Freedom of speech will be tolerated... for now!

September 21, 2005 7:44 AM

War has been declared, the legislative body has been abolished, and the elected leader changed his title to "supreme leader" Do not question the "School Spirit".
posted by delmoi (25 comments total)

How long until this becomes reality...

But seriously, I like it, very funny, but there doesn't really seem to be a point to the whole thing. Could have done with some Satire or something. I give it three stars.
posted by Meccabilly at 8:01 AM on September 21, 2005

Back it my wilder days, I was tempted to hold a 30 minute coup de'etat given that the student government that represented me appeared to be incapable of holding a clean election for three years running. They still can't seem to hold a clean election, but I've given up on caring.
posted by KirkJobSluder at 8:03 AM on September 21, 2005

...there doesn't really seem to be a point to the whole thing.

You mean there aren't any oil fields in St. Louis?
posted by DrDoberman at 8:03 AM on September 21, 2005

This makes me miss college.
posted by billysumday at 8:06 AM on September 21, 2005

Washington University was always a part of Emory.
posted by allen.spaulding at 8:07 AM on September 21, 2005

Does anyone else hate the INSIDE HIGHER ED NEWS bar overlayed on top of the page when you scroll?
posted by driveler at 8:10 AM on September 21, 2005

Yes, driveler. I hate it. It's atrocious.
posted by By The Grace of God at 8:14 AM on September 21, 2005

I vote Tammy Metzler.
posted by cillit bang at 8:21 AM on September 21, 2005

NExt we'll have Emory (draft) boards. Atrocious, I know, but I coudn't think of anything else.
posted by OmieWise at 8:32 AM on September 21, 2005

Hate the bar if only because it screws up page at a time scrolling.
posted by Mitheral at 8:37 AM on September 21, 2005

I'm at Wash U (though as a computer science grad / law student, not as an undergraduate), and I can confirm that the reaction here has been mild, to say the least. The main problem is that the schools are roughly 10 hours apart, so it's pretty hard to organize and carry out 'raids' on the opposition. And as far as an athletics-oriented rivalry goes...well, neither school is what you might call big on sports. For instance, Wash U's football team is lackluster in a good season, and Emory doesn't even have one.

All that said, I think it'd be pretty cool if we had a rivalry conducted entirely by 'double agents.' Perhaps we should work on conscripting some Wash U alumni at Emory...

As far as the 'take the high road' approach at Wash U goes, I think that's just laziness disguised as moral superiority.

For some Wash U coverage of the 'incident' see Student Life, but be warned that in order to view more than one article or to see the archives, you'll have to register.

Alternatively, bugmenot provides [e-mail] as a valid username/password.
posted by jedicus at 8:44 AM on September 21, 2005

I approve. I've always thought that student governments were ridiculous things. Why call it a government if it has no governmental powers? It's nice to see someone taking the piss out of the whole nonsense.
posted by Faint of Butt at 8:49 AM on September 21, 2005

Emory was just too afraid to challenge a local school with a better prank tradition, like Georgia Tech.
posted by jeffburdges at 10:00 AM on September 21, 2005

Hopefully they stick with this and really ratchet up the propaganda and war imagery until it gets uncomfortable for both sides... that's when the comedy REALLY starts.
posted by BobFrapples at 10:15 AM on September 21, 2005

... just laziness disguised as moral superiority.

I don't have the energy to dignify that with an answer.
posted by lodurr at 10:34 AM on September 21, 2005

David Ader, president of the Washington University Student Union, is encouraging students to ignore Emory’s “war.” Said Ader: “I don’t disagree with the cause of school pride, but this method is not exactly productive.”

There are better ways to help a college, he said, “than knocking others down.”

...yes, mom
posted by hototogisu at 10:35 AM on September 21, 2005

In an interview Monday, Dhir said that the aim of the war was to raise school spirit at Emory, which he said has been lacking. “The whole war theme has this energy and enthusiasm that students responded to because it has an extra edge,” he said

This student government is totally extreme! Gatorade!
posted by underer at 11:09 AM on September 21, 2005

Oh how nice it must be to attend college without having to work multiple part time jobs, so as to have time for this silliness.
posted by ilsa at 11:24 AM on September 21, 2005

Yes, It Is A Shame That Some People Are More Fortunate Than I.
posted by hototogisu at 11:48 AM on September 21, 2005

... just laziness disguised as moral superiority.

"I don't have the energy to dignify that with an answer."

I think a bit of explanation is in order, and I do have the energy for that. What I meant by that was, were Emory closer to Wash U, I'm pretty sure that we would engage in a bit of pranking ourselves, but since we (pretty reasonably) can't be bothered to go to the lengths necessary to carry out pranks in Atlanta, we can conveniently turn our inaction into a virtue where none actually exists.

How do I know what we would do in other circumstances? Well, I read the columns, letters to the editor, and editorials in the school paper, and those, together with picking up on general school sentiment, pretty strongly indicate such an attitude.

I certainly wasn't (as you seem to have read it) implying a comparison between a faux-pacifistic response to a poorly thought-out prank carried out by some self-declared 'Department of War' and actual, courageous pacifism in response to actual wars carried out by actual militaries. Of course, maybe I misread why you were so upset about it in the first place, but that's the best I can guess.

Now, in a desperate attempt to rescue my comment from derailment territory: does anyone else remember the book about college pranks titled 'If At All Possible, Involve a Cow?' That was a pretty good book. Yep.
posted by jedicus at 12:55 PM on September 21, 2005

Sorry, jedicus, I think lodurr's humor was just too dry. By saying "I don't have the energy to dignify that with an answer," he, himself, was providing a perfect facetious example of laziness disguised as moral superiority. Get it?
posted by Faint of Butt at 1:55 PM on September 21, 2005

Wow...I am spectacularly dense. Thanks for that.
posted by jedicus at 2:48 PM on September 21, 2005

hey, i've been there myself.
posted by lodurr at 3:41 PM on September 21, 2005

I vote Tammy Metzler.

Paul Metzler, You Bet-Zler!
posted by jonp72 at 3:52 PM on September 21, 2005

> The Pail and Shovel Party won election to UW student government in 1978, vowing to give campus issues "the seriousness they deserve." Campus got what it had coming. Jim Mallon and Leon Varjian pulled off two of the most memorable sight gags in UW history, installing a head-and-torch Statue of Liberty on frozen Lake Mendota and filling Bascom Hill with a garish flock of pink flamingos. But the fun was lost on some. When 60 students demanded back their student fees for the stunt, Varjian wrote out 60 checks for 10 cents each. Other "campaign promises," such -as flooding Camp Randall for faux naval battles and having all deans stuffed and mounted, never materialized.
posted by dhartung at 6:15 PM on September 21, 2005