What did you add?
I added a piece on the history of hazing in fraternities
Did it go smoothly?
It went very smoothly, almost too smoothly I feel. I shudder to think what would happen if someone with a bad opinion on the subject could do.
Did you end up in a discussion?
Sadly no. You would not believe it but Greeks were too apathetic to comment on my post.
Did you think the entry maintained a neutral point of view, or did you notice anyone including links that might be construed as marketing?
I most certainly think my entry was neutral. Because it only states historical fact. However, there were links to fraternal organizations, which yes, is frat-propaganda, added by other bloggers.
Is there a line between documenting something like Subservient Chicken and doing some free marketing for BK? Can that sort of thing be avoided even if we try?
I believe there is a line. Also, I believe it can be avoided. However, this question I believe is not as important as the point that Jaron Lazier makes about online collectivism. This has He states that, “The problem is in the way the Wikipedia has come to be regarded and used; how it's been elevated to such importance so quickly. And that is part of the larger pattern of the appeal of a new online collectivism that is nothing less than a resurgence of the idea that the collective is all-wise.” He is totally right in his assessment of Wikipedia and collectivism. Look at what I just did for example. I, an undergraduate student, whom has not higher degree (yet) has just posted on Wikipedia. Unfortunately, some poor person is going to come along and perhaps use my post a fact. This is because according to Lazier, the aspect of Collectivism has lent way too much legitimacy to Wikipedia. I believe, that if one is going to do research, on should leave the writing to academics, people who’s job it is to write in an academic way. Also, as prove throughout history, mob rule is often not the best rule. Wikipedia is just that, mob rule.
Attached is my work added to Wikipedia, it is italicized.
Hazing is the ritualistic harassment, abuse, or persecution of prospective members of a group as a means of initiation. In such practices, pledges are required to complete often meaningless, difficult, or (physically and/or psychologically) humiliating tasks. Many activities which evolved into modern hazing originated as legitimate team-building techniques.[citation needed] In their essence, they are meant to make the individual fail as an individual, teaching them to become a valuable asset to the team and be loyal to its success.[citation needed] This philosophy of team development continued to be used in fraternal organizations as each subsequent war refreshed the pool of ex-military students.[citation needed]
Because of the association of fraternities with hazing, schools such as Bates College started banning fraternities as early as the mid-1800s. One fraternity, Sigma Nu, was founded in opposition to the hazing taking place at Virginia Military Institute after the Civil War by Alpha Tau Omega. Hazing began in Fraternities after the Civil War. Prior to the Civil war, hazing was not a major aspect in many fraternities. This is because Fraternities started out as a way for students to discuss academic life in college. Something that was looked down upon in the early 19th century. However, hazing gained popularity after the civil war because many college student felt that they needed to have a harrowing event happen to them, just as their fathers did during the civil war. Hazing continued on after World War I. Soldiers returning from the war re-entered colleges, and brought with them the discipline and techniques they learned in boot camp. From the 1960s through the 1980s, however, most organizations (especially those governed by alumni at the national level) implemented clear no-hazing policies. Hazing is also against many colleges' Greek Codes and illegal in most U.S. states.[1][2] The North-American Interfraternity Conference (formerly National Interfraternity Conference) also requires anti-hazing education for members, as do most universities. Since at least the 1990s, any hazing conducted at a local chapter was done without the consent of a national organization and outside the guidelines for their initiation rituals. If discovered, hazing usually results in the revocation of the local chapter's charter and possibly expulsion of members from the national organization.
