The Trident

Issue date: 3/7/07 Section: Opinion

Washington and Lee Regional High School. That has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? That's good, because in some years from now, Washington and Lee may be formally changing its name from "University" to "High School." Not sure what I mean? Well, in case you have not noticed, this school every day becomes more and more a shell of its old self; the writing is on the wall and it is simply a matter of time before this University sacrifices every characteristic which distinguishes it from the multitude of other colleges in this country. In the four years I have been here, I have witnessed a continued effort on the part of the administration to tighten its grip on student life to the point of a stranglehold, and it is we, the students, who are losing in the process. What are some of Washington and Lee's most prized traditions? Honor, student governance, and a strong liberal arts program; these are the backbone of a Washington and Lee student's experience here, and every one of them is being destroyed by the overreaching arm of this administration.

What exactly is Honor? As Robert E. Lee told us, we should never lie, cheat, or steal. So how is it, then, that my fraternity is being placed on critical probation as a result of entirely false statements made by an anonymous student? Thanks to the administration, any person with a computer now has access to the Anonymous Hazing Report website, which enables anyone at anytime to submit a report, whether truthful or not, detailing a hazing incident. My fraternity was the subject of one recent such email, and as a result we find ourselves in a good amount of trouble. The only problem is that the entire email was untrue. Furthermore, we have discovered that it was not even one of our freshmen who submitted the report, but rather a freshman from another house under investigation, who was hoping to deflect attention from his own fraternity. That sounds incredibly honorable to me. Although the administration claims to fully support the Honor System, they are able to find many nuances and loopholes which work to their benefit. For example, professors and faculty are not beholden to the Honor System; any professor or administrator has the ability to lie to us - that certainly seems equitable. And in this case, the administration appears perfectly willing to sacrifice truthfulness and decency in their quest against the Greek system.

Continued...

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