‘You guys made the cyber world look like the north German plain’
The pundits have called it a superweapon, a guided missile, and the herald of a new age in warfare. It’s a computer worm called Stuxnet... and they’re right.
The market for questions
In 1997 the Kyoto Protocol became the first major international treaty, (although not quite completely international) to feature a cap and trade scheme. Yet the idea to extend cap and trade schemes to individuals has not been taken up widely. Ed Miliband, Britain’s new leader of the opposition, proposed a radical idea to introduce individual credits to pollute when he was head of the Department of Energy and Climate Change, but his idea has largely been ignored. Now, more than ever, MIT needs to set an example of radical policy by introducing a permit to ask questions.
The danger when renovations run late
Over the summer, MacGregor was extensively renovated, which is a good thing. It means that we can now turn our heat up or down, the shower feels like a firehose, and there’s no more asbestos killing us as we sleep. MIT also installed a completely new fire alarm system. And although the voice that tells us to evacuate the building is terribly annoying, I can forgive that small deficiency since it might save my life. But there is another problem that is a bit more troubling.
Letters to the Editor
As a Financial Systems Manager at Harvard University, whose son is an active member of Phi Beta Epsilon, one of my highest priorities is data security. Hacking into a system and stealing files is regarded as a serious offense. MIT has chosen to interpret certain benign pledge rituals at PBE as hazing while completely ignoring the fact that the basis of the charge stems from a hacked computer file.
Caught in a death spiral
When the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the moniker that D.C’s word doctors chose for the health care reform bill) was debated in Congress, many of its proponents described the main components of the bill — an individual insurance mandate, guaranteed issue provisions that prevent exclusion based on pre-existing conditions, and subsidies for poorer citizens — as a three-legged stool. Remove just one of the legs, they explained to colleagues looking to reduce the scope of reform, and the whole thing would fall down.
The Cambridge hazing trials
Between Febuary 1692 and May 1693 in Salem Village, Massachusetts, twenty nine men and women were tried and convicted of witchcraft. Salem Village had a “zero tolerance” policy for witchcraft, which was at the time a capital felony. Nineteen of the convicted witches went to the gallows. A twentieth man was crushed to death during attempts to draw out a confession. Luckily, the right lessons were learned, and the state of Massachusetts was never again the host of such a gross miscarriage of justice. That is until, September 2010. I welcome you, ladies and gentlemen, to the first case of the Cambridge Hazing Trials. And sadly, it might not be the last.
Your move, PBE
Phi Beta Epsilon can resolve the debate over their expulsion from the Interfraternity Council and whether their actions constitute hazing by releasing the document detailing the incident in question to public review. This document, describing membership education activities for the pledge class of 2013, is the key piece of evidence in determining whether PBE’s activities qualify as hazing.
The view from Phi Beta Epsilon
At the beginning of this year’s Rush Week, an anonymous party provided the IFC Judicial Committee (JudComm) with circumstantial evidence stolen from our fraternity house of a violation of the IFC Risk Management policies connected with Phi Beta Epsilon’s 2010 initiation last January. Although the 60 day statute of limitations on JudComm complaints had long since passed since the alleged violation took place, and even though this complaint was apparently intentionally released at a moment when it would do maximum damage to the fraternity, a hearing was held.
The IFC wields its power reasonably and responsibly
David Templeton asserted in Monday’s Tech that fraternities’ self-governance through the IFC is actually hurting fraternities. He argues that out of a desire to protect that self-governance the IFC is exceedingly harsh to members that violate its rules resulting in the IFC self-governance doing more harm than good. I find his assertions false on two grounds, first because in most cases the IFC is not exceedingly harsh and second because self-governance is an extremely important part of fraternity life.
IFC clears up the facts about PBE’s hazing expulsion
Since the conclusion of the Phi Beta Epsilon (PBE) judicial process, we have heard many concerns regarding the procedures used by the Interfraternity Council (IFC). It greatly surprises us that members of our community are worried by a process that was agreed upon by every one of the member fraternities of the IFC, but we do take these concerns seriously and want to do our best to allay them.
Is the IFC good for fraternities?
As a self-professed and widely-known “dorm advocate,” it is in my best interest for MIT to have a thriving fraternity community. For one, having almost half of MIT’s men move out makes the gender ratio in the dorms much more favorable. But in all seriousness, everyone wants to live with other people who want to live with them, and the more living options available, the more likely everyone is to find the niche that makes them happy.
Letters to the Editor
I am a Phi Bete. I have been a member since that warm Labor Day weekend in 1971, when two words, “I pledge” brought the ringing of a chime and an unexpected sea of hands all clambering to shake mine in welcome. It is among the most memorable moments my life, when an awkward, somewhat nerdy freshman was overwhelmed with an outpouring of genuine, unconditional friendship and acceptance. I knew I had become part of something unique and good but could not imagine how this fraternity would so profoundly influence what I would become in life.
Letters to the Editor
<i>Editor’s note: These letters were addressed to MIT President Susan Hockfield and sent to </i>The Tech.
When charity feels like a ripoff
Half an hour waiting in a long, snaking queue, or a “line,” according to the jargon over here. There’s room inside and no hold up for checking identification. It’s close to eleven at night and not cold outside, so we’re not complaining, but we’re thinking we should already be on the dance-floor. “What’s the hold up?” I ask a doorman walking outside along the queue, thanking us for our patience.
The value of involvement
Last semester in these pages, I implored the student body to participate in, or at least care about, student government. In the wake of last week’s Undergraduate Association election results, it’s again time to talk about the worth of the UA and student government in general. Freshmen may still be unfamiliar with the workings of the various student policy-making organizations — the UA, Dormitory Council, the Interfraternity Council — just to name a few, but that’s all the more reason why new MIT students should start this year with an open mind about student government.