TresSugar

Christian Fraternities Not Always Welcome on Campus

CitizenSugar — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 10:00:00 -0800

Water may be the only wet thing at Christian fraternity Slip-n-Slide parties, but their existence on college campuses has been met with resistance across the country.

You would think by not drinking, rejecting hazing, and promoting public service they would be a college administrator’s dream, but only accepting Christian members has earned them an exclusionary reputation. As if all fraternities weren’t!

The University of Florida refused to grant Beta Upsilon Chi official status for that exact reason. The Christian fraternity filed a federal discrimination suit against the school because they could not have a meeting place or recruit on campus without official fraternity status. For the rest of the story, read more.

But while Beta Upsilon Chi fights to be recognized, at the University of New Mexico another Christian fraternity’s unofficial status was the loophole it needed to turn down a Mormon. Because it runs through the Student Activities Center - and is not part of the Interfraternity Council - it is not subject to regulations that would otherwise prohibit it.

A UNM student activity organization must follow Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on race, color, or national origin; however, Christian fraternities argue that the First Amendment protects their right to associate.

Phew! Sounds like they have to decide which is more important - the right to associate with whomever you choose or the right to not be discriminated by religion. What do you think?

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Word of the Day: Frathole

GiggleSugar — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:26:40 -0700

We've spent a lot of time analyzing a particular genus of the species douchebag. He is the club-dwelling, Ed Hardy-wearing, faux-hawk sporting guy who inexplicably gets the babes (well, a certain variety of babe, who probably deserves him). I can't believe that when we tried to come up with a replacement term for douchebag, among the many terms we considered, we didn't include the awesome frathole. Want more info on this menace to womankind? Then read more.

So "frathole" is a portmanteau word made from combining "fraternity" and "asshole." The only difference in this iteration of douchebag is that he's more likely to be dressed in Abercrombie & Fitch oxford shirts untucked just so over loose jeans while inevitably sporting flip flops. And obviously, his habitat is a college campus or local beer joint. The other wonderful thing about having discovered the word frathole at this late date is all the words that are associated with it, including: fraternitool, fraterniture, frathoe, fratmosphere, and fratnanigans. Sample sentence: "The fratmosphere at Abercrombie & Fitch is oppressive."

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Frat House Snowman

GiggleSugar — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 12:01:00 -0800

It's holiday spirit - not spirits.

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Flashback: Frat Boys Seek SWMs to Booze and Party With SWFs

GiggleSugar — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 15:00:00 -0700

I'm sure this "better than cool" recruitment vid from the '80s is entertaining - after a long night of beer pong and keg stands. But I really don't know how these frat boys thought they'd attract new members by showing off their collective lack of talent and originality. From Fabio to Andrew Dice Clay to Slash, these dudes are a pack of posers. At least the alcohol makes them honest. One boasts that he "may be a slut, but . . . ain't no wh*re." A double negative can be a wonderful thing, no?

Headline Of The Day

GiggleSugar — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 13:00:00 -0700

Just telling it like it is.

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Prep Talk: Justifying Hazing at Boarding School

TresSugar — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:00:00 -0700

High school girls have many ways of punishing each other, the silent treatment being a classic tactic. But what about seniors marching through dorms with the precision of the gestapo, lining up freshmen, yelling at them, making them perform chores, and forcing them to count to 100 in German? It's not reform school - it's an annual ritual at Miss Porter’s, an all-girls boarding and day school in Connecticut where Gossip Girl-sounding names are as common as class rings.

Since Miss Porter's students, graduates, and even the administration are a secretive brood, it’s hard to know which rituals continue today, but we do know traditions die hard on the leafy-green campus. The school even has its own Skull and Bones group named the Oprichniki, after Ivan the Terrible’s secret police. And while Miss Porter's denied its existence in a March New York Times article, 2007 graduate Blair Clarke confirmed it in July's Vanity Fair when she said she “crash-studied German” to join the Oprichniki.

While we can let our imaginations go wild trying to figure out what really goes on at Miss Porter's, we do know this: Tatum Bass, a former student who was expelled, is suing the school for not intervening when she was harassed by the Oprichniki. Why would an otherwise popular senior in student government earn the infamous group's ire? According to Tatum, it started after she suggested the school participate in a multischool prom. As a breach in Miss Porter’s tradition, it was a major faux pas. The taunting, she claims, led to her skipping class and cheating on a test, which led to her expulsion.

