Another Greek Exemption
Is There a Parallel
Concerning Hazing and Drinking?
The University administration has been
widely criticized for the fact that hazing
has been allowed to exist on this campus
for so long.
This criticism calls to mind another dou
ble standard which exists concerning the
treatment given Greeks compared to that
given independents.
This double standard is best illustrated
by posing a hypothetical situation.
Suppose that a fraternity is holding a
normal house dance. Before this house
dance, the normal cocktail party is to take
place in the normal apartment, chaperoned
by normal University-sanctioned “adults".
There will undoubtedly be a great many in
dividuals under 21 drinking at this party.
The Emerald is not necessarily opposed to
this widely-accepted practice. It is the dou
ble standard we dislike.
Suppose that Jane Jones, who is a sen
ior, age 20. living in Tingle dormitory, with
a 4.00 GPA, attends the party. Suppose
also that Molly Mudd. who is a sophomore,
age 18. with a 2.001. living in Rho Rho Rho
sorority, also attends.
Then suppose that Molly Mudd becomes
very drunk and commits all sorts of un
desirable acts. As she crawls in the front
door at Rho Rho Rho, the lock-up girl is
likely to help put her to bed. and no one
will ever be the wiser.
Then suppose that Jane Jones takes one
small drink, the first of her young life, and
is completely in control of her facilities as
she walks in the door at Tingle Hall. But
oops, she breathes in the direction of the
housemother or counselor, and there it is—
that undeniable scent of scotch-on-the
rocks. It is quite likely that Jane Jones
will be highly reprimanded, put on pro
bation. and a black mark will indelibly
etch itself onto her personal file.
Perhaps we have slightly over-exagger
ated the situation. But you will find very
few people, if any, on this campus who will
claim that a double-standard does not exist
in reference to drinking by upper-class
women in dormitories and those in sorori
ties. t
We are curious as to exactly what justi
fies this double standard.
A Rebuttal
Judging from the comments that have
been leveled at the Emerald in the last
four days, some people feel that we have
damaged the University in the Legislature
through our coverage of the fraternity haz
ing story. Perhaps we have. If so, we make
no apology. We are sorry if the fraternity
hazing situation has negatively affected the
legislators. But we would do it again.
Many students have set forth a line of
reasoning which would put the Emerald
in the status of a public relations organ for
the University. Accordingly, we should
print no news that would have a damaging
effect on the University in the eyes of the
world at large, and the Legislature in spe
cific. As an official University organ, these
students have said, we have no right to
damage the University which supports us.
And they have said, finally, that responsible
editors would have given greater emphasis
to the constructive side of the fraternity
system rather than presenting the view that
the system is all bad.
We feel that these opinions are based
on a warped conception of what journalism
is.
Our job is to report the news. We are
financially dependent upon the University,
and the freedom of the press we have is,
we realize, guaranteed not by the first
amendment to the Constitution but by
President Flemming through the Student
Publications Board. This does not, how
ever, make it our responsibility to suppress
news that will harm the University.
We are frankly mystified by those who
feel that the Emerald has damaged the
University in this case. We did not haze
anyone. We merely reported that many
fraternities did. Our sources were officials
of the IFC and of specific houses, and ad
ministrators in the Office of Student Af
fairs, to say nothing of President Flem
ming. Or would these people criticize Pres
ident Flemming for notifying the Emerald
of his decision in the first place?
We would have gladly reported some
thing constructive about fraternities. The
best thing that can be said is that some
houses did not haze. Anything constructive
that did happen would have had to have
been of unusual magnitude to overbalance
the hazing story.
Any free newspaper—and the Emerald
is as free as a college newspaper can pos
sibly be—operates on the tenent that the
public has a right to know what is happen
ing and how it can affect them. And in
this case, a good many people have a right
to know. The students and administration
certainly have a right to know what is
happening in such a large segment of Uni
versity students. The citizens in the state
have a right to know what is happening in
a state institution. And finally, the Legis
lature, as much as anyone else, has a right
to know what is happening in a place to
which it will allocate funds.
If we suppress news on the basis that it
will unfavorably impress people outside
the University we would be partners in
whatever offense we did not report. Our
audience is primarily the University. If a
situation at the University is bad, the Uni
versity must know about it if it ever hopes
to correct it.
We would be guilty of the worst kind of
cynicism if we printed only good news.
Not telling the truth is only slightly dif
ferent from telling a lie. Telling half the
truth—only good news—is no different at
all.
Letters to the Editor
Auditorium Needed
Emerald Editor:
Thursday night one of the
fiercest battles of the term was
fought. The competitors: The
San Antonio Symphony Orches
tra versus McArthur Court. The
orchestra fought valiantly and
well, but was unable to cope
with “the barn’s” natural advan
tage over any and all perform
ers, its abysmal acoustics.
Such a performance as was
Thursday night drastically em
phasizes Eugene’s and the Uni
versity’s need for an auditorium
or cultural center of some kind.
Until we can offer a large thea
ter with good acoustics, having
a well-lighted stage, we should
not be disappointed if well
known performers seem reluc
tant to make appearances in
Eugene.
James C. Gillis
Frosh in Bus Ad.
A Clarification
Monday the Oregon Daily Emerald, in reference to
hazing, said, “Some of the hazing techniques involved
personal violence, personal degradation, and in an
appalling number of instances, outright perversion. ’
While the basis for the above statement is informa
tion from sources we have no reason to believe are any
thing but reliable, the Emerald has no documentation
of the statement. We have no proof, no witnesses or
confessions.
It would have been better had the statement read,
“Some of the ALLEGED hazing techniques Involved
personal violence, personal degradation, and in an
appalling number of instances, outright perversion.
