it was the opposite. Despite not being a huge SEC fan I know I cheered for Alabama because they seemed like a team that had it all but yet when they fell to Texas A&M I was still happy because a team who wasn't really even given to much of a chance in the SEC came in and not only did well in the conference but knocked off the best team.

Afghanistan's Warlords Could Mean Trouble

(http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/13/world/asia/ismail-khan-powerful-afghan-stokes-concern-in-kabul.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0)

With the majority of United States forces set to leave Afghanistan it will be the job if the Afghan army to help protect the people and their country. However one of the more powerful warlords, Ismail Khan, in Afghanistan is calling for his followers to prepare to pick up arms and force the Taliban out once Western forces leave. While he may have Afghanistan in mind with this call for support and may think of it as a just action the central government is seeing this as a concern. Hamid Karzai and the Afghan government stated that “The remarks by Ismail Khan do not reflect the policies of the Afghan government. The government of Afghanistan and the Afghan people do not want any irresponsible armed grouping outside the legitimate security forces structures.” There is also concern because the government is not sure whether he is truly just trying to remove the Taliban or to cover his actions of rearming his forces. If he is trying to rearm his forces this would not be good for the Afghan government. It could mean a potential civil war. If Ismail Khan sees his views as the true way for Afghanistan and his followers support the situation in Afghanistan could go from bad to worse.

Antigone and The Revolutionary War

So far I have seen multiple posts about Antigone and whether she was a martyr or not. We first have to look at what a martyr is and then whether she fits that description. We also have to look at her reasoning as to why she did what she did.

A martyr by definition is “somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.” In the story of Antigone we see her choose to go against Creon’s decree that her brother Eteocles should be given a proper burial while Polynices should not be mourned, his body left unburied. Antigone then decides to go and bury her brother, Polynices, to honor the laws of the gods. On the face of this situation it appears to be a conflict between the laws of man and the laws of the gods. The laws of man, in this case, are considered corrupt and unjust but yet Antigone is the only person to stand up to these laws and go against them. After this she ends up being killed by Creon for violating the laws of the city. Therefore this would appear to be a story of a woman who does the just thing in the name of the gods and her family but as we talked about in class there was one statement she had that made a lot of us rethink this. Antigone pointed out that if it was her child she would not go through this effort to bury him or her because she could always have another one.

To me this brings up a couple of questions, either she is not just or that our definition of just has changed since the times of the Greeks. If it the first than she may be a martyr but not a just one that we would want to commend. If it’s that out definition of a just martyr has changed it brings up many more questions about how views on heroes.

Someone else pointed out how the modern terrorists are often considered to be terrorists instead of martyrs, however if we accept that our perception or definition of a martyr/terrorist changes then we must accept that these terrorists may not be terrorists. One of my favorite quotes is “one man’s freedom fighter is another man’s terrorist.”

In my mind this draws a parallel to the Revolutionary War. One could argue that the premise behind the Revolutionary War as to oppose the law of man but to enforce the law of the gods. In this case it was the inalienable rights that are so clearly defined to us as citizens of the country. This also seem similar to the idea that one man’s freedom fighter is another man’s terrorist. As we would probably define the fighters during the Revolutionary War are freedom fighters I am sure that the British would define them as terrorists.

daydreamer0414-blog

After the recent election the subject of the rights of voters has been brought to light. Particularly in regards to racial discrimination. I do believe it to be just that all registered voters have the right to vote in an election no matter what your racial background is. However, this issue has already been brought up once to the Supreme Court and Chief Justice Roberts deemed it to be “a difficult constitutional decision.”

So why are we looking at it again now? After this election? The votes of minorities were at a record high this year wtih 90% of African Americans voting for Obama as well as 70% of Hispanics. In fact, white voters were fairly outnumbered in this past election. So is Chief Justice Roberts right? Is this simply a “difficult constitutional decision?” Or is it even worthy of looking at?

notmyname92-blog

I would absolutely say these laws are still necessary in today’s America. It’s true it is not 1965 anymore but the difference between racism then and now is that it is social unacceptable to blatantly be racist. I think the clearest example of this is the voter ID laws that were supposedly being passed to prevent “voter fraud”. The amount of people affected by these voter fraud laws were much larger than the number of voter fraud cases that have occurred. According to the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law about 11 percent of adult citizens, more than 21 million people lack a valid, government issued photo ID. There is no way that these laws are just. In fact this article (http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/11/09/1170281/republicans-caught-voter-fraud-show-id-laws/?mobile=nc) discusses how two people tried to commit voter fraud to prove it was an issue and ended up being arrested for voter fraud. Is the need for voter protection as concerning as it was when the Jim Crow laws existed, maybe not, but the fact remains that there is still voter suppression going on and I feel as though some people pretend we live in a society where it doesn’t exist.

