Fraternity Members?(Merged)

[buckeyegrad]

Out of morbid curiosity, any other Fraternity men out there? If so which fraternity and what campus are you at/did you graduate from?[size=-1][/size]

What exactly is "morbid" about your curiosity to know who was in a fraternity? As this would suggest that your curiosity is the result of an unhealthy preoccupation with disease and/or death, are you saying that fraternities are diseased?

 

[AJHawkfan]

...are you saying that fraternities are diseased?

I think he's saying that fraternities are deceased.

 

[NorthShoreBuck]

I think we have been here before.
Wasn't it Groucho that said I would not want to belong to any group that would have me as a member? BP excluded of course.

I did not belong to a frat, but I hung around with a bunch of guys that did. There was one that seemed to have a lot of engineers in it. They threw crazy parties and always seemed to have copies of previous exams. The house they lived in should have been condemned. It was not unusual to see at least a few profs at some of their get togethers.

There were definitely some that were all about social status and rent a friends. The most important factor was what sorority they were friends with.

Has anyone benefited from the particpating in a frat after the fact?

 

[exhawg]

*sarcasm font* That's cool, I guess it's easier to accept false stereotypes than to achieve lifelong brotherhood. */sarcasm font*

Seriously though, the buy-your-friends thing is old and trite. I mean, let's be honest. I'm a pretty popular guy, i'm poor and I'm in college. If a fraternity were simply 'renting friends', I'd laugh my ass off and stick with the many "free" friends that I already had. The true Fraternities (not the 'frats') go far beyond simple friendship. I can see where it's easy to sit on the outside and make broadsweeping generalizations, as I was once 'that guy' and was avidly anti-greek. Then I educated myself, and got involved with a group that fit what I was looking for, and whom did not fall within those stereotypes.

I don't have anything against frats for the most part, but if I had a dollar for every time I saw a frat boy dressed like this at the bar I would be a rich man.

(stole this from the douchebag thread)

 

[crzykillernut]

I think the major misconception comes from the fact that there are a lot of glaring differences between a fraternity, the original concept, and the groups that have evolved into 'frats'. Fraternity men and frat boys are two totally different breeds and should not be lumped together.

This evolution from a fraternity to a 'frat' occured during the 'Animal House' years of Greek life. Only now are many groups reconsidering and are making the change back to the original purpose and institution of a fraternity.

I actually agree with what most of you say against 'frats', but it does disappoint me that many people do not realize that a fraternity is not a frat. They are two different things. My whole discombobulated point being there is a difference, and a Fraternity is a noble thing comprised of men of value, whereas a frat is a bunch of schmo douchebags looking to improve their social status.

I think the major misconception comes from the fact that there are a lot of glaring differences between a fraternity, the original concept, and the groups that have evolved into 'frats'. Fraternity men and frat boys are two totally different breeds and should not be lumped together.

This evolution from a fraternity to a 'frat' occured during the 'Animal House' years of Greek life. Only now are many groups reconsidering and are making the change back to the original purpose and institution of a fraternity.

I actually agree with what most of you say against 'frats', but it does disappoint me that many people do not realize that a fraternity is not a frat. They are two different things. We do not haze. I'd much rather kick the shit out of some other dude than one of my own brothers to be. We don't need it to 'weed out' our members because we trust our own judgement enough to choose dedicated men of character. We can definitely better serve our new members by educating and helping them, as opposed to beating them. Our house is not a hell hole. It is a old plantation style southern home, that houses 30+ men, fully equipped with all amenities and always on the receiving end of complements. We exist as a group to improve ourselves, and to fully live out our five values of friendship, knowledge, service, excellence and morality. Not the five values of popped collars, pink polos, date rape drugs, binge drinking and hazing our own.

My whole discombobulated point being there is a difference, and a Fraternity is a noble thing comprised of men of value, whereas a frat is a bunch of schmo douchebags looking to improve their social status, get trashed and date-rape women. So feel free to trash-talk 'frats' all you want, because I agree, they are quite deserving. But also realize that there are still many Fraternities and comparing the two is like apples to oranges.

 

[AJHawkfan]

...a fraternity is not a frat. They are two different things. My whole discombobulated point being there is a difference, and a Fraternity is a noble thing comprised of men of value, whereas a frat is a bunch of schmo douchebags looking to improve their social status.

Let me guess. You belong to a "Fraternity". All other groups are "frats", right?


