Tag Archives: A&M

‘The Parable of the Madman’

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October 11th, 2017 – Students and Faculty alike packed into UC 217 to attend a PLACE lecture held by Dr. Doug Julien on Friedrich Nietzsche’s ‘The Parable of the Madman‘. As was written on the whiteboard and as Dr. Julien affirmed, “It’s a lot for 50 minutes.”

He wasn’t wrong. In that short timeframe, Dr. Julien guided the audience through this segment of Nietzsche’s The Gay Science, wherein a raving madman claims that ‘God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him.’. Dr. Julien spoke of the piece as a thought experiment, centered around two questions: Did we kill God and, if so, how did we do it?

As this piece is considered a thought experiment, a large part of the lecture focused on a thought experiment all its own – Time, illustrated best by a simple question: Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Dr. Julien points out that on the one hand, at a point in our history when Religion was the driving force of society and not Science, this question would be simple to answer. In the mind of Religion, God created the chicken and thus the chicken created the egg. In more modern times, however, there is the scientific concept of mutation and the proto-chicken. In the mind of Science, then, the egg was created first through some mutation in the ‘proto-chicken’, creating the chicken.

This age-old question, which of the two came first, illustrates how Time is a subjective concept. Think of Past, Present and Future. The Present is the ‘now’, the Past is everything before ‘now’ and the Future is everything to come. The point being, our perception of the world around us is constantly changing – in particular, to Religion or Science. “We believe Science but we do not trust Science.” Dr. Julien argued. “When everyone both believes and trusts Science, change occurs.”

Back to those two questions: Did we kill God? How did we kill him? The truth, much like whether you believe the chicken or the egg came first, is largely up to the observer – the individual. Do you believe God is dead? If so, how do you believe we killed him?

It bears repeating – “It’s a lot for 50 minutes.” Every member of the audience, myself included, very well got something different out of Dr. Julien’s lecture. In talking to him afterward, I believe this was the point. “Everyone will arrive to their own, individual Truth – and this Truth will, by nature, be flawed. Only by talking with one another can we arrive at the same conclusion.”, he told me.

It’s a dialectic – an integral process of any proper discourse – that answers these questions. Perhaps whatever time Dr. Julien didn’t have for this discussion, we now have in spades.

Help for Harms of Hazing

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Blake Novacek has sued the Beta Theta Pi fraternity and two fraternity members over an alleged hazing incident in October of 2015 that reportedly left him with a traumatic brain injury.

Courtesy of Christopher Cooke

Blake Novacek, son of former NFL tight end Jay Novacek, is suing a University of Oklahoma fraternity for brain injuries he sustained from hazing in 2015.

He was pledging to the Beta Theta Pi fraternity on October 11,2015 when he was taken into Shane Musselman’s room and asked to state facts about the fraternity’s history. When he could not give the answers, he was hit in the stomach with a baseball bat. He fell after being hit and struck his head on a hard object which left him unconscious for around 10 hours. Novacek alleges that Gavin Martindale approached him after he woke up and told him to keep his mouth shut about the incident.

Novacek’s attorney, Christopher Cooke, said the plaintiff has been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury, postconcussive syndrome, and bipolar disorder. Novacek is also under the care of many doctors.

Both Martindale and Musselman have retained attorneys to “aggressively defend” them in the suit, and the fraternity denies the allegations. The Gamma Phi chapter said there were no fraternity activities on October 11 because nearly all of the fraternity members were in Dallas for a football game that weekend. Novacek also posted a photo of himself at the Dallas Cowboys football game on October 11.

Cooke says Novacek is unable to recall dates after sustaining head injuries and says the date given is the closest he can recall to the date of the events outlined in the lawsuit.

The most recent fraternity hazing death occurred on September 14 at Louisiana State University. Max Gruver, 18, was laid on a couch by members of Phi Delta Theta that morning. When they came back, his pulse was weak. Gruver died at a nearby hospital later that day. The coroner reported Gruver having a “highly elevated” blood-alcohol level. His BAC was .495, significantly higher than the 0.08 that would be considered legally drunk in Louisiana.

Max Gruver

Arrest warrants were issued for the people involved in Gruver’s death. They were charged with hazing, and Alexander Naquin has an added charge of negligent homicide.

According to the University of Dayton, alcohol consumption is one of the most common activities involved in hazing and contributes to 82% of hazing deaths. Nine out of ten college students who have experienced hazing in college do not believe they have been hazed. While alcohol is a common hazing activity, there are also many others including:
• Morally degrading or humiliating activities, games or stunts
• Physical abuse
• Requiring of nudity
• Having a person run personal errands

Hazing cases that result in death occur each year. However, most students who experience hazing do not come forward and report it to their campus officials. This is partially out of fear of the consequences of their actions and because they do not realize they have been hazed. These activities occur more frequently in clubs, teams, and student organizations. Sometimes hazing occurs with a faculty member who is present or is actually engaging in the activities. TAMUT students can report hazing to the Office of Student Life at (903) 223-3116 or the Vice President of Student Affairs at (903) 223-3602.

For more information about hazing, visit the following links:
http://www.tamut.edu/Campus-Life/Student-Conduct/Hazing.html
http://www.uncw.edu/fsl/hazing/whatis.html

Ed Asner as FDR

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Bethany Solomon

On April 14, several A&M-Texarkana students had the opportunity to see legendary actor Ed Asner perform in a one-man-show as President Franklin Roosevelt in FDR at the Perot Theater in downtown Texarkana.

Ed Asner has been an actor for over 50 years, and holds many prestigious accomplishments. Most well-known for his role as Lou Grant, the scruffy boss on The Mary Tyler Moore Show which ran from 1970-1977, according to IMDB. Asner has been the recipient of 7 Emmy’s. After his run on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, he went on to the spin-off Lou Grant as the headlining character from 1977-1982.

In his performance in FDR, Asner portrayed the president who served our country during the Great Depression and World War II. The show approached such subjects as Roosevelt’s struggle with polio, his decision to run for president, the economic crisis during his time as president, and important executive decisions he made concerning the war.

Asner delivered an exceptional performance, winning him a standing ovation from the audience at the end of the show. The show lasted approximately an hour and a half, in which Asner had no breaks in lines or appearances on stage as he was the only performer in the production. At over 80 years old, he was well-spoken, clearly heard and understood by all in the audience, and had an energetic, dramatic, and vivacious approach in playing the legendary American president. He would make a performer of any age envious of his talents.

After the show ended, many A&M students in attendance had the chance to attend a meet-and-greet session with Asner himself. During the discussion, Asner talked with his private audience about where he was when he heard about the bombing of Pearl Harbor as well as the death of FDR, his roles and experiences in Hollywood, and his political beliefs. The A&M students and local V.I.P’s then had the opportunity to shake his hand, take pictures with him, and get his autograph.

Not only was Ed Asner an interesting character to meet, but students had the opportunity to interact with some local dignitaries who were part of the group discussion. Attending the play were WWII veterans, political activists. One man was part of Congress during the war, and actually remembered Roosevelt addressing them about entering the war after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. It was an incredible and educational experience for all.

It was an evening that no one will soon forget, for Asner was charming, comical, and intelligent and it was an honor to hear his opinions, memories, and expertise on acting in theater and television.