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March 19, 1968 THE MERCER CLUSTER Backwardism at Mercer A Guest Editorial By The President of SGA 4 . ..y L ] f by David Hudson Recently this writer came, by chance, upon a situation that unfortunately may represent a general condition at Mer cer. There is a small department in the college that has recently grown very popular. Blessed with two capable professors who are bright stars in an old building that is often marked by a lack of luster, the department has exhibited a relevant response in a critical discipline. The problem arises because the young professor has been given a cold shoulder in his attempts to expand his department, revamp the cirriculum, and in general meet the increased de mand in this area of study. It is easy to invision the disappoint ment of a young man just setting out on his teaching career and coming to a '‘liberal” arts college and there finding short sighted “conservatism.” On other occasions questions have been raised about up dating and expanding other cirriculums. These queries are an swered by the stock statement that such action would not be in line with the liberal arts — it would be too technical and thus out of the scope of the arts. One recognizes that there are well advised limits to the field of liberal arts and that there are many problems in revising cirriculums, but we can operate on “19th Century standards” for only so long. This is especially true when it causes us to lose or to fail to obtain much needed faculty members — Lord knows we got disadvantages enough in that area. It is a contradiction for a school to try to exhibit its “li beralism” in the Chapel, in integration, in its Christianity de partment, in desiring Wonderful Wednesday, and in its removal of social barriers and then deny all its departments a chanc^to move forward and offer the most up-to-date scholarship avail able. Eventually students will enforce consistency for they will go elsewhere to find the most recent and applicable course schedules. The Liberal Arts School is supposed to develop gene ral knowledge and its more than evident that this range has ex panded in recent years. Will Mercer meet this expansion? Surely, we will not fail because of lack of finances — we’re wealthy enough to have underground wires! Were We Double Crossed? Sometime ago the Mercer Cafe teria was changed into a restaurant with cafeteria linee; or so we were told. The proper administrative authorities said at Waverley Confer ence last June that meal tickets will be required the first quarter to insure patronage and that if the system was liked then it would be kept. This was when we thought u national food service like S.A.G.A. or S.L.A.T.E.R. or Cam pus Chiefs would come in. This did not happen. Instead Mercer hired Mr. Kra kow io take over the Mercer food service. The required meal tickets were still used because of the phy sical improvements and the trial run on a new plan. This plan has been tried and it has worked better than last year’s; but only better than last year. The meal tickets remain. Why? Everyone knows that the food ser vice is here, why require meal tie kets? If the food is as appetizing as some have said then drop the re quired tickets and see what hap pens. The rather disagreeable idea of requiring meal tickets does not square with the new idea of the quality of the Mercer food. If the food is so good why require meal tickets? Everyone would surely buy one anyway. It is only interesting to note that although Mercer has a food service they do not have a linen service, nor a garbage service, nor a laun dry service of their own. It is again late in the year and we do not presume to say the food is good or bad we only presume to say that meal tickets should not be required. We do not presume to A Psychological View of Mercer Panty Raids It has not been long since I took over my self-appointed duties as guardian of Mercer’s mental health. (Not that I think Mrs. Hooper doesn't do an excellent job. She tries. But even she could be helped by someone who really knows what's going on.) One problem that has come to my at tention is that of the students’ abortive panty raids. Now, the exact nature of their motivation and/or drives is this event—obviously grown out of a search for a mother-image and their attraction to the house mothers, never out of any thing such as a sexual drive — I shan't go into for the sake of brevity. ("Brevity,” Dorothy Kil- gallen—I think it was—once said, “is the soul of lingerie.”) But what really upsets me is their frustration in this matter. “Frustration,” my psychology 61 book tells me (this is the source from which 1 get my information and the authority with which I write) “is an event in which goal- directed activity is blocked, slowed up, or otherwise interfered with.” “Frustration as an emotion,” Dr. Hendricks adds, "is annoyance, confusion, or anger.” Now frustra ting events—the cause of frustrated emotions—are of three types: "ob stacles, deficiencies, and conflicts.” The obstacle involved is evident: Dean Hendricks. There are secur ity police of course, and rules, and housemothers, and W.S.G.A. All bearing out Hilgard’s statement that they are “present both in the physical and in the social environ ment.” Then there is the lack. Deficien cies are found in both environment and individuals. There is the lack of proper planning, the inability to keep the mouth shut and not des troy the surprise, the lack of cour age on the part of both the boys outside and the girls within, an insufficient sense of hi^mor in the faculty. And finally conflict Dean Hen dricks again, and housemothers, and W.S.G.A., and security police. Now you have three kinds of con flicts: approach-approach, avoid ance-avoidance, and approach- avoidance. This is obviously ap proach-avoidance. There is no need to explain the incentive for ap proach—or necessity of avoidance of arrest. Naturally there arises ambivalence and vacillation. First of all there is restlessness and tension. This is evident in the volume of coop sales after each attempt, the number of groups wandering around cumpus, and the students of both sexes staying up all night, too tense and expectant to study—and having wasted so much time they must study now. Singing Christmas carols is no real solution. And who can study when they are so tense? Honestly, Dean Hendricks, wouldn't it be better just to let them go ahead and get it out of their systems? Catharsis, we psychologists call it. Next most common is destruc tiveness. There are two manners in which such aggression is expressed: direct and displaced. In the latter, the individual attacks some inno cent bystander or un-related object because there is too much danger involved in hitting the obstacle