Jezebel 
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New York, 8:32 PM
Wed Nov 11
72 posts in the last 24 hours
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I mean, a group where you HAVE to be friends with everyone? Surely not everyone really loves each other like sisters?
What's the point of hazing anyway? I wouldn't want to join any group that would humiliate and torture me before they let me in. Although I have a seriously Groucho Marx attitude towards all clubs.
03/10/09
There are some bishes in my sorority for sure.
03/10/09
I always think this show is kind of bullshit when it comes to what the average person would do. Maybe the man at the very begining would have helped the girls, but he was only in town for the guys. Maybe the issue is people who get involved and not gender.
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Is she serious?
03/10/09
I think in a lot of ways we have the porn industry to thank for this one. I just watched a presentation about violence in porn and how it causes some men to be more likely to believe that women get off on being demeaned. I just can't help thinking that if violent porn didn't exist, a lot of those men would have been more alarmed by what they were seeing. Even if they themselves don't watch that type of thing, the prevalence of it affects peoples' feelings about this kind of thing in ways that they themselves don't even realize.
Sick.
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I would absolutely step in. No question whatsoever. Wild horses would not be able to stop me.
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I read it. There were parts that were spot-on and others that were really far off. Alexandra Robbins has been criticized for her shoddy reporting--for example, the fact that she disguised so many elements of the story and never--even now, after the entire class has graduated--revealed where the story took place or who she followed makes some people think that she made parts/all of it. (I'm fairly sure that she shadowed girls at Southern Methodist, but there is no real evidence to back this up.) A lot of her "interviews" were conducted via email or IM, so they weren't particularly credible. She repeats a lot of facts that are blatantly wrong (stating chapters of a certain sorority in a state where they've never had chapters, certain ritual aspects were wrong) or nearly impossible to believe (the drug room in the beginning, "circle the fat" hazing story that is widely repeated but to this day has never once been proven or even been raised as a formal accusation against any sorority anywhere in the country). I also think that she went out of her way to point fingers at the sororities for things that weren't their fault--for example, she blames Amy's lowself-esteem (and subsequent refusal to report her rape) on the sorority, despite plenty of evidence that her low self-esteem predated the sorority by a number of years.
Did you have any more specific questions about it?
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@kelsium: It's been a while since I've read it, but mostly I was like, holy crap, I'm lucky my chapter's awesome.
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Since the anti-Greek backlash of the 1970s, Greeks have been pushed to "prove their worth," and thus they've trotted out the lines about community service and creating leaders and all that jazz. But ultimately, they are 90 percent social organizations, and there shouldn't be anything wrong with that.
03/10/09
It sounds like you may have already decided that Greek life is pointless and negative.
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Getting to meet a wide variety of girls who you may not have interacted with through classes, clubs, or sports otherwise. Opportunities for leadership positions and improving leadership skills. Being part of an organization that will support you if you wish to start new programs, initiatives, charity events, outreach services. The opportunity to learn from present and past members, including learning about career opportunities and networking. The chance to learn about the amazing things yours sisters do whether it is academically, athletically or community based, potentially exposing you to something you might interested and want to help/join. Increase your support system, because chances are there will be a girl in your sorority who can help you study for an exam or who has been through a similar situation that you may just need to talk about.
Yes, all of these things are possible without a sorority. But a sorority manages to combine them all (and then some...). I could go on but I won't... I need to get back to my homework (woot, sororities have the highest group GPA on my campus, something like a 3.4 average). Sororities may not be for everyone, and I'll admit I never thought I would join one, but I am very happy I did.
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On exclusion: Yes, my sorority "excluded" in that there were a limited amount of girls that could join each year, and we picked who joined. We excluded: girls with terrible grades (at least a 2.5 was required to join), girls who were bitchy to us or their fellow recruits when we met them (people could weigh in if they knew a girl personally of course, or if they thought she was just shy), girls who we knew did illegal drugs (other than pot, which...i think we had maybe two girls who used?), girls who were known to be drunks, mean girls, racists, homophobes. Girls who acted condescending-- to us, OR to their fellow recruits. Girls who seemed they wouldn't take the committment seriously and were just in it for the parties.
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That is an incredibly natural instinct, one that we see in practice even on Jezebel. People gravitate towards others with similar interests, passions, ideas etc.
There is a bit of nepotism that occurs within the Greek system regarding securing positions after college. But the hard truth is that the workforce requires a certain amount of networking. That can be done through sororities or other means. But much of what you get in life has to do with who you know. That isn't always fair but it is often the case.
The Greek system often gets a bad reputation. But I have seen it as a safe haven for my younger family members away from school and a great opportunity for them to meet and get to know new people.
03/10/09
To me, this "banding together" of white people reinforces race/class privileges and disparities. But, since they do it, I'm not going to fault non-whites for doing the same thing out of sheer self-preservation.
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How exactly would we go about deconstructing these institutions? The fact remains that even if the Greek system were destroyed, people of like minds will always come together. Fortunately, you don't need to have a few hundred dollars a semester to do that anymore. Perhaps one Jezebel will give another Jezebel preference in a job interview next week.
I feel like I am not making my point very well. In essence, we all live in relation to others. Networking is almost always a part of how we succeed. I have even found it to be essential as a SAHM.
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my brother knows one of the kids and he pretty much made a bad decision that is costing him scholarships and colleges on top of everything else.
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