During what is soon to be the snowiest winter in Charlottesville history, the community awoke to a winter wonderland this Friday that effectively shut down University operations for the day. Leonard Sandridge, executive vice president and chief operating officer, announced the first school closing since February 2003 Thursday night because of the “hazardous to nearly impossible” travel that was expected. The blizzard-like conditions dumped more than a foot of snow in the area and became déjà vu for University maintenance workers who were placed on 12-hour shifts for the second time in a week to clear Grounds.
Thwarting the Honor Committee, wrestling team and several other organizations, the storm limited most students to their respective living quarters or the igloo in Mad Bowl. The athletic department, however, insisted the show must go on by arranging for the Virginia men’s basketball team to compete as scheduled against Wake Forest. The decision garnered some hostility but those willing to make the trek were admitted free of charge with the presentation of their University IDs.
Another show permitted to go on was the extension of fraternity bids during the annual tradition of Bid Day. Unlike the fans travelling to JPJ, however fraternity members were not permitted to flock lawlessly in droves to deliver bids this year; several rules were instituted.
Citing the inability of emergency rescue squads to respond to emergencies, the Inter-Fraternity Council outlined guidelines to ensure the safety of all students during this festive weekend. Walkways in front of Greek houses were mandated to be clear prior to Final Hours and the acceptance of bids. The University also would reimburse fraternities for the cost of ice melting products such as Blizzard Wizard. A grace period of an extra hour was allotted during Bid Day, and fraternity members were restricted to traveling on foot or by bus, as driving to the first-year dormitory areas was prohibited. Tossing, pushing and throwing bid recipients also was not permitted; the IFC wanted to ensure that students were not welcomed into their new brotherhoods by trips to the hospital. But the most perplexing directive was the order that no more than seven fraternity members could extend bids.
Would eight members have made the situation exponentially more dangerous? Why would the entire fraternity’s presence cause more harm? It is safe to assume that the IFC, in conjunction with school administrators, wished to limit the number of people on Grounds, but the seven person limit was seemingly arbitrary because no explanation was given to students. Fraternities pride themselves on the distinctive ways they extend bids and view this tradition as an integral part of the rush process. Although the Greek members noted the safety concern, many were left wondering as to exactly why they could not participate.
Enforcing these policies, however, should not have been a problem because of the threat of losing social privileges through Spring Break. The IFC should be commended for working with school officials to prevent the postponement of Bid Day, but the lack of explanation caused unnecessary confusion. Student leaders across Grounds would be wise to learn from this example and understand that more transparency generally leads to more widespread acceptance of regulations.
Uh. Who, exactly, cares about this?
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Somebody finally made the greeks shovel their walks on Rugby?! Awesome! I used to date a girl up there, and we would traverse these treacherous walks for weeks on end. You’d have these huge houses filled with young and rather able bodied people too lazy (ie., spoiled) to ever soil their hands with such menial labor.
[removed off-topic comment -ed]
Anybody remember the scene from animal house in car at the makeout spot?
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@Sean
By categorizing all U.Va. fraternity members as spoiled and racist, you’re only showing yourself to be ignorant and naive. I don’t understand why you created this whole PVCC vs. U.Va. rivalry. Your inferiority complex has you creating new Cavalier boogeymen every day. First, you accuse the basketball team of murdering Morgan Harrington while the Athletic Association covers up their involvement…now fraternities cause blizzards so that they may amuse themselves by watching immigrants shovel. You are a clown.
P.S. Considering how P.C. you try to sound, I think it’s funny that you assume that only immigrants work for landscaping companies. Most of the people I know who do landscaping work are proud American citizens.
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I try and sound P.C. ? That, my friend, is a new one!
There is no rivalry I can think of, but it’s so nice you remember me. =o) Why would I have an inferiority complex toward a school I could get into any time I want via the Guaranteed Admission Agreement? I have the credits and the grades. Seems I’d have an easy way to deal with it if I were so afflicted, no?
A house owned by an elderly couple on a fixed (diminishing) income with an icy sidewalk is understandable. A house filled with dozens of teenagers in the prime of their youth with one is representative of spoilage and laziness. I had lunch with a UVA frat boy today, a good friend and pleasant chap. He would shovel the elderly neighbors walk for them for nothing. It’s not all of you, but it IS most of you.
I accused the basketball team of murdering someone? (I must have missed my chance while routing for them at the game 2 weeks ago..)
I accused someone of causing a blizzard?
Really? Where?
Your rantings are just that.
Please keep calling me names, as I really enjoy it when kids like you don’t like me. Now I have to go home and tell my room mate that she is a Cavalier Bogeywoman. I think she might even like that! Halloween is right around the corner.
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I exercised a little hyperbole because I felt that I needed to counter your vitriol with a some of my own.
To go off-topic for a second, I’d like to remind you of the accusations made last semester regarding the basketball team and a possible “coverup” by athletic department and university officials. You made insinuations that the basketball team knew more than they were telling the police about Ms. Harrington’s disappearance and that police and administration officials colluded to hide this from the general public. You made this accusation with no real evidence and only a desire to stir a ruckus.
This is only one of the many examples of the pseudo-journalism in which you engage on the Cavalier Daily message boards. I understand why you don’t want to transfer to U.Va. because you are constantly talking about how terrible U.Va. students are to town residents, to University employees and to society in general. You attempt to walk a line by speaking generally about how U.Va. students are spoiled assholes; when pressed, however, you claim that your roommates and friends are U.Va. students.
