Racism at OU

[dennishoddy]

I never understood why frats and Sororities even exist?

Never had to be a "member" of anything to get an education. Go to class and go to the job afterward to pay for the next class.

 

[sh00ter]

I never understood why frats and Sororities even exist?

Never had to be a "member" of anything to get an education. Go to class and go to the job afterward to pay for the next class.

They are fraternal organizations much like the Masons or the Fraternal Order of Police. They do charity, competitions among one another to help build character, teach certain values & build character by enduring things together, provide a common point for people to come together on, etc. etc...they are very much a right of passage in college to becoming a man from a boy. There are officers and bylaws, house rules, responsibilities, etc...overall they are a good thing and give some of these guys a home away from home..of course , a big part I've not yet mentioned is that the mainstream ones are also social and have parties and social events. There are some other fraternities that are strictly professional/business oriented too. But just like being a Mason, if you were greek, you likely have a contact in any town in America if you look...it is a bond from having had a similar experience and knowing secrets that nobody else knows...even if you do not know the other person personally. Imagine if you moved to Siberia and ran into a guy there from Oklahoma and he owned a business and you needed a job. That's sorta one of the ideas I think...but AT THE TIME you are in one, it is mainly the social part that draws you. People tend to make friends that they'd otherwise not make by choosing to join one, but they are not for everyone. You can certainly have fun in college and be successful without being in one, but for some people it is just all part of the whole "on campus" college experience. And yes, many of them or members of them are snobs...they are immature and often come from upper middle class families (or more at private schools) and that is to be expected just like the cliques that form in high school...there are even cliques inside organizations and fraternities and sororities are not immune to that either...

 

[dennishoddy]

They are fraternal organizations much like the Masons or the Fraternal Order of Police. They do charity, competitions among one another to help build character, teach certain values & build character by enduring things together, provide a common point for people to come together on, etc. etc...they are very much a right of passage in college to becoming a man from a boy. There are officers and bylaws, house rules, responsibilities, etc...overall they are a good thing and give some of these guys a home away from home..of course , a big part I've not yet mentioned is that the mainstream ones are also social and have parties and social events. There are some other fraternities that are strictly professional/business oriented too. But just like being a Mason, if you were greek, you likely have a contact in any town in America if you look...it is a bond from having had a similar experience and knowing secrets that nobody else knows...even if you do not know the other person personally. Imagine if you moved to Siberia and ran into a guy there from Oklahoma and he owned a business and you needed a job. That's sorta one of the ideas I think...but AT THE TIME you are in one, it is mainly the social part that draws you. People tend to make friends that they'd otherwise not make by choosing to join one, but they are not for everyone. You can certainly have fun in college and be successful without being in one, but for some people it is just all part of the whole "on campus" college experience. And yes, many of them or members of them are snobs...they are immature and often come from upper middle class families (or more at private schools) and that is to be expected just like the cliques that form in high school...there are even cliques inside organizations and fraternities and sororities are not immune to that either...

I got all of that from good parenting. Guess I went to college to learn, not socialize.

 

[OKCShooter]

They are fraternal organizations much like the Masons or the Fraternal Order of Police. They do charity, competitions among one another to help build character, teach certain values & build character by enduring things together, provide a common point for people to come together on, etc. etc...they are very much a right of passage in college to becoming a man from a boy. There are officers and bylaws, house rules, responsibilities, etc...overall they are a good thing and give some of these guys a home away from home..of course , a big part I've not yet mentioned is that the mainstream ones are also social and have parties and social events. There are some other fraternities that are strictly professional/business oriented too. But just like being a Mason, if you were greek, you likely have a contact in any town in America if you look...it is a bond from having had a similar experience and knowing secrets that nobody else knows...even if you do not know the other person personally. Imagine if you moved to Siberia and ran into a guy there from Oklahoma and he owned a business and you needed a job. That's sorta one of the ideas I think...but AT THE TIME you are in one, it is mainly the social part that draws you. People tend to make friends that they'd otherwise not make by choosing to join one, but they are not for everyone. You can certainly have fun in college and be successful without being in one, but for some people it is just all part of the whole "on campus" college experience. And yes, many of them or members of them are snobs...they are immature and often come from upper middle class families (or more at private schools) and that is to be expected just like the cliques that form in high school...there are even cliques inside organizations and fraternities and sororities are not immune to that either...

Well said...there are "groups" in hundreds of facets of life, Fratenities in College are simply one of many.

What I've been surprised by in this thread is the animosity towards Fraterity/Sorority groups. It makes me wonder why guys here are so fragile that they are lashing out at them...

 

[dennishoddy]

Well said...there are "groups" in hundreds of facets of life, Fratenities in College are simply one of many.

What I've been surprised by in this thread is the animosity towards Fraterity/Sorority groups. It makes me wonder why guys here are so fragile that they are lashing out at them...

Never lashed out at them. Just don't see the need. Why does somebody need an organization to get an education?

I just went to class, did my homework and went to work.

 

[sh00ter]

Well said...there are "groups" in hundreds of facets of life, Fratenities in College are simply one of many.

What I've been surprised by in this thread is the animosity towards Fraterity/Sorority groups. It makes me wonder why guys here are so fragile that they are lashing out at them...

Because they see them as preppy mama's boys who can't skin a buck & run a trot line...we had a lot of the upper class people from small towns so they got to be both. It was "trendy" at the time to wear work boots with Lucky jeans and decorate the Christmas trees with Copenhagen lids...I think it made them feel better about being upper class to still hang on to the Okie identity (and Texas & Kansas)...We used to go camping & fishing all the time and then you had some who were just preppy golfers like the ones shown in the SAE video...but everyone had that common bond of the frat...Some drove Acrua NSX and some drove 4wd Broncos with spotlights for coyotes and liked to chew Red Man...but the stereotype is just preppy mama's boys and there are plenty of those Aubry McClendon types in Oklahoma Fraternities. That's my assessment.

 

[yukonjack]

I never saw a reason to be in a fraternity, or be a Mason or wear funny Mormon underwear. When you start bringing secret handshakes and blood oaths into the mix it all becomes quite juvenile and childish.

 

[TedKennedy]

What I've been surprised by in this thread is the animosity towards Fraterity/Sorority groups. It makes me wonder why guys here are so fragile that they are lashing out at them...

Some folks think they oughtta tell other folks what they can and can't do. Who they can
assemble with, and what the subject matter of conversation can or cannot be.

Quite simply, they know better than the rest.
Then they'll tell you how arrogant the frat boys are.

 

[JD8]

Some folks think they oughtta tell other folks what they can and can't do. Who they can
assemble with, and what the subject matter of conversation can or cannot be.

Quite simply, they know better than the rest.
Then they'll tell you how arrogant the frat boys are.

You can organize only if "I" see the need... apparently.

 

[Okie4570]

Some folks think they oughtta tell other folks what they can and can't do. Who they can
assemble with, and what the subject matter of conversation can or cannot be.

Quite simply, they know better than the rest.
Then they'll tell you how arrogant the frat boys are.

.......or maybe something horrific happened in his or in his children's life on/off campus as result of being involved with the Greek system, and he doesn't want to relive the details or share??