I was never in a fraternity or frat, and really have no use for either one. When I was in school, there was this really swell trend where 10-15+ members of the same frat would go to a bar together. They would linger around the bar and figure out who was grossly outnumbered. Then, one guy would pick a fight with a non-frat member such as myself. Then after some words were exchanged, they would pretend everything was cool with the guy, maybe buy him another drink or whatever, just to make the illusion that there was no ill will. They would then wait for the guy to leave, follow him home and jump him and whatever group of friends he happened to be with. Not exactly the "Noble men of value" you describe.

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

When I was in school, there was this really swell trend where 10-15+ members of the same frat would go to a bar together. They would linger around the bar and figure out who was grossly outnumbered. Then, one guy would pick a fight with a non-frat member such as myself. Then after some words were exchanged, they would pretend everything was cool with the guy, maybe buy him another drink or whatever, just to make the illusion that there was no ill will. They would then wait for the guy to leave, follow him home and jump him and whatever group of friends he happened to be with.

sigh....Those were good times.

 

[Steve19]

I have never belonged to a frat but just before we go to far with frat bashing, I see that Jim Tressel was an Alpha Tau Omega.

I resented fraternities because I had been poor and had to work my way through OSU living in a rooming house. But then I made friends with a guy I worked with at Steak 'n Ale and he introduced me to his frat house buddies.

I soon had a favorite frat house for parties in the early 1970s. Dean Wormer would have loved Ohio State's Delta Tau Delta fraternity.

ΔΤΔ was the original Animal House. It never had that exclusive attitude and everyone felt comfortable there. I remember sitting with Tim Fox and his wife Debbie (Mullins) at a party there one night and sitting out front with Tom Skladany at one party.

Of course, ΔΤΔ were always on "secret double secret probation" a lot and athletes steered away much of the time. You knew that every other weekend a beer keg would get tossed though the upstairs window and out into 15th Avenue. ΔΤΔ is a fond and cherished memory of my time at Ohio State. A really fun everyman kind of place.

Anyway, those guys changed my perceptions of fraternities forever for the better.

 

[bucknut74]

Sigma Chi, Gamma Chapter @ Camp OWU.

 

[BuckeyeNation27]

at the whole thread....minus exhawg's perfect description.

 

[RugbyBuck]

I was a Beta Theta Pi, originally founded at Miami (Ohio) in 1839, at Georgia and then Oregon State. I didn't really do the greek thing when I got to grad school at tOSU, but did visit the Beta house in Columbus a few times and wholeheartedly wish that I had been an undergrad there.

 

[BrutuStrength]

Has anyone benefited from the particpating in a frat after the fact?

I guess it depends on what you mean by "benefit." I met my wife at a mixer with her sorority. We presently have a 2 wonderful children, so my answer is "yes."

I can also go back to the fraternity house on certain weekends an run into a bunch of my old college pals (I've only done this once so far, but after recently running into a brother, I intend to do this more frequently in the future.)

I think what some people miss in the way they view fraternities, are the things that are experienced aside from the parties. We held dances and events that were actually fundraisers, where the proceeds were donated to charities. We performed many functions that helped prepare us for jobs, such speaking in groups, giving presentations, and doing team building exercises. Some alumnus also hired graduating brothers for jobs.

Granted there are lesser fraternities, or "frats," that don't present themselves well, but judging all fraternities by the standards put forth by the lowest tier is not fair, either.

exhawg, I've seen plenty of guys like in your picture that were never in fraternities.

 

[High Lonesome]

my experience has been that when interviewing prospects for jobs, the ones that present themselves the best and speak clearly are almost always greek. It is as if it is on cue. I have said it before and I'll say it again, rush (and subsequently running rush) helped me more than any one class in college.

 

[buckeyegrad]

my experience has been that when interviewing prospects for jobs, the ones that present themselves the best and speak clearly are almost always greek. It is as if it is on cue. I have said it before and I'll say it again, rush (and subsequently running rush) helped me more than any one class in college.

Of course there is a BIG difference between being able to present oneself well (aka Bullshit) and actually do the job well. Personally, I have always found Ukranians to be the ones who perform the best.

I still want to know why fraternities are morbid....

(Man, where is Tibor when you actually want the guy around)

 

[Buck Nasty]

I think any time you put together a group of 100 or so guys you are going to get a little bit of every type you people are describing. I don't think it matters if it is in the frame work of a fraternity or not. If you just gathered 100 guys from Park Hall and put them in a house you are going to get some who are there to party, some who are socially motivated and superficial, some who like to cause trouble, etc. As they get to know each other they will begin to gravitate towards each other. I don't really think it is fair to say all frats are like one thing or another. I just know by experience, that you find all those types of people in every frat. I also lived in the dorms, and you found the same types there, it just took most of the school year to figure out who was who, and then you move out. In a frat house you are typically there for a longer period of time so the relationships are much closer.