Letter to the Editor: Greek life is less fun now that I can’t psychologically damage 30 18-year-olds every winter

With recent news stories about the tragic outcomes of hazing from schools across the country I’ve been feeling pretty bummed out. I’m starting to think psychologically and physically tormenting freshmen on a daily basis could actually have some negative consequences on their mental health. We need to stop talking about these issues so I can go back to the mindless subjugation of unsuspecting students who were so recently excited about joining a brotherhood of their peers.

At a pledge event a few weeks ago I caught myself holding back a little bit while pouring half the contents of a 40 down a blindfolded pledge’s throat. Last year I was smiling with my boys as we emptied bottle after bottle over an unsuspecting room of pledges; this year it’s just been hard to get jazzed about hazing.

Greek life falls apart if we have to think about why we force 30 teenagers to make snow angels in their underwear every Thursday morning. It’s not fair to take that away by making us feel bad about it. It’s not fair to shame those of us who were hazed for carrying on that tradition. It’s the timeless circle of Frat!

The conflicted emotions I feel as I watch a freshman struggle to swallow a live goldfish in a pitch-black basement are really harshing my mellow. This should be the most care-free quarter of the year. The quarter where I get all my laundry done for me, my alcohol delivered right to my door, my weekly fix of schadenfreude as I focus on others’ external pain instead of confronting my own inner demons.

As a society we should return to the time of willful ignorance about these senseless acts of depravity that occur during pledging. If you see something, don’t say something. I will never again be able to view hazing as the cheerful, harmless act it used to be for me, and that is the greatest tragedy of all..