Chloe's Blog: October 2010

Help bring an end to Hazing

Hazing occurs all over the world and affects children for the rest of their lives. Hazing is defined as harassment, abuse or humiliation and usually occurs as part of initiation. It occurs in many different contexts such as the military, fraternities, sororities, and the workplace. Even though we all know that hazing exists, it is difficult to prove it because hazing is usually done in secret.
While some hazing attempts are very safe, others have resulted in serious injuries or deaths. On February 10,1997, a freshman at Clarkson University was instructed to to drink hardcore alcohol out of a bucket. Trying to impress the members, the 17 year old drank until he had to be carried upstairs. He was found dead the next day from choking on his vomit.
Even though hazing is wrong, people think of it as good through these beliefs. First they think that hazing facilitates strong commitment and loyalty to a group. Pledges might be forced to wear clothing with greek symbols, representing their fraternities. Fraternities also limit outside contact with other students, which result in a stronger group relationship.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

"Aid is but a Rumor"

In Leogane, Haiti, two hours west of Port- au -Prince, Marie Ange Toussaint, a 20 year old woman, held her daughter born a day after the incident. She mentions how she can't find anything to feed her and how some Haitians haven't had anything to eat in a week. While many people are fed daily in Haiti's capital, the efforts have yet to reach countless places, less than 20 miles away from the impassable roads.
The problem is that Haiti does not have a working government. It had bad infrastructure to begin with due to the earthquake, which destroyed buildings that hoses power and scattered the bureaucrats that are now tending for their families and them selves. Even though some help is being offered, the effort turns into chaos because of the poor organization. The United Nations set up a food line that was immediately shut down because of the violence the hungry crowd had created.

The men spend their days clearing rubble from ruining homes. As the people wait, they will continue to care for each other. They have no other choice than to wait and see what is going to happen to them. One haitian said, "we will stay here, and we will die here. We have nowhere else to go."
I believe that we should all reach out to the Haitians and help them out in there times of need. I mean we would want help if we were in trouble.