University of Virginia Library

Letters To The Editor

CID Intimidates VVP

It is difficult to believe that the
recent attempt of CID agents to
investigate the activities of certain
officers of the Virginia Veterans for
Peace was not simply a bald intimidation
of these officers and, implicitly,
of the rank and file members
of that organization. It would be
unfortunate indeed if an organization
dedicated to establishing
through constitutional means peace
abroad and a democratic society at
home were to retreat from the first
onslaughts of America's supra-constitutional
government, that
is, the government of the seemingly
autonomous, omnipotent, and omnipresent
institutions which, for
better or worse, now comprise part
of the national scene

Rather, it is time for its members
and for other interested citizens
to examine for themselves the
notion that the citizen has the right
to assemble peaceably and to ask
themselves if they are not witnessing
a violation of this right at the
present time. If this should appear
to them to be the case, then they
ought to come forward to decry
this violation of rights and to defend
the Constitution against those
who ignore it.

Slow Rush

After attending the IFC meeting
last night and talking to many IFC
representatives, it became even
more evident that rush is going very
much slower this year for almost
every fraternity. After thinking this
matter over thoroughly, I thought
that I would throw out a little
observation on my part, which may
serve to counteract the prevailing
outlook on fraternities.

There has to be some binding
force which holds some 35 fraternities
together here at Virginia.
Whether it be location of the country,
old high school ties, secrecy,
weekend hell-raisin' - whatever it
may be, it must be something
strong. Fraternities have weathered
the years since foundation dates
miraculously well. The chance to go
over and talk to some 50 to 60
friends; the chance to make
life-long friendships which can
prove to be valuable in the business
world-these are but a few of the
strongest plus factors fraternities
have.

So I leave each 1st yearman with
this thought: if you think you're
too good for the fraternity system
here at Virginia, then forget it now.
But, if you think that an association
with some 50 guys, whom you
call friends, could be of some
minute benefit and interest to you,
I challenge and ask you to give at
least one fraternity a chance. Fraternity
life has meant a lot to me,
and it's meant a lot to a great
number of people in the past-it
potentially could mean a lot to
you.

Past Bastion

In his letter of Oct. 9 Mr. Pete
Kempson of the House of Theta
Chi, 1970, attacks my comments
on rush, arguing that they arise
solely from the "... currently
fashionable 'get-with-it-ness'..."
of downgrading fraternities. It
always amazes me the way a fratman
can rationalize attacks on his
hollowed system as being merely
the "current fashion". They seem
to feel that if fraternities can
weather the storm of protest for a
while the good old days of "beer
swilling bigotry" will return.

Be that as it may, fraternities
seem unwilling to change the most
blatant area of short coming, that
obsolete event known as rush.
While on the one hand fraternities
claim that they have gotten in step
with the times, that they are capable
of more than just a social
contribution to the university and
the community, and that they are
willing to help confront the many
problems now plaguing all of
academia, rush stalwartly remains
as five weeks of parties, smokers,
dinners, and torture, a bastion of
the past, stubbornly unwilling to
respond to the needs of the present.

Regardless of what fratmen
would like you to believe, rush is
basically composed of social activities.
I don't mean to say that there
should be no social functions, but
certainly parties and such tend to
completely obscure those areas of
fraternity life that warrant close
scouting by prospective pledges. If
fraternities are purely social groups
then they should stop claiming to
be otherwise and accordingly
accept the criticism of that narrow
scope.

If fraternity life entails so much
more as its proponents now claim,
then rush should be restructured to
exhibit specifically how fraternities
are facing up to the problems of the
university today. In either case fratmen
should quit deluding themselves
that attacks on their sacred
cow are merely an outgrowth of
fashion. And as for Mr. Kempson, I
was pleased to note that as an
undergraduate he condescended to
having a "good many" friends who
weren't in fraternities. Now that's
real progress!

New Attitude

A Small Proposal! Hardly.
Admittedly the Housing Office was
caught last spring with its pants
down, not having enough University
Housing to meet upperclass demands.
Admittedly it will be worse
this spring. But even the building of
ten new Alderman Road Complexes
will not solve this University's housing
problem.

What we need is a new attitude
in Housing. We must realize that
learning divorced from living — and
living divorced from learning — is
not education at all. We must come
to value the residential experience
of college as much as the academic
experience.

The Housing Office is responsible
to all University students; its
responsibility is to provide dynamic,
exciting living quarters. A residential
college system, as per Yale,
would be a good start. But first we
need the Attitude — and that's no
small proposal.