Was Petraeus truly Just

Many have been discussing the affair the David Petraeus has recently resigned over. I have seen comments such as he has done the just thing in resigning but one aspect that has been over looked to some degree is why he truly is resigning. It is said he is resigning because of the affair but it could easily be that he is resigning because he was caught. Based on the New York Times article that appears to be what happened. (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/10/us/citing-affair-petraeus-resigns-as-cia-director.html?hp&_r=1&)

“David H. Petraeus, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency and one of America’s most decorated four-star generals, resigned on Friday after an F.B.I. investigation uncovered evidence that he had been involved in an extramarital affair.”

Further in the article it discusses how the FBI was looking at a possible criminal matter several months ago. It involved looking at Petraeus’s computer and once this was done the relationship was uncovered. All I have seen done was that Petraeus admitted to a relationship after he was discovered. I do not see how this is just or noble in any way. Now I am a fan of Petraeus but it is just as unjust to try and make someone seem noble when in reality they were just caught.

herestojoe-blog

“That dog infringed my fourth amendment right!” is what I imagine would be said by the defendants of two cases being heard by the Supreme Court today. The cases involve the use of a drug-sniffing dogs and whether or not they were used in unconstitutional searches. While the circumstances of the search are still mysterious to me, I gather that the dog led the police to a house in which there were large amounts of pot being grown. This gave the police the ability to obtain a warrant and led to the arrest of the homeowner. The argument is that dogs should not be allowed to sniff around a house without probable cause.

I look at it this way: If I’m taking a walk down the street and I see you murdering someone in your house with my keen sense of sight, I am allowed to call the police and report what I saw. If Officer Jo “just happens” to be taking Franky the K-9 unit for a walk down the street and Franky detects drugs with his keen sense of smell, he should be allowed to inform the police as well.

What do you think? Unreasonable search or just more stupid criminals trying to get away with their crimes by launching a war on drug-dogs?

notmyname92-blog

This post is very interesting because it highlights one of the biggest questions in America. What does the 4th amendment protect? In this case a dog alerted to the presence of narcotics and because of this the cops obtained a warrant. On the face of it this appears to be open and closed. However this is all under the assumption that the drug dogs are accurate, but are they really? According to the Chicago Tribune after looking through 3 years of data they found that drug dogs were only right 44% of the time. You can check out the full article here (http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-01-06/news/ct-met-canine-officers-20110105_1_drug-sniffing-dogs-alex-rothacker-drug-dog ) Or if you don’t want to read the whole thing, (http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/01/07/132738250/report-drug-sniffing-dogs-are-wrong-more-often-than-right). I would consider this far from reliable. Also for people who were Hispanic this was only correct 27% of the time. The article explains why

“Dog handlers can accidentally cue alerts from their dogs by leading them too slowly or too many times around a vehicle, said Lawrence Myers, an Auburn University professor who studies detector dogs. Myers pointed to the "Clever Hans" phenomenon in the early 1900s, named after a horse whose owner claimed the animal could read and do math before a psychologist determined the horse was actually responding to his master's unwitting cues.

Training is the key to eliminating accidental cues and false alerts, said Paul Waggoner of Auburn's detector-dog research program.

“Is there a potential for handlers to cue these dogs to alert?" he asked. "The answer is a big, resounding yes.””

So it would be one thing if someone witnessed this pot being grown or knew beyond a reasonable doubt but that is not the case. They are using an animal that is not perfect and can be influenced by its handlers. While in this specific case they did end up finding drugs that is not the point of the 4th amendment, they shouldn't have been able to obtain a warrant with the help of such an inaccurate “tool”.

