The Week In Review

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

TDR Extends Condolences

By now, everyone is aware of the mass murder that took place last week at Virginia Tech. There is a point where words fail. For what it’s worth, we would like to extend our deepest condolences to the victims’ families and friends.

We would also like to note the passing of Pat Buckley on Sunday, April 15. Mrs. Buckley was kind enough to atttend our twenty-fifth anniversary gala last spring. Condolences go to her husband, William F. Buckley, Jr., and son, novelist Christopher Buckley.

RIP.

Best Letter Ever

A campus-wide blitz from Sustainable Dartmouth entitled “Free T-Shirts!” contained the following sentence: “We’ll all congregate on the Green on Earth Day (Sunday, April 22) to weigh our individual trash bags, make a big pile, take pictures, sunbathe, have a drum circle, smoke lots of pot...okay, maybe not the last two or three.”

Them came a “J’accuse!”-style response, written, however, by the very same person. And he pulled no punches.

>Date: 16 Apr 2007 11:53:58 -0400
>From: Sustainable Dartmouth
>Subject: A Clarification and an Apology
>To: (Recipient list suppressed)

Sustainable Dartmouth owes the entire Dartmouth community a clarification and an apology regarding the mass blitz that was sent out last night with the subject line “Free T-shirts.” First of all, it should be noted that the blitz was not a collaborative effort but solely my own. Thus all blame should be directed towards me and not Sustainable Dartmouth as an organization.

In the blitz, it was jokingly suggested that those who participate in “Carry Your Trash Week” congregate on the Green on Earth Day and, among other things, “have a drum circle and smoke lots of pot.” Drum circles are a very serious rite in many cultures and should not be trivialized in the context of those cultures. The intention of the blitz was not to refer to the ceremonial drumming of any particular culture but rather to refer to improvised group drumming that is, in American pop-culture, associated with stereotypical “hippies.” The blitz was intended to be self-exploitative: I was poking fun at the stereotypes of environmentalists in an effort to disassociate myself and other environmentalists from these stereotypes.

When I sent this blitz out, I presumed that the primary cultural context in which it would be received was American pop-culture. I had ignorantly forgotten that the Dartmouth community is its own cultural microcosm with its own history, collective memory, and context. It was brought to my attention that, because of this context, and specifically, events that transpired this past fall, the use of the term “drum circle” would foremost call to mind the ceremonial practices of Native American groups. Moreover, it was pointed out that because “smoking lots of pot” was mentioned right after “hav[ing] a drum circle,” I was insinuating a connection between a Native American rite and the use of marijuana, trivializing the former in the process. It was never my intention to do this.

Due to the sanctity of the drum and the practice of group drumming in many cultures, it was disrespectful to refer to such practice, in any context, so lightly.

I apologize for writing and mass distributing last night’s blitz. I feel I have done the Dartmouth community a disservice and can only hope that it has not been too damaging.

Sincerely,
Ritchie King D’06 Th’07

Paulson ‘68 to Speak at Commencement

Secretary of the Treasury Hank Paulson is the top-billed speaker for the June 10 commencement. Paulson is the former Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs. Prior to his joining Goldman Sachs, he was Staff Assistant to the President from 1972-73 and Staff Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Defense from 1970-72.

Irritating Vibe as Woolly-Headed Crunchies Mass on Green

Variegated crunchy eco-types congregated on a snow-covered Green on Saturday, April 14, for a rally to lower carbon emissions and save the Earth. The rally included many locals and fewer Dartmouth students. Oblivious to the unusually cold April weather, they demonstrated against America’s contribution to global warming and ate Ben and Jerry’s. The principal purpose of the rally, one of several across the country, was to call for the U.S. to reduce carbon emissions to 20% of 1990 levels. Among the guest speakers was Menshevik Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, who attacked U.S. energy policy and called for more electric cars and an extensive national train system. In a somewhat related event, Dartmouth students were encouraged to collect and carry all of their trash with them for the following week so they can exhibit it on Earth Day.The absolute low point of the rally was a terrible one-man band covering Dave Matthews songs; the high point came as a plane zoomed overhead advertising a new full sized GMC. The irony, however, was lost on the crowd, which was evidently too busy being aware.

Thetford Youth Gets Ten for Botched Bank Robbery

An Orange County District Court judge sentenced a Thetford boy to three to 10 years in jail last week, after a jury convicted him on felony chargers of unlawful restraint and use of a firearm while committing a crime. Dan Eaton, 17, stormed the Thetford Merchants Bank last August, wielding a shotgun and taking two bank employees hostages. After a three-hour standoff with police, Eaton eventually surrendered; none of the bank employees were physically injured, although Eaton did fire his weapon once out of frustration with the mediating 911 operator. Eaton’s Lawyer later claimed in court that the boy was suffering from psychological disorders, and that the incident at the bank was planned as a means of drawing attention to his psychiatric struggles.

On the basis of character witnesses and substantial community support, Judge Patricia Zimmerman handed down a sentence that compromised between the requests of the defense, who plead for leniency and a jail time of five years, and the prosecution, who argued for the maximum 15-year penalty. “Mr. Eaton is not a bad person,” Zimmerman said “He’s a good person. He did a bad act. By taking some time off the maximum, it will give [him] enough encouragement.”

Grim Greek Prospects for Prospectives

As part of their ‘Dimensions’ week programming, prospective Dartmouth students, many accompanied by their parents, attended a Greek informational session on Wednesday, April 18. Paul Sunde, of the Admissions Office, emceed the event, which came off as a pre-emption of parental misgivings about the Greek system. It also had a feel of disingenuousness, one that seemed at least partially acknowledged by the participants. A panel of current Dartmouth students in Greek Houses handled the questions of the concerned parents—the prospective students remained relatively quiet. There were some notable exchanges, made hiliarious by the event’s basic insincerity.

For instance, the Tri-Kap programming chair noted that he had tried to focus his House more on activism. The cited effort toward this end was the recently organized ‘Easter egg hunt.’

One of the few prospective students to voice a question asked if “you have to go through some not very nice things” to join a Greek House—what exactly he was getting at was not clear. A member of Tabard, said, “There are some things that houses do for group bonding. None of it is enforced…. You’re encouraged to take part as much as possible. And none of it is weird.”

One parent asked if just anyone could get in. A brother at Lambda Upsilon Lambda stated in a somewhat cryptic manner that “whether you get in or not is dependent on yourself and your dedication.” A Tri-Kap noted that, “each House has a personality.”

Another person asked if non-drinkers are able to participate in Greek life. A panelist responded, “If you don’t feel comfortable in a frat, there’s FUEL.” A Theta added to this that “as a freshman, and not eligible to drink, I went to dance parties, and those who can drink can go in the basement.” Those in attendance appeared to take this at face value, though when she mentioned “room parties” some parents registered concern. The sorority sister easily calmed the crowd when she clarified her apparently controversial statement. What she meant by “room party” was like “making cookies,” “watching Grey’s Anatomy,” and “watching Mean Girls.”

The Theta continued: “It’s not just about partying…the community service, the activism, the poetry nights…people see that, and say, ‘I want to part of it.’” To expound on the point about activism she mentioned how Theta is hosting a night-before-earth-day party at which “we’ll drink everything out of sustainable eco-mugs.”

“How many girls are not actually getting in anywhere?” asked a concerned mother for the frenzied second time. A Tri-Delt sorority sister explined, “Well, it’s not always about getting in. Some people drop out.” That’s rich.

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