Giving up the worst kept secret...

If you are reading this as a blog post you have already noticed things are changing. We're not done yet, so keep checking back to see what else happens. In the spirit of change it is now time for me to take a moment and make an announcement about how I will be blogging from now on...

When this blog was created (2004), the whole concept of social media was in it's infancy. Those of us who were in at the beginning knew we had something to say. We knew it was not the same thing we heard coming from Richmond, and we expected to ruffle some feathers. Several of us, and I as a ringleader of sorts, took on pseudonyms to remain anonymous.

At first there was indeed some official consternation, and we were glad to not be officially connected to the blog but to do the work in secret. However within a relatively short time at least a few of our names got known, and surprisingly there were no late night knocks on the door. Not only that, but eventually we would occasionally get calls letting us know about stories. One Sunday afternoon the then Grand President called to ask - not that I sit on a story - but just to please be gentle and try to tell both sides. That was when I knew we were being taken seriously.

Of course social media has exploded since 2004. Facebook, Twitter, Smart Phones, and so much more has come about since then. At Conclave this past summer there a screen near the main meeting rooms that was displaying a continuous stream of Tweets, all with the #SigEpConclave hash tag. When Mohammed Ali showed up at one gathering I had my iPhone out to do the obligatory "OMG" tweet and watched as a couple hundred of my brothers had the same idea. Everyone has access to information, and everyone can publish.

With that in mind, it is time to retire "Wordjunky" as a pseudonym officially. I'll still use the term because I like it and it fits me. But I am done with even a semblance of hiding behind it. Besides, its a pain to switch back and forth between accounts every time I was to make a blog post. From now on I'll be posting under my own name.

The other contributors to the blog can make their own choices, its not for me to say what they will or should do. Either way, I respect and support the choices.

Fraternally submitted,

Bryce Giesler (aka "Wordjunky")

Juicy Campus?

Tough call, here. On the one hand it's good to see a fellow SigEp working the web. On the other hand if what the reviewer is saying is true then how can we endorse it?

About a month ago I received an e-mail from a Duke alum named Matt Ivester. I didn't know the kid when he went here, although with a little research I do know he was the one-time president of Sig Ep fraternity in '03-'04, if that is at all relevant.

Anyhow, the e-mail informed me of a new Web site he was promoting-which many of you have probably heard of by now-entitled JuicyCampus.com.
[...]
On the one hand, I was shocked and horrified by the comments I was reading. On the other, I was mesmerized. One look and I was unknowingly sucked into an addiction. I wanted more. More names, more dirt, more hate. I knew it was wrong, and I couldn't morally justify adding to the hateful insanity, but I also couldn't and can't stop reading.
[...]
The possibilities are endless. Anyone with a grudge, or a sick mind, can maliciously and often libelously attack defenseless students. I am aware that a lot of times the posts are not be taken seriously, but I am also aware that certain posts lack any sort of intent other than malice and hate.

We take a non-position on this web site (sort of like Hillary Clinton and drivers's licences for illegal aliens). We report it, but no opinions and no links. You are going to have to find it and decide on your own.

Juicy Campus - Columns

Usual and Customary Politics

I and I am sure everyone else was glad that the National Board of Directors and the elusive -  membership unknown - and double-secret OGH Nominations Committee saw fit to suspend the rules unilaterally established by a previous NBD and present Brother Archie Yeatts with the much deserved Order of the Golden Heart at the end of his term as Grand President. Probably few undergraduates really do appreciate the years and years of service Brother Yeatts provided to the Fraternity prior to his tenure on the NBD and subsequent election to GP. Congratulations, Archie, and let's hope that such silly rules established by a scorned board member(s) don't repeat themselves in the future.

So, now that I have your attention, perhaps a little history lesson and one clear resounding example will give you a peek behind the curtain of mystery in our Fraternity's body politic.

As far back as I can remember (over 15 Conclaves), it was always customary to present the outgoing Grand President the Order of the Golden Heart Award (if he didn’t already have one). It is much deserved as anyone who has diligently served a term or two on the National Board and then a two year run as Grand President has devoted a considerable amount of concentrated volunteer time to the Fraternity. That is up until the 1989 Conclave when a dark horse candidate trumped the heir-apparent in his campaign for Grand President. This, of course, sent shock waves through the "good ole boy" politics much more than most will admit. Once the "dark horse's" reign was completed in 1991, there was retribution to be delivered. The first move was to enact an emergency resolution to immediately go into effect with the 1991 Conclave that the Grand President would no longer be given the OGH at the end of his term. It then became “tradition” that the Past GP would receive his OGH at the next Conclave. In 2005, this was suspended for appropriate reason and, in this writer's opinion, was appropriate again in 2007. However, retribution continued for our 1989 Dark Horse GP who should have, according to the new rule, received his in 1993 .... He did not receive his OGH in 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, but finally did in 2001. Guess it would have looked bad for the Fraternity if a living Past Grand President didn't have an OGH by the Centennial. 