A Different Way Reading of The Republic and Looking at Morality

So in class we discussed the idea that Socrates used a noble lie. Socrates’s noble lie is that the people of this Just city were born from the earth and therefore must defend the city and its lands at all costs. This is used to make sure that people will never take actions that favor themselves at the expense of the city. However during class Dr. Kohen hinted that there may be another noble lie being told throughout The Republic. In class and on the discussion boards I have seen people bringing up the idea of subjectivity and objectivity but what if this is the debate the Socrates wanted? What if his noble lie is that there is objective truths?

What made me think of this idea was seeing what Socrates wants to accomplish. As we have learned there are three motives that govern human’s actions, reason, spirit, and desire. These motives correspond with different types of rule, Monarchy/Aristocracy, Timocracy, Oligarchy, Democracy, and Tyranny. Socrates wants people to avoid Tyranny which is governed by desire and desire. However what keeps people from going to Tyranny if there is no objective truth in the world or about these motives? Nothing, at least it appears to be that way for Socrates. Therefore if the world is subjective the only way to make a city or country better is if a majority of people subjectively find that striving for objectivity is the best way to live one’s life.

Essentially there is no Good, but by saying there is a Good encourages people to attain this, or at least get as close as they can to it. Attempting to achieve this Good is what moves society in, what Socrates sees, as the right direction. However to Socrates this right direction is not subjective because only after truly exploring reason and thought does someone see that the only way to convince others to achieve Good is through a noble lie.

I do not claim this to be the correct or only reading of The Republic but it is definitely a reading that has intrigue me. It basically has been coming down to, is morality subjective or objective. One interesting way to look at morality is that morality is objective but not in the same way that most have been describing it. I do not believe that it is like a math equation, that once all the variables are in place a correct answer appears. Instead I believe that morality comes from the laws of nature, more specifically evolution.

While humans have, for the most part, stopped evolving physically we continue to evolve mentally. That is why we see a change in “morality” even over the last 6,000 years of recorded history. From when we were first moving out of Africa it was important to not let “outsiders” in because they could threaten the lives of your family. Overtime people have begun to include more people in their “family” through tribes villages cites and eventually nations. However this could change in the opposite direction. If a huge natural disaster, zombies, or some other movie like catastrophe was to occur peoples “family” would quickly shrink and stay that way until stability was brought back. So it is subjective in the sense that it is subject to change but it is objective because it is governed by the laws of nature.

Some of My Favorite Musicians

These 5 musicians are in no particular order just 5 of my favorites.

Eminem

While I am not a huge fan of rap Eminem is one of the best musicians because of a couple of reasons. He completely changed the style in which rappers used words. His ability to make words rhyme that do not normally rhyme is very impressive (perfect example http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kQBVneC30o). Also while some of his songs are ridiculous he has a large collection of songs that are not only personal for him but hold deep meaning.

Dave Brubeck

One the greatest jazz musicians of all time probably most well-known for songs such as Take Five and Blue Rondo A La Turk. Not only are these songs very well done but Dave Brubeck also was a very unique writer. He used, what are considered, odd timing such as 9/8, 5/4, 3/4, and 6/4.

Bob Dylan

For me Bob Dylan had this very interesting mix of folk and rock in his music that made it interesting to listen to. Also many of his songs had a good message and his voice went perfect with his sound.

Earth Wind and Fire

One of the best soul, rock, fusion bands ever. Also one of the last remaining “big band” styles of music. All the instruments that had going for many of their songs and how they all worked so well together were amazing. Even with that many instruments the music never seemed jumbled or to complex it was as simple as it needed to be but yet still be great.

