Be smart about hazing on college campuses

Eight members of Beta Theta Pi at Pennsylvania State University were charged with involuntary manslaughter and aggravated assault in the death of Tim Piazza, a sophomore who died after participating in hazing rituals at the fraternity house.

The majority of fraternities have strict policies against hazing. Those who are caught doing it should be brought up on criminal and civil charges, and the offenders removed permanently. Jeff Barr

I never understood the need to join the Greek community. I always thought of them as paid friends. I was on the crew team in college. Sure, we had hazing, but never to the level that you would see at a fraternity or a sorority. It was something like “do 100 push-ups” or “go run 10 miles.”

It was always with the idea of improving athletic ability, never something ridiculous like drink until you drop. Julie Sousa

The reason hazing exists, as my college professor explained, is to have a way of getting new members to make a big “investment” (other than money or time) into the organization right at the beginning. That way, when they might think about quitting for whatever reason in a month or two, they’ll look back at the hell they went through and say, “I can’t quit now after all I have put into this already.” Hazing actually has a hidden purpose, and it’s the reason why it has existed for hundreds of years. Of course there’s also the established members who sadistically enjoy the power trip, but that’s a whole other matter. Steve Casper

Very sad, the older members were ignorant. I remember joining a fraternity and hazing as well. You have to use common sense, it has to be well coordinated, and the coordinators should not be consuming alcohol while the haze is on. Hampton John Ray