Hard to believe that this happened, but apparently it did, and The Citadel's president says that his cadets have to be held to a higher standard. Read all about the incident here. (The Citadel beat Princeton 37-17 in a Division I-AA football game in South Carolina this past Saturday).
This isn't the first time the Princeton band has had trouble with a military academy. In the fall of 1981, officials at West Point banned the Princeton band from playing at Michie Stadium. It was Army's homecoming, and the Long Grey Line just didn't appreciate the whacky and sometimes warped sense of humor of the Princeton band. At the time, I thought that the decision was wrong, but, well, it's hard to beat Army on their home turf at many things.
At any rate, it would be convenient to say that those Cadets wouldn't have been able to muscle the Princeton band in Tigertown, but I'm not sure that's the case. The Cadets took issue with where the band marched, even though Citadel officials did not make any part of the campus off limits. They probably wouldn't have traveled to Princeton to watch the game, and, if they did, they probably wouldn't have gotten into a ruckus because what caused the ruckus is local to The Citadel. That said, I'd stack up the finest of Princeton's ROTC members against the finest Citadel cadets any day of the week.
The whole thing sounds unfortunate. The Princeton band members in all likelihood didn't know that where they were marching on the Citadel campus was going to strike a nerve in some, and some Citadel cadets lost their cool. But I do think that The Citadel president has it right, the cadets should have shown more judgment.
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13 comments:
Yeah, those Citadel cadets are real tough guys, going after BAND members, half of whom are women and the other half of whom wear pocket protectors.
Several Citadel cadets quoted in the media said that they attacked the band because they felt "disrespected." You don't get respect by attacking women and skinny guys in funny outfits. You have to earn it.
The cadets who physically intimidated the women in the band don't deserve the respect that they so desperately want.
I don't think that I could have said it any better. You're right on the mark.
Who wrote this? Princetons cadets vs. Citadel cadets? Please, somebody arrange it. Attacking women? Simply never happened. There were three incidents of physical confrontation with the band, all of them with male band members. Just because you post it on a blog does not make it true.
The snare drum was most certainly not a male
War is Hell...on clarinets....
To the questioning anonymous:
First,the post links to a newspaper article. That's the source of the report. So don't go on a riff about the inaccuracy of the blogosphere and don't miscast what I wrote.
Second, the post doesn't say that cadets were fighting cadets.
Third, you seem to imply that physical confrontation between male Citadel cadets and male Princeton band members is acceptable. Why? These are college kids, this isn't war, it's a band, the event was a football game, and the Citadel president called the conduct of his cadets into question.
Interesting take on the stituation. Here are my thoughts:
http://communicationconcerns.blogspot.com/
Oh boo fucking hoo, don't stand up for a band disrespecting people about to go overseas.
They talk shit? Back it up, and if you can't, accept the consequences.
Nowadays, sometimes people just need a good ass kicked to stfu.
Yes, violence is always the answer, and kicking the stuffing out of people who can't defend themselves is always a good solution. I have great respect for the military, but little tolerance for bullying and for the type of speech that you display in your comments. If you can't be civil, take your comments to a different blog that might be more welcoming to your preferred type of speech.
By all accounts, the Band was assaulted by knobs -- freshmen cadets. They are unlikely to be "about to go overseas." Moreover, while The Citadel bills itself as a military academy, only approximately 30% of its graduates actually enter the military.
Let's hope that the knobs involved do NOT join the military -- they certainly haven't shown the discipline necessary.
Lastly, spare us the self-righteous rage. This was a culture clash between college kids, not a referendum on the war against terror.
You did not describe what Princeton did that was disrespectful to Citadel. Elite Princeton "humor" is designed to demean and disrespect all that might be held dear to others. Looking down your nose at others can get it punched. Words and actions matter. Funny how you can do and say anything if you are a liberal.
Simple. Do not invite someone to your home then disrespect them by spitting on them and beating them up when they do what you always expected tham to do. Did Citadel officials not expect the band to do the SAME routine it ALWAYS does and has always done? It is interesting that one of the least diverse schools in the nation decided to steriotype one of the more diverse schools in the nation. I just wish the Princeton football players were around to defend their band, we might have had a different outcome.
"I just wish the Princeton football players were around to defend their band, we might have had a different outcome." Oh so they could get their ass whooped like they did on the field?
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