Peter Frampton

He is one of the best guitar players of all time. His solos are just as memorable if not more so than his most popular songs. Not to mention his stage presence was great. I have never personally seen him but from videos I have seen and talking with my dad it is clear that his show was just as much part of the music as his songs were. Also his use of the talk box he used in some songs was original and really fit his style of music (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDn2lbIltHM&feature=related)

One thing I found in common with some of my favorite musicians, besides Eminem, is that my dad was also a big fan of these same people. A lot of my childhood includes listening to this music and I believe that played a big role in why I find these musicians as good as they are.

paulogodchalk-blog

According to the Washington Post, Ashok Khemka is an Indian bureaucrat that has been reassigned 43 times in his 21 year career as a government employee. His frequent transfers are not for poor job performance. Rather, they’re a consequence of his determination to play by the rules and fight...

notmyname92-blog

This is great to see. It is rare to see someone who is so committed to doing the right thing even when they are harmed in the professional career as this man has been. The quality of doing the right thing and combating corruption is a good one to have. This is opposite to the idea of real politik, which is the strong do what they can because they can. This man obviously thinks of this theory of justice as incorrect because he fights for what’s “right”. If we had someone like this in the US political system I believe it would help out with a lot of the dead lock in congress. Not that there is rampart corruption but having someone choose to do the right thing regardless of what may happen would be great. Politicians are too concerned with being re-elected than doing what is best for the country. Party lines are more important than ever and people do not cross them. Democrats and Republicans will vote down an opposing parties legislation just to make sure the opposition does not succeed and the citizens of the United States are the ones who are paying the price for it.

bisongal-blog

Italian scientists have been found criminally guilty for failing to predict an earthquake in 2009 and each scientist will spend six years in jail for manslaughter. You know, I could have seen this pop up as a civil suit, especially in America, because we love to sue for anything and everything....

notmyname92-blog

I agree that this is absolutely not just, the idea that a scientist can be held criminally accountable for a failed prediction does not make sense at all. For me this issue goes deeper than just the idea of a scientist having criminal charges put on him. This becomes an issue of people not understanding science. A prediction is a statement about the way things will happen in the future, often but not always based on experience or knowledge. Therefore if the scientists did not have the knowledge due to a lack of information then they cannot make a prediction. The ruling also sets a precedence for scientist that is counter to the idea of science. Now scientist in Italy may make predictions when they shouldn’t or don’t when they should due to the fear of being charged with a crime. Science is not about being right 100% of the time it is about taking the information and evidence at hand coming up with a proper conclusion. How can someone weigh the facts properly if they are concerned about being put in prison? I just hope that this is an isolated incident and hopefully does not spread to other countries.

twentytwotwentythree-blog

An article written by Deena Winter of Nebraska Watchdog pointed out that the Todd Akin comments about legitimate rape not resulting in pregnancy most likely stems from an Omaha doctor’s book from 1972.

Dr. Thomas Hilgers wrote a book that had content that suggested ovulation can be delayed by...

notmyname92-blog

I feel as though often times you see people’s views molded to their parents, party, religion, or race. As humans we like to categorize things and this includes people’s views. In this case this man’s views are being formed around what his father said in 1972. However this does not seem to be just or fair for anyone. I know that if my views were based of my family’s, while most I may agree with, I would not agree with everything and would hate to see my views put into a box. I hope that for Mike Hilgers that this issue does not keep coming up throughout the race. This brings up a bigger issue in politics that I see far too often. Politicians will put advertise his or her opponents view in a skewed way in order to confuse voters and force the opposition to waste time on combating blatantly false or skewed statements. In my opinion that is where the biggest concern comes in this article. Politics has become such a dirty game and it continues to polarize not only politicians but the country as a whole. Hopefully Mr. Hilgers will not have to deal with any more question about his father’s view but I find it unlikely.

barcapolitics-blog

Granted this is the DailyMail, so we will see how accurate the article is if it is covered by another source. Anyways, this is a perfect example of someone gaining the title of a hero because he said no to the social norm of just walking by a problem that isn’t our own. It is pretty amazing because the second bird he hits with this stone is breaking a massive stereotype he probably held to those standing around before the incident…not talented enough at anything to make something of himself. The man single handedly came in, took responsibility of the situation, and successfully saved the newborn from choking to death. This is another piece of humanity I enjoy to see every once in awhile. There are many more like him. I have run into quite a few here in Lincoln. Complete strangers that take nothing but pride in being able to help another humans life when they can. That man has now helped another human being see another day, and isn’t that really the greatest gift each of us could ever ask for?

