Sept. 21, 2005

Student Government or Student Humor?

What with the lingering U.S. presence in Iraq, the devastation of Katrina, and the uncertain economy, it’s no surprise that some students feel troubled.

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The student government at Emory University is trying a novel approach to helping students: declaring “war” on Washington University in St. Louis. At Wash U., however, students appear to have other concerns and most of them are ignoring the war, possibly forcing Emory combatants to take both sides in a war of insults.

Last weekend, graffiti, leaflets with insults, and toilet paper in trees appeared on both campuses. But sources familiar with the skirmishes said that Emory students staged not only the “attack” on Washington, but also the one at Emory, in hopes of riling students. Most Emory students have not fled to bomb shelters (or anywhere for that matter). But the president of the student government — a senior named Amrit P. Dhir — held an emergency meeting of the student government and announced that he was abolishing the legislative branch and replacing it with himself as “supreme leader.” The war declaration banned students from wearing Washington University clothing (unless it contained insults) and said that freedom of the press was “to be tolerated ... for now.”

Dhir was elected to his post (as president, not supreme leader) in the spring, in part on a platform calling for the establishment of a rivalry with Washington University. Upon winning election, he created a War Department and Ministry of Propaganda, which has been publishing various critiques of the St. Louis institution. (While both Emory and Washington are members of the University Athletic Association, a league of eight private research universities, officials at both institutions said that the two institutions have no particular historic rivalry.)

In an interview Monday, Dhir said that the aim of the war was to raise school spirit at Emory, which he said has been lacking. “The whole war theme has this energy and enthusiasm that students responded to because it has an extra edge,” he said.

The Emory war declaration and Ministry of Propaganda documents do explicitly state at the bottom that the war image is meant to be “playful” and not to promote violence. Of course Dhir and his supporters showed up at the emergency meeting he called Monday in faux military fatigues, as captured by photographers for The Emory Wheel. Dhir denies playing any role in the pranks on both campuses last weekend or knowing who was responsible.

Asked if all the war imagery might be a bit tasteless when a real live war in Iraq is costing many lives and dividing many Americans, Dhir noted the disclaimer about violence and said, “we are committed to being sensitive to the feelings and thoughts of everyone in the community.”

Curt Carlson, vice president for public affairs at Emory, said administrators there supported the idea of creating more sports rivalries and school spirit. But he said that he did not consider the rules of the student government to have been abolished, and that officials “advised strongly against using the war terminology.”

M. Fredric Volkmann, vice chancellor of public affairs at Washington University, said that a group of Emory students approached his university a few months ago and asked that the two institutions somehow become official rivals. Volkmann said that Washington declined the offer. He said that rivalries tend to work best when institutions are near one another and that the distance between Atlanta and St. Louis is such that he didn’t want to be encouraging students to be traveling back and forth all the time.

One problem facing the Emory students is that war — like many other things — takes two players. Washington University students seem bemused by the conflict, but disinclined to take a very long road trip to pull off a few pranks in Atlanta.

David Ader, president of the Washington University Student Union, is encouraging students to ignore Emory’s “war.” Said Ader: “I don’t disagree with the cause of school pride, but this method is not exactly productive.”

There are better ways to help a college, he said, “than knocking others down.”

— Scott Jaschik

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Comments

Don’t Feel Too Bad...

Don’t feel too bad. North Carolina State students elected a president who ran on a platform of being a pirate. All communications the student president sends out (including those to adminstrators and the Board of Governors apparently) includes only “pirate talk.” I’ve had an opportunity to read a couple of his missives, and, while funny, they certainly doesn’t do much for the credibilty of the student government.

Ah, democracy at work...

Kyle Johnson, at 6:25 am EDT on September 21, 2005

Well, I am laughing

And as a former instructor at Washington University, I would say the whole thing indicates the general lack of a sense of humor or any personal distance from those overly driven students. perhaps Emory needs an ally...

SB, at 8:58 am EDT on September 21, 2005

Another pointless war

Yes, well, this wouldn’t be the first time that a U.S. institution has declared a unilateral war on an uninterested party that had no hostile intentions or even the capability to retaliate. Perhaps after the carnage ends, small pockets of resistance will spring up in the countryside surrounding Wash U., embroiling Emory in a long futile “struggle against violent extremism.” Still, if Emory can succeed in installing a puppet government with “democratically” chosen leaders from the minority parties at Wash U., they’ll at least feel better about themselves before North Korea blasts Emory off the map...

huntly, at 8:58 am EDT on September 21, 2005

Good for Emory

At least they were able to get other students riled up and into this. When I was at Rutgers, we tried to rekindle the historic rivalry with Princeton. Nobody on either side was having it.

Jim, at 11:44 am EDT on September 21, 2005

Idle hand

In my humble opinion, these students at Emory obviously need more coursework, and homework. Way too much time on their hands. Whatever happened to drinking on one’s free time? Instead of declaring war.....?

Ste Bat, at 12:00 pm EDT on September 21, 2005

Sounds like

Sounds like Emory needs to spend more money on their football team. “War with rules” and whatnot.

jldugger, at 12:36 pm EDT on September 21, 2005

Would love to!

