It's time to take responsibility for our actions and problems by recognizing and addressing them. That means all of us, and not only the two members of Delta Tau Delta fraternity who are suspected of being involved in taking items from the Theta Chi fraternity house.
We don't live in a vacuum, and we all must react in some way or another to this incident no matter our level of involvement. It could make everyone associated with greeks, college students or Ball State University look bad.
If guilty (as everyone is innocent until proven otherwise) men who were arrested need to examine their behavior. Somehow, their actions got them involved in this situation. If they broke the law, they must accept their punishments. If not, they need to examine how they got into the situation and how to avoid it. Either way, take responsibility.
This is the second major incident for Delta Tau Delta in a year. That doesn't mean it should be kicked off of campus - it needs to actively reform itself and its members so the problems stop. Discipline should be increased, restrictions placed and the fraternity's values followed. If members are not willing to take the steps to improve the fraternity's reputation and stop inappropriate behavior, it shouldn't exist. Respect yourselves and show it.
Pranks of "borrowing" flags, paddles and lawn statues and letters are all fun and games, until someone is caught. Guess what -ยก- two people were arrested. It's not so fun right now. Be a responsible community and lay off the fraternal wars for a while. Take the time to figure out, as a community, what pranks are appropriate (things that aren't illegal) and how they should be done, (tell people you have their stuff so the cops aren't called)
It's the perception, amount of communication and repetition that matters, Student Government Association Vice President Jamie Manuel said. "It's funny to get picked on once or twice, but when it happens over and over again that's when people are like 'that needs to stop.'"
Their men are students of Ball State and members of the national fraternity. The organizations are partly responsible for the men's behavior. Place additional adults in the house to monitor activities and provide advice. Rules and restrictions are "made to be broken," so don't rely on those. Find a way to mentor and improve wayward members.
And responsibility is required for the rest of us - the Ball State students, faculty, staff, Muncie residents, alumni, etc. Most of us have done our own fair share of pranking friends, so don't point fingers. Take responsibility for your opinions and sign your real name when writing comments on the Daily News Web Site (add to the conversation instead of bashing people). Find a way to make a change and help the situation.
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