notmyname92-blog

Reading this article probably made me react in the same way you did, very proud. I was proud to be part of this world, seeing people step up and help out another person, young or old, is great to see. Like you it was also nice to see certain stereotypes broken, especially when in Lincoln you see many homeless people downtown. I hope the article makes people stop and think for a second about who they may be passing by. While his action is definitely very heroic there are many things we can do on a daily basis to be a hero. Joining big brother and sisters or volunteering at a nursing home are great options. Over last summer I volunteered at a nursing home and it was one of the best experiences I have ever had in my life. While sometimes the work was hard or the hours long at the end of the day when they would say thank you or give me a hug it was very rewarding. Now I wouldn’t call myself a “hero” but I think everybody has the ability to take heroic actions on a daily basis to make the world a better place bit by bit

morepanda-blog

Three years of planning and rebuilding, $2.6 million in house renovations and the “most improved chapter” award from Sigma Chi’s national headquarters have now been overshadowed by the re-suspension of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Sigma Chi chapter stemming from charges of procuring alcohol for minors.

Who here is shocked that this happened? I am certainly not. I am personally not in a fraternity but I do have a number of friends who are in, as I am sure is the same case with many people here. From what I have seen, heard, and conversed about these institutions are not usually a great service to the university, I understand that their are exemptions. So when I heard about what happened this weekend I cannot say I was surprised.

The chapter did not serve out its full term, a term I feel was just. Four years made sure that all old members were cycled out and new, hopefully more reasonable, ones in. But soon they abused the privilege they were giving. But c’mon, who did not see this coming. I mean I too enjoy tipping back a few too many on the weekends, but didn’t the university see this coming. Maybe attaching a vague punishment of an indefinite suspension did not make this seem real to the members. Had the punishment been a strict 4+ year ban I think it would have been a bit stronger, nonetheless I feel that the university should invoke a much harsher ban this time around. I am not saying expulsion, well I pretty much am, but I am saying kick them off for good for at least 4 years, no shortening it up this time. Change the culture of the fraternity, put strict GPA restrictions, strict off campus guidelines, and strict service regulations. Make them show they have the ability and drive to be a true model fraternity, then allow them back slowly. Who knows maybe others will follow suit.

raisingarebel-deactivated201311

Frankly, I am not surprised, but I am disappointed and disturbed. I am not the biggest fan of Greek culture on our campus. I think it’s distracting and ultimately unfulfilling. I also think it promotes a confusing lifestyle for young people and for our society.

The university acted appropriately upon finding out about this violation. The terms of consequences were clearly written out and clearly violated. However, I am troubled, and perhaps empathetic, that Sigma Chi just happens to be the ones that got caught. The charge is centered around a procuring alcohol for minors, which is a not-so-secret ritual of college students. It’s illegal and risky. Yet it happens every day. Jeff Beavers, assistant director to the Office of Greek Affairs admits that college students drink off-campus. Why do we continue to risk the consequences? Do administrators really turn a “blind eye” to this behavior? Sigma Chi had some other gross violations several years ago that made any infraction a cause for indefinite suspension but who is to say similar behavior doesn’t occur, whether in the Greek setting or otherwise, but they just continue to fly under the radar? What does this really say about our administrative system? They acted swiftly against Sigma Chi, but how proactive are they in preventing other similar behavior. Really, this suggests some disregard for the law itself by acknowledging that it occurs but not seriously acting to prevent it. At what point is the administration/justice system neglectful and incompetent or does their behavior seem to say that the law itself is unjust or incorrect? I’ve always respected the drinking age at 21, but I’ve also considered that lowering it to 18 may be healthier and more realistic to our society. The justice system may be neglectful just not recognizing the reality of the society it serves. However, that does not necessarily mean that people will suddenly become more respectful consumers of alcohol or make better, legal and moral choices at all.

twentytwotwentythree-blog

I agree that they just happened to be the one house that was caught doing this. It’s pretty basic knowledge that many Greek houses are often hosting people with drinking involved. You brought up an interesting fact about the University’s administration and what they might be doing to prevent this in the future. Plain and simple, the only way they could prevent it is to have security do rounds every so often. However, where does that draw the line of invading privacy? There’s a whole lot of issues involved and where anyone can draw the line is tough to say.

You brought up the point of bringing the drinking age to 18 to prevent all these legal mishaps. I lived abroad for six months where the drinking age was 18, and while their drinking and driving percentages in young people was lower than they are here here, they had other issues. There is a large percentage of alcohol related rapes and other sexual assaults in that country. Especially with young people.