Our Contemporaries
A proposal to defer rush until
spring term was turned down
last week by fraternities and
clubs on the Stanford Univcr
sits campus. The campus has no
sororities.
Th<- proposal would ha' • pre
vented individuals from indie;.’
in*.; their house preferences un
til the seventh week of spring
term The proposal would have
restricted contact between fra
ternity me mb rs and freshmen
during fall and winter also
Contact between fr»*shnv*n
and upperclassmen would have
been restricted to open con
tact on campus only, and no
commitments made by freshmen
during winter cpiart; r During
spring term, off campus contact
would Ire allowed at specified
times.
Several fraternity r.’presen
tatives to the IFC said that they
disapproved ol the proposal be
cause of financial detriment to
the fraternities. j
At the University o' Colorado,
the student Senate -refused to
take a stand on deferred rush
The Senate approved „ report
on dele: red rush after disc s
sion. Several senators 11 !*.i< i/.ed
the report fo>- not presenting an
adequate picture of the ritua
tion.
Larry Miller, IKC pr»>-,idcnt
and IFC senate representative,
commented, “this is a p/ohl'-m
for the fraternities and sorori
ties, not the independents lake
the reDort or d:>n’t take it I
don’t care on way or the other.”
The Oregon State Barometer
ran a front page story telling of
the T2 hand picked individu
als” who removed the "O” from
atop Skinner’s Butte during
Christmas vacation
Eight weeks before the event
took place the “O” was investi
gated and tools and vehicles
were lined up On Dec 22, the
shortest day of the year, the 12
assembled in Albany at 4:30 a m.
It took 50 minutes on the fog
shrouded butte to slice the ”0”
into eleven pieces The 2,600
pounds of scrap iron were cart
ed down the back side of the
butte while a decoy diverted the
police who were coming up the
front.
The article concluded with,
"It took no single leader, but 12
individuals working and striving
together to destroy this popular
belief held by many that the
”0” was indestructible.”
* * *
The University of Washing
ton’s University Political Union,
and organization devoted to the
political education of the stu
dents, is in trouble.
Five caucuses have formed
within the organization and, ac
cording to Union president Dale
Higer, are threatening its struc
ture Higer feels that the parti
san elements are a threat be
cause they are destroying the
Union’s objective quaiity, neces
sary for the Union to carry out
its educational role.
Defenders of the caucuses
feel that they allow differences
of opinion to exist within the
organization without forcing stu
dents to become members of de
finitely partisan groups.
* *
An article in the Stanford
Daily warns against the use of
slay awake pills It eited an in
stance of a Stanford co ed who
war found in a coma, completely
to respond after having
taken the pills for several days.
Dr. M. M Osborne, director of
the campus Health Service,,
warned that students who have
been using the pills an- still
suflcring from fatigue, although
they may not be aware of it
"A student can write an essay
that is just a bunch of nonsense
and not be aware of it. h<- be
lieves that he has written a f.ne
test," said Hr Osborne.*
Incidents of this were cited.
One boy, having token tin pills
for several days, went int i a
final and wrote his name for
two hours Another student
wrote a 10 page exam but for
got to turn the page of the blue
book
Excessive use of the pills ren
ders the brain almost insensitive
to various danger signs Ths
mind loses the ability to judge
physical dangers anti forget1 to
exercise citation
Whether the University of
Minnesota Daily will be allowed
to run cigarette advertising is
now bung discussed by the stu
dent Senate qn that camuus The
Senate's executive committee
met last week to discuss the- is
sue 3nd decided at that time
that if it took anv action it
would be towards student educa
tion on smoking.
The question was brought up
by the Soeial Service Council, a
student group The grouo re
quested the ban on cigarette ad
vertising after studying litera
ture on the relationship between
cancer and smoking
Norm LphofT, MSA student
body president, told the Senate
"Students are going to get cig
arette advertising no matter
what we do.” I'nhofl felt that it
was the Senate's place to deter
mine the extent of the danger of
cigarette smoking to students
and the duty of the Daily to
"protect” the students from
these dangers.
OREGON DAILY EMERALD
I hr Oregon Daily Emerald in published
•even time* in September awl five tla; - a
week (luring the school year, except dur
ing examination and vacation period- hy
the Student Publication* fir -a r<l of the
1‘niversity of Oregon. Entered a- -c on,I
(day* matter at the pnxt office, Kugrne,
Oregon. Stiln criptmn late- )« r yea ;
$2 per term.
OpiniotiM expressed on the editorial page
ase those of The Emerald amt do not pre
tend to represent the opinions of the
ASl'O or tile (.University.
HON HUKI-. Kditor
MAR i y K K l KJ.S, Husineas Manager
TUI) MAH AR, Managing Kditor
EVEUKTTK HEX X IS. News Kditor
PII I. fOCSWKU,
Kdiiorial Page Kditor
LARKY WILLIAMS,
Atlt ertising Manager
KARR V GRAVES, Sports Editor
Dl. I.CV MORAN,
Assistant Managing Kd'lor
DAVE SAXOS, JIM l-RAKK,
J V.XKT (iOKT/.r ,
Asst! rant Xews Editors
GEORGE TIQHAM, Photo Kditor
IJXDA llltf W.X, Kntertaiim eut Editor
RON COWAN, CATHY XK dl.I.K,
tiioka wii.kiam: ,
Associate News Ed toi ,
EDITOR IA1. BOARD :
Ron ilucl, Phil Cogswell, Ted Mahar
Kverette Dennis, Duvt Sands
Dulcy Moran, K.nda IrosCii
Hal Carpenter, fob I- irsyth
Grant Kedgerwood Dm [ Ragen
Janet (i( et/e, and 1 ill li itchison