AS I look back on four years as an undergraduate and as a Cavalier Daily Opinion columnist, I can't help but recall the wise words T.S. Eliot: "We had the experience but missed the meaning, and approach to the meaning restores the experience." Within this quote is a sentiment I strongly sympathize with -- that a higher understanding of life goes beyond the simple highs and lows of our everyday social experiences.
I cannot say that I will leave this place without regrets. When I came to the University, I swore up and down that the tragic one-in-four statistic (referring to rapes and sexual assaults) would be ameliorated before I graduated. Unfortunately, my arrogance produced no results. I regret deeply the role of fraternities in this mess, as they intentionally and illegally provide free and unlimited alcohol to minors. Many rapes happen in fraternities, yet the IFC has done nothing in my four years but provide lip service to the cause. Attempts by organizations like SARA to promote respect for women have been met by rude inattentiveness and, ultimately, little or no change. This is sad not only for our school, but the many good individuals that partake in the fraternity system.
I also regret that our University is often unable to differentiate between tradition and healthy growth, particularly in regards to the honor system which is dogmatically defended by ideology that barely corresponds with reality. I regret that many if not all of these offenders either use fake IDs to enter bars or have friends that do so, yet remain unwilling to admit that honor is as flexible as any other social concept.
In the education provided here, I wish that the emphasis was more on the application of ideas and themes rather than the memorization of soon to be forgotten facts. This lamentation recalls the sagacious words of J.D. Salinger, who through a fictional character wished that "once in a while
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