or source of conflict. Dean Hendricks is safe, of course, but I under stand there have been some re markable replicas made of him to serve as fuel for fires, receptacles for pins, or just to be hung for display; several roommates were badly beaten by boys and girls “just letting off steam” (frustra tion id the better word, my dear) and Christmas carols aren’t too irapular any more. Then third there's apathy. Sure ly I don’t need to explain that, or to point out that we have it al ready and that is what the raids are meant to fight Nor need I mention the danger we shall soon sink back into apathy. I just might quote it happens: “When resist ance is futile” and "often indicates that aggressive tendencies are being held in check or inhibited, but they may express themselves indirectly. Just thought 1 would bring these things out, since I am so concerned with our campus mental health, and I fear Mercer is becoming a textbook caBe. Yours truthfully, Ama Fraud ■ay that the students were double crossed on the issue of a national food service, we only presume to say that there is no national food service. We do not presume to Bay that Mercer should not provide a food service and be in the food business. We only say that Mercer is not in the garbage or laundry business which could be very logi cal extentions from the food busi ness. And we do not presume to say that the University makes money on the students stomach. We only presume to say that if the Univer sity is not making a good healthy profit off the students stomach then why object to an outside foo service? j, But we hardly assert that if Mai cer food is bad, and if the student were double crossed, and if th University should not provide food service, and if there is a heal thy profit made on the student stomach then no meal tickets shout be required. We do not assert the above to I* true, we only state that if it true, that we would much raths patronize an establishment ths openly avows the profit motive bs cause there we will be servedi pleased not ordered and forced. Pro Greek by Wright Davis The college fraternity system as we know it today had its inception with the birth of the Republic. Its beginning can be traced back to the second oldest college in the United States — The College of William and Mary, founded at Williams burg, Virginia in 1603. The Flat Hat Club appeared in 1760. It was secret, literary, and social in cha racter. Many of the South's great men of the period belonged to it including Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Inde pendence and a founding father of this nation. On December 5, 1776, five Wil liam and Mary students established Phi Beta Kappa, the first society to use the Greek letters. Members read essays they had written, deba ted issues of freedom and taxation, penalized failure to attend or late ness at meetings and intoxication, and contributed to local families in need. Phi Beta Kappa became a safe place for free discussion of sub jects not publically talked about on campus and in the classroom. Why is it necessary to relate all the preceding? Because there are those in our present egalitarian conscious society who would like to see the fraternal system destroy ed. These critics, whose cause is not new by any means, claim that the fraternity system destroys in dividuality, stifles personal initia tive creates unhealthy competition, promotes snobbery and unhealthy social practices, causes psychologi cal distortions, develops class con sciousness .and supports discrimi nation. Misguided critics both outside and inside the Greek-letter world, crusading for their pseudo equali- tarian concepts, would destroy the same system which this nation was founded upon — freedom of choice guaranteed both in the Declara tion of Independence and the Con stitution of the United States. This freedom of choice also includes the right not to join those organizations which an individual does not care to associate himself with. What does the fraternity systeni have to offer the young college man and woman? The National Interfra ternity Conference gives five basic 4®tercer Cluster EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Tom Cautborn ASSOCIATE EDITOR Wright Davis Cartoons Roger Poston, Haywood Turner Photographer 1 Bob Jo N«ws Editor COPY EDITOR Paul Kirk —— —- Wardlyn Milk, Dori Ripley, Gary Johnson, Mary Riddle, Carolyn HandMon, Carolyn Braun, Anna Dfason. BUSINESS MANAGER MANAGING EDITOR Bob Lanier Stove Darby Contributing Editors Becky Sima, Ed Beckwith Business Specialist ,. Christie Tyier M>nr David advantages, stated substantially follows: "First, human beings natural) seek the friendship and companies ship of others of their own whom they find congenial. Secooi the college of university empha sizes mental and intellectual trail ing, while the fraternity suppk ments that instruction with experience and the practical use knowledge. Third, the symbolism fraternities has a universal appa to the idealism of youth and mold together in the bonds of brothi hood young men from every tion, every economic level, every stratum of society. Fouril the intimate friendship of colls| days constitute one of the most luable possessions of man, and aid and counsel of older broths to younger members and their sociation in fraternity membersk have proved mutually benefit and enjoyable. Fifth, a propetl organized and operated f rate mi serves as a useful adjunct to cs lege discipline and organization.' Being a member of one of tho so called “most traditionalist min ed fraternities” this writer hop that the day will never come whi any agency, government, or insl tution can decide for free indh duals whom they can or cannot sociate with. If the day ever con when a person's associates are oh sen for him, the lowest ebb will reached and the light of f reeds will flicker out If the fraternity system promo* competition among rival gros then more power to it. This nati got where it is today by gron striving to top rival groups. Ca petition is a healthy thing. It fifl apathy and stagnation. Fra term* do not destroy individuality or pi sonal initiative. They promote If these qualities were stifled fraternities, then the fraternity •] tem would have died long Those fraternities which promt snobbery cannot survive long inevitably destroy themselves Critics claim that Greeks dos nate colleges and universities a attempt to control all organizatiot If Greek lettered organizations not exist, the same group of is viduals would predominate. This because Greek organizations vide a large share of campus h ad ship. Those who seek the death of fraternity system by their i guided concepts of an equilitari egalitarian society, drive aw nail against ths forces of it dualism and freedom. i Don’t Forget To Vote April 3rd r