What is the just thing to do with the legal drinking age? I think no matter what happens people will most likely do whatever they want to do regardless of the legal repercussions. The just thing might be to stay over at a friend’s house off-campus; drink there, pass out, and then wake up and head back to your dorm or Greek house in the A.M.

raisingarebel-deactivated201311

It seems that underage (within reason) drinking isn’t a problem as long as people don’t get hurt. Alcohol has the potential to lead to other things- like violence and consumption of other dangerous substances. It can also be consumed in moderation and responsibly. However, as of right now, if you are 20 years and 364 days old or younger, consumption of alcohol is against the law. Goes without saying, so is procuring for minors. However, it’s the open secret of college that minors drink and those of legal age buy for them. Is the law still valid if people don’t follow it and if it’s weakly enforced? That is when I raise the question if anything should be changed about it.

enirehtakeel-blog

I’ve found reading this discussion to be particularly interesting because it has ranged from a call for a harsher form of justice for the fraternity to a vehement defense of the UNL greek system to a question about how underaged drinking is viewed by the law.

Underaged drinking is an interesting issue. I agree with those who said it is inevitable that students will drink, even if they are under 21. However, it is interesting that several of us acknowledged drinking is illegal and, what’s more, it can lead to harmful behavior, but that it is likely it will happen anyway. So, who’s side are we on? We can’t bend justice to fit both of our viewpoints of underaged drinking.

According to the law, it’s illegal to drink if you’re under 21 years old, but we say it’s going to happen anyway, so how do we apply justice? In my opinion, it was silly to suspend that fraternity for procuring alcohol for minors. (Please note that I am not referring to any of the fraternities past incidents as well.) Let’s face it: whether you’re a greek or a goddamn independent (they still call non-greek students that, right?) it’s likely you will drink or at least try alcohol underaged. And you’re going to get that alcohol from someone who’s older than you.

How, then, do we apply the law? Do we ignore it? Do we punish some harder than others? This is definitely an issue and one that needs to be handled, but until we can agree on a definition of justice and all live by those standards, it is unlikely it will change.

notmyname92-blog

When reading this I found some viewpoints that I agreed with and some I did not, I also saw some misunderstandings about what happened and why they are suspended.

First off the reason why they are suspended indefinitely is not because they procured alcohol for minors but because they broke the University Guidelines. When they were removed from campus 2 years ago it was established that Sigma Chi could petition to come back on campus. They did that and were let on campus early but under the condition that if Sigma Chi was to break any University Guidelines they would be kicked off campus again. So while procuring for minors was the guideline they broke it didn’t matter which guideline it was.

The University has made it clear that they are not going to go out hunting for minors drinking but if something is brought to their attention they will investigate and deal with it. That is what has been done and will continue to be done. The idea that the University can prevent students from drinking is foolish, it’s the same concept as abstinence only sex education. It’s been shown it will happen so they best way to go about dealing with the issue is trying to make it as safe as possible. This is why the University has 475-Ride, a free no questions asked taxi service. Now this doesn’t mean the University has to make it easy to drink underage or promote it, they can make it safe without doing either of those things.

Many of the posts also mentioned the Greek system and the issues with it. First off there are some issues with the Greek system, in the same way that every organization has its issues. Probably the most famous of which is hazing. This is obviously an issue and one that needs to be dealt with. Hazing is also one of the “norms” that society thinks about the Greek system. First this is not true for all houses and for any it is not the case.

Also many people were posting about how the Greek system does not serve the members well. This is just not true. The Greek system regularly posts better grades then the rest of the University. While reputation can cause some negative side effects this is a positive one. Houses want to be the best and part of being the best house is having the best grades. Your grades don’t only affect you but your friends. Philanthropy is another huge part of the Greek system, this goes along with the reputation of the house. Each house wants to have the biggest or best philanthropies which also accomplish generating more money for the charity of choice.

In the end I think it was just for the University to take the actions they did against Sigma Chi but I do not believe it is just to lump the entire Greek system in with them. There are problems which need to be fixed but the Greek system does a lot for the individual members, charities, and the University.

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