If you walk down the streets in Charlottesville, you’ll find that a majority of the sidewalks aren’t properly shoveled. This isn’t something that is specific to the U.Va. Greek community. Your personal bias turns a municipal problem into one that is solely the fault of students.
Also, what do you mean by the whole, “…I enjoy it when kids like you don’t like me [italics mine].” What do you mean by that? You enjoy having someone call out the ridiculousness of YOUR rants when you defame my friends and my school? Your assumptions that every U.Va. student is above getting their hands dirty and is monetarily spoiled are ignorant and ridiculous.
As for me ranting, goodness gracious…if that’s not the pot calling the kettle black. I see 4-5 comments on the CavDaily message boards daily from you railing about how U.Va. students are the scum of the Earth. Most of these comments are in excess of 5 paragraphs. Try voicing an opinion other than your usual diatribe stereotyping a diverse group of 20,000 students.
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Hear hear! Thank you tally ho for taking the time to write what most of us think. Sean also is a pretty prolific conspiracy theorist and vitriol spewer at the hook’s website as well. Glad to see you’re really putting everyone’s feet the fire with inspired commenting and great investigative journalism Sean…
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yawn..
Shoveling walks is not a “municipal problem,” it is the responsibility of the owner of the property. You throw a fit when I show you a mirror. You know I’m right about this – that a walkway covered in packed snow and ice in front of a frat house (or sorority house, for that matter) filled with young adults watching reruns of Jersey Shore SHOULD be embarrassing. Even in Wisconsin, we shoveled our walks all winter in college. But, of course, it’s considered beneath us here at “The University.”
I invite you to ask just about any restaurant/bar owner downtown what they think of large groups of UVA students who come and drink in their establishments. I know a few of them who now refuse to rent out spaces in their places due to all the vandalism and other anti social behavior that became so commonplace at Law and Medical School functions. It aint just me, buddy. Just last weekend, I was at a corner bar watching a game. I middle aged guy was not allowed entry. He begged to get in and said he had lost his job months ago and was lonely. He stood outside in clear view of the bar sobbing. Several young UVA folks enjoyed the spectacle and laughed at him. You can say the culture is not there is you want. You can also say the sky is green. I never called all 20,000 of you anything. Not once. But I enjoyed reading the names you wrote above.
As for the Hoops team, the only thing I ever said was that that story – along with several others – was not printed in the Cavalier Daily when it should have been: immediately. And several others involving UVA students STILL have not been printed. Keeping details out of the press to protect a school’s image in a missing person’s investigation – now a murder investigation – is unconscionable. And all decent people should be making a ruckus about that. If you think it’s so great, then that’s on you. You’d have a whole different perspective on this if it was your daughter. As Gill Harrington said, lives are far more precious than reputations.
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“One middle aged guy was not allowed entry. He begged to get in and said he had lost his job months ago and was lonely. He stood outside in clear view of the bar sobbing.”
Finally, I have you. I actually work at that bar and will tell you why he was sobbing. He was sobbing because he was loitering with a sign outside with racist comments and was yelling, “Send the Mexicans back to Mexico. The Mexicans are taking our jobs.”
I told him to move along down the sidewalk and he was loitering. When I went inside to talk to my coworker about it, she told me that he’s actually a registered sex offender. I pulled up the sex offender website and there he was: two counts of carnal knowledge of a 13-15 year old and one count of sexual battery. The conviction date was 2008. I went back outside and repeated my request that he stop loitering in front of the restaurant with his racist comments. He lost his temper and started crying and yelling about how the “damn Mexicans” make it hard for an honest American to work.
At that point, my coworker called the police. The people who you saw were laughing were reacting to passerby’s comments about the racism of his sign and comments. A police officer arrived shortly and escorted him away.
See, Sean. You don’t know everything. I particularly enjoy how you contradict yourself so often in your futile quest to paint University students as elitist while simultaneously claiming that you don’t stereotype. Take a look at the last sentences of each of your paragraphs. The message seems to be contradictory.
As far as name-calling, I called you a name once (but I imagine you’re going to hold on to me calling you a “clown” because it only validates your personal belief that U.Va. students are insensitive, spoiled, punks). You constantly try to deflect with flat anecdotes and libelous accusations. What have U.Va. students ever done to you to elicit such personal, deep-seated hatred? We’re either murderers, evil aristocrats, or sadists…why would you want to live in close proximity to this coven of everything you oppose?
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The guy I saw had no sign, didn’t say anything racist to me when I offered to walk him home, and is not on the sex offender list that I just checked. I think I know the guy you are talking about, but I don’t think I can or should ID him here. Obviously a different incident.
My observations – shared by the vast majority of Charlottesvillians – that UVA kids in groups drinking can often behave with shocking arrogance, unkindness, impoliteness, and vandalism may make you angry. Shoot the messenger if you wish. I’m putting my red rubber nose on now. I dated a UVA gal who transferred here after 2 years at a NE college that banned the Greek system who was just as shocked at what went on around her here, as other friends I have at UVA often are. The transfers from PVCC, many of whom I know, likewise are disappointed by the behavior of SOME of their colleagues once they’ve had a few. I have never and will never say “all” in talking about a group of 20,000 or so students. Really now..
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