As two of Jonathon Keats' '94 college roommates, we were pleased to see The Student's profile of our talented and unique friend ("Keats' Thought Experiments Question the Norm," 10-19-07). Still, The Student missed a wonderful opportunity to plumb its own archives for the interview: during the course of his tenure at Amherst, Keats wrote the "Conservative Corollary" column for The Student in every issue from the first issue of his freshman year until the last issue before his graduation. His column was a streak of verbosity which was without precedent. His distinctive contribution to campus dialogue brought the acclaim best demonstrated by his roommate's need to affix a "Throw Bricks Here" sign on the exterior of Seelye, complete with an arrow directing any projectile-wielding readers towards the appropriate window. One might also have asked him about his extraordinary transition from bow-tied republican pundit to avant-garde performance artist, or whether there was any transition at all.
Adam Bonin '94
Charles Glassenberg '94
Misinformation in Oct. 17 Article on Theta Delta Chi Frat
Regarding your Oct. 17 article on fraternities: Theta Delta Chi International Fraternity revoked the charter of its Amherst College chapter in June 2006. We have no knowledge of any rushing activities since that time and would not recognize any members that the existing local group may have added since then. That said, the Dean's analogy between fraternity membership and membership in the Ku Klux Klan, even masquerading as a jest, was uncalled for.
William A. McClung
Executive Director
Theta Delta Chi
Anti-Yankees Cheers After Winning the World Series Unbecoming of Champions
I am happy for the Red Sox fans among us and pleased in general by riots, couches aflame and chaos, but I am also confused.
"Fuck the Yankees!" echoed across campus on Sunday, Oct. 28. Maybe it's because I'm not from Massachusetts, but I don't understand why that would be the (very loud, repeated) slogan after sweeping the World Series. After winning against a team other than the Yankees?
Let's try something different, maybe a bit more positive, maybe even victorious, OK? Because "Fuck the Yankees" may be proper for pathetic losers, but you didn't lose, remember? (And when you did, you were never pathetic, right?) You won.
Unfortunate Yankee fans-some among our friends-don't need any reminding of their team's painful situation. Your slogan does aptly broadcast the Yankees' metaphoric defilement. But as an eternally cheerful Cubs fan, I must protest: the record speaks for itself.
See you next year, same time, in Chicago-hope springs eternal-and congratulations.
Richa Bhala '08