It is interesting to also note the Heir Apparent that the Dark Horse upset was closely tied to the OGH Nomination Committee (while the constitution of this committee is possibly the best kept secret in the Fraternity, this author knows for an absolute fact, that the Heir Apparent served and may still be serving on the OGH Nomination Committee).

This author feels very strongly that we should go back to the earlier precedent of giving the outgoing GP his OGH. It just makes sense.

The other lesson here is that when you begin to upset the body politic there are penalties to be paid. It would be interesting to see what other clandestine, double-secret activities might be discovered if one lifts the curtain higher and lets the light of day in. Does the old boy politics still extend to alumni nominations process? That will be an insider story in the next installment of Usual and Customary.

Great indeed is the mystery of the Fraternity (politics, that is).

Ritual, Secrecy, and Relevance

There was an interesting thread in the "SigEp-Talk" mail list today. The general topic was how to study and/or refresh our understanding of the ritual. Obviously we are not going to go into details here, but I was reminded of a recent article from the Beta Theta Pi online magazine. The article discusses the use and relevance of secrecy as part of the fraternity experience. Except for the historical details, it sounded like similar discussions we have seen over the years.

American college fraternity origins rest in the fascination with early European secret societies. Freemasons, among others, selected few members for initiation who were instructed in the central teachings and philosophical wisdom of the ages. The organizations were so secret that often their members were not known, causing general public anxiety about their aims, objectives and influence on society.
[...]
By the late 1870s the role of secrecy in Beta Theta Pi was vigorously debated among members and in The Beta Theta Pi magazine. The prompt for the debate was the radical proposal by Wyllys C. Ransom, Michigan 1848, to publish a public constitution separate from the esoteric Ritual of the Fraternity to demonstrate Beta’s pure aims and relevance to universities and the world.
[...]
A March 1879 letter printed in the magazine from the Rho (Northwestern) and Psi (Bethany) chapters opposed the move stating that the issue, “strikes at the very principle in human nature out of which secret societies grow; that desire to know — to be connected with that which no one else knows or understands; to be regarded with a degree of romance by the uninitiated.” It was argued that men would rather join a secret group with the luster of old and the allure of secret aims.

The meaning and relevance of the Ritual is much more than "I've got a secret", yet there remains that aspect of exclusivity. ΒΘΠ did eventually publish their constitutions, as nearly all of the major fraternities have done now, Sig Ep included. The only real "secrets" we have are the specifics of the Ritual, the grip and word, and the esoteric motto. As the article goes on to point out, that may be a sticking point.

Newly initiated members can often recall the entire founders’ paragraph verbatim or a quotation on the “Beta Spirit” from Willis O. Robb, Ohio Wesleyan 1879, yet they cannot recite the obligations they promised to uphold. The reason may be, in part, that the newest members of the organization are not exposed to the obligations until the emotion-filled moment of initiation. Just like a nervous groom focusing on not tripping or stuttering on his vows, new members are usually consumed by the experience and rarely absorb the full meaning of revelations divulged in the initiation ceremony.

Sound familiar?

So how do we keep the teachings alive? How can we reinforce that emotion-filled moment in our daily life? Does your chapter have a process to discuss ritual in meetings? Or, like most, are the books and paraphernalia only trotted out once or twice a semester so you can welcome the new members into those "mystic bonds" - which will be promptly forgotten until the next group is ready to go?

The article concludes:

A rogue member publishing the principles and obligations on the internet would certainly be inconsistent with one of the obligations and the practices of the Fraternity. But, if someday the entire Fraternity chose to make them public, in an effort to increase knowledge and application of the Ritual, would the luster of the black enamel be forever lost? The charge for all Betas is to ask just why secrecy is important, what should remain secret and whether the Fraternity would be better off in such a future.

What do you think?

The Beta Theta Pi - Secrecy in Beta Theta Pi