Re: Homosexuality at Rhodes
In response to Homosexuality at Rhodes
The first question that I feel obliged to ask is how, in God's name, have you made it to university? Did you bribe your way through primary and high school? I think that my 7 year old cousin could have written this piece better than you did. Not only that, I also think that she would have adopted a much more mature and humane opinion of homosexuality.
You come across as a complete old school homophobe. In case you hadn't noticed, gay and lesbian men and women are still PEOPLE. They have feelings, opinions, religious beliefs and morals just as straight people do. You refer to the fact that you suspect that some administrative staff and members of the SRC are homosexual. What the hell does this have to do with the price of eggs?
You need to wake up and smell the coffee. You are in serious need of a slap actually, and I'm surprised that with your attitude, you haven't been given one already. You cannot go around with these kinds of thoughts in your head, they are just not acceptable. I know that every person has a right to freedom of speech and thought and whatever else, but I think that in your case, the constitution should make an exception. I am disgusted by not what you have said, but the way in which you have put it across. Rhodes University has a reputation for being very liberal. If you don't like it, leave.
I hope for your sake that this opinion is merely something you made up in order to comply with the topic of the assignment.
Third Wheeling for Dummies
Curiosity is killing the Cat
The realities of a virtual presence begin sinking in after the honeymoon phase however. Being in a small high school made it that much easier to keep track of everyone, their relationship status and the dirty laundry that emerges. "Did you see their status on Facebook?", "I can't believe they broke up!" and "There was a picture of them looking cosy" soon becomes the talk of the town and if it's not at home in Knysna, it is on campus in Grahamstown.
Sure, you might get a million birthday wishes but of course everyone will remember when they can see it on their homepage! Despite mocking the pouty, make-up smothered girls on MySpace, I also became conscious about the "image" of my profile. Untagging photos of yourself may seem petty but then again why would you want unflattering pictures pasted on the web? Or people chatting to you when you simply want to browse the web in peace?
When I first started blogging I felt a bit overwhelmed by the possibilities of a highly critical audience when in actual fact Facebook is exactly the same. Are my not-so-friendly friends on Facebook judging me, my pimple and my crooked smile? Nasty profiles like "GossipGirl Rhodes" get started and accounts are hacked into. I also am not the hugest fan of what seem like cutesy "who can have the lamest status" competitions.
Be that as it may, I still religiously log onto Facebook in the mornings with a big cup of coffee. Maybe it makes me a hypocrite, I don't know. But I certainly agree with Sept that curiosity is killing the cat.
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Fashion at Rhodes
http://unofficialkaif.blogspot.com/2008/10/what-not-to-wear.html
I may originally be from Sandton but I am just about the furthest thing from a poppie. However, I frequently find myself looking around in lectures and feeling ridiculously overdressed. So as of late, I have been experimenting with ways to look more like an Absolut Rhodent. With my new found expertise I will dispense to you fashion advice of a new kind.
2. Bungee headbands will always be fashionable at Rhodes. Whether it's to keep the dreads out of your eyes or simply make a statement, it's a winner.
3. Skinny jeans in a vast array of colours make for a good investment. I'm not talking chic blacks and greys here - the brighter the better. Rips also add to the trendy stakes as do kooky badges of the emo variety. Rhodes is all about diversity so juxtapose bright colours with darker shades (which don't show up dirt, minimising washing to a monthly occasion) - bringing me to my next point.
4. If you are proud about your water conservation tactics, as many Rhodents are, wear your stains with confidence. The best is if you wear your top from the night before, complete with the beer stain you attained whilst being jostled in Friars.
5. Cut a mullet for Tri-Varsity and then leave it looking ming for the rest of the year. This is best achieved with peroxide (but not enough to make it white, the orange adds character.) A mohawk is less desirable than the Single Greatest Thing a Man Can Do, but is not to be scorned.
6. Leave your Guess bag at home, and opt for a moon bag instead. On this point, always carry a lighter. Asking if you have a light is a Rhodent's favourite pick up line.
7. Wear t-shirts that promote a cause - SHARC's "Spread the Word, Not the Virus" is a popular choice, as is "Vote for Pedro."
8. Wigs will always earn street cred, especially coupled with the cocky "swagger of college kid" that Gym Class Heroes sing about. JMS1 