Hey man, we don’t HAVE a football team. Thats probably part of the reason there’s no school spirit here. And trust me, the undergrads spend plenty of time drinking. It seems like its all they talk about... :\

Crzy!, at 1:29 pm EDT on September 21, 2005

Pointless

I think these students are doing a great job of pointing out just how POINTLESS student government is. SGA associations across the country are a waste of time, filled with busy-bodies hard up to make friends. These psuedo-pols’ nonsense are embarassments, and wearing fatigues, or using pirate talk, or whatever these clever fellows do is no worse than those whose platforms are superficially “legitimate” bringing more soda machines and card-readers to the campus, etc. Someone should run on the “Disband the student government” platform. That’ll get some attention, and make even more sense.

VANDY 3-0!!!

Anonymous, at 1:30 pm EDT on September 21, 2005

Great idea

This is great. The US government does it, so does most other places in the world. Why not promote school pride in such fashion?

Bobby, McGill University, at 3:33 pm EDT on September 21, 2005

Far Out

This is all today’s student newspaper had anything to talk about. It sported a picture of our “Supreme Ruler” wearing, yes, green army fatigues with a cigar in the left pocket.

Quote from a member of the now-disbanded council:"I’m a little confused. Did I just lose my job?”

Ward, Emory University, at 4:01 pm EDT on September 21, 2005

Hilarious!

I’m dissapointed that our student body president (David Ader) balked at a great way to get some school spirit at Wash U. Red Alert (basically a lame come to sporting events campaign) isn’t exactly the silver bullet...

Unfortunately for him, the campus is responding, and pretty well with a flurry of talk and editorials regarding the vandalism. I’m interested to see what happens next, but I hope that Ader doesn’t mess it up anymore than he has tried to. Given a little time, this could develop into a fun rivalry.

Jeff, Washington University, at 5:42 pm EDT on September 21, 2005

Down the WashU-ians!

Hey, I think I can speak for everyone else here at Case when I say that we’d be happy to join sides with Emory in waging war on WU. If Emory had a football team it’d be a different matter, but as it is, no problem.

Nick, Allies? at Case Western, at 4:37 am EDT on September 22, 2005

Hey, I’ve got a great idea! If your student spirit is waning, why not try to make what your university has more respectable and enjoyable for your students, instead of just trying to start a petty contest with another school (who doesn’t care) to distract from it!

Eric, at 4:38 am EDT on September 22, 2005

At last

Our moment has come. I can only hope that we have in place a string of bizarre alliances that entangles the entire eastern seaboard in collegiate war. I’m attacking Princeton at dawn.

This is the greatest thing a student government has ever done.

John, University of Pennsylvania, at 4:39 am EDT on September 22, 2005

First off this article is a little off the wall. I am a student at Emory and although we consider ourselves rivals with WashU, I think that author of this article needs to do his research becuase I am involved with the school and I havnt heard anything about this. Also — this is definatly not an accurate reflection of the kids at my school and if this does have any truth it reflects a small population of wierdos lol.

Marc Cohen, Student at Emory, at 4:40 am EDT on September 22, 2005

As a WU alum, I must say that it’s refreshing to see the school in the news for something other than drunken sorority antics & malicious pranks. Even if the students really don’t seem to care, maybe it’ll give WU’s student government *something* to do other than hoard vast amounts of money garnered from unscrupulous fees.

AJ, at 5:20 am EDT on September 22, 2005

‘ello ello’ little friend...

Listen, while not as sweet as running on the platform of being a pirate, the guy freaking made himself a Ministry of Propaganda. I think thats f-ing funny as balls.

Ed Begley Jr., The Most Important Opinion of All at Dean of the Wolrd, at 5:20 am EDT on September 22, 2005

Give it ya!

Does Wash u know they were the inspiration for Mr. Harold Ramis for Animal House? For fuxsake would some off you live up to the name. You’re still kids, sure the world is beating down your doors, paratrooping through your windows, and spying on your every computer mouse click to see how to sell you shit,or find you a job, or scare the bejesus outta you, or feel even more insecure about yourself, have some fun!!!study a little less, drink a little more (if possible and where applicable)...and never forget, who became a senator in Animal House? You can bet your balls (or ovaries) that it wasn’t Kevin Bacon...good luck, invasion preparations have begun, resistance is futile...god bless America, except for any and all people associated with Emory University, naturally....

Callum, Kong, at 7:24 am EDT on September 22, 2005

Here’s the thing ...

We at WashU do drink a lot. We party a lot, there are many, many ditzy sorority girls stumbling around campus all weekend (the frat guys just stay in their houses). In other words, our campus is not as serious as you might think. But still, we have no school spirit. The administration actually paid a consultant to determine why we don’t have it — and there are still no answers. Somehow, we’re drunk AND lame. I’m all for games and roadtrips, so bring Emory on.

Emily, Recent Graduate at WashU, at 9:40 am EDT on September 22, 2005

If it is true our school hired a consultant to analyze school spirit we are the most embarrassing school of all. It seems analogous to a concerned parent sending their socially inept child to therapy. Saaaaaad.

Anonymous, Student at Wash U, at 7:41 pm EDT on September 22, 2005

Emory should declare war on Tulane, then declare us conquered and start a Marshall Plan of recreational supplies.

The outreach/interface would be good for the Emory kids, Tulane is a much more reasonable roadtrip than is Wash U, and ... hey, it’s going to be DRY down there. Horrors!

I’m just saying.

I’m willing to negotiate the Tulane surrender to Emory in time for Carnival.

bluegreen, at 7:43 pm EDT on September 29, 2005

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