What’s shocking is not that she was expelled or that a secret society exists, but that the reaction of students and alumni was, more or less, "Buck up, Bass!" To find out how they reacted, read more.

The ability to tough it out and not go crying to parents is a quality the school proudly instills in girls. So it's no surprise that students and alumni were appalled that Bass used taunting by classmates as an excuse to cheat. Cheating aside, how is it that adults justify teens abusing teens? I found my answer in both the Vanity Fair and New York Times pieces.

Blair Clarke, the confirmed Oprichniki member, said the group never inflicts real pain, just the anticipatory fear of it. Sarah Hart Hansen, a 1974 graduate, told the New York Times, “Maybe there’s nervousness in the beginning, but it’s a bonding moment.” Ah-ha! So it’s not hazing if there’s no physical pain? What a great definition that will create loopholes for underground societies, sororities, and fraternities everywhere.

10 Common Places to Lose Your Virginity

DearSugar — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 10:00:00 -0800

Whether you lost your virginity when you were 14 or 24, I'm sure many of you hold that memory close to your heart. It may not have been as glamorous or enjoyable as you dreamed it would be, but nothing can make you forget how it went down. Since I've heard my fair share of virginity stories, I've come up with a list of 10 common places where people get it on for the first time.

At sleepaway camp
Your car or his
Your bedroom at your parents' house
A hotel room after prom
The makeout spot

To see the other five places read more.

At a fraternity party
A Spring Break trip
At your cousin's wedding
While on family vacation
On a group ski trip

Did you see your special spot on the list? If not, please share your story in the comments section below!

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Twin Peeps

GiggleSugar — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:00:00 -0700

They may not look exactly alike, but Chuck Norris and Danny Bonaduce could pass as fraternal twins. Stretch Danny's face down a little, so all the features are elongated, and the resemblance is uncanny! (Or perhaps the air of desperation surrounding each looks identical?)

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You Asked: Was Saying No the Right Move?

DearSugar — Thu, 01 May 2008 06:00:00 -0700

Dear Sugar,

I work in a large corporation with over 300 employees. Recently my immediate supervisor asked me out on a date. I declined the offer because our company has a strict no-fraternizing in or out of the workplace policy. We have a good work rapport and although I think he's extremely good looking, I didn't want to risk my job or make things awkward at work, especially if other co-workers got wind of it. I have nothing against him, and I want to remain friendly, but did I do the right thing by declining the date? Are things going to be even more weird that I turned him down? I feel like this was a lose-lose situation. - Put in an Awkward Position Poppy

To see DearSugar's answer, read more.

Dear Put in an Awkward Position Poppy,

Since your company has a strict policy about interoffice dating, I absolutely think you did the right thing. Having a good work rapport with your boss is an extremely important relationship to maintain so in order to keep things from becoming awkward, try to act as normal as possible. Don't skip a beat the next time you see him in the hallway or in a meeting - carry on acting like he never asked you out in the first place. Chances are he feels a lot more unsettled about his inappropriate advance than you do so do your part to put it behind you, and hopefully he'll take your lead and do the same.

If your boss does make things difficult for you as a way of punishment for turning him down, I'd talk to HR immediately. Make them aware of your situation so they can take the appropriate next steps. Although this was a compromising position to be put in, hopefully he'll have the maturity to move forward like nothing ever happened.

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Our DNA Tells Us How to Vote?

LibertySugar — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 09:00:15 -0700

Do you have the liberal or conservative gene? That's right, we may be born with our political persuasions. According to some anecdotal evidence, backed up by scholarly research, our DNA may have more to say about how we vote than our upbringing or environment.

In the UK, a Liberal member of Parliament went on a mission to find his biological parents. The adopted politician found out that his great-grandfather was also a member of parliament, and a member of the Liberal party too!

Coincidence? Not according to a recent study of American twins. Researches found that identical twins, who have the exact same genetic makeup, agree about politics more than fraternal twins. Now, science is trying to identify the exact "politics" gene.

So does this mean pundits will start analyzing the "CC phenotype" vote? Should politicians pander to the "641C homozygote" constituency?

Do we have political free will, or is it all written in our DNA? I'm not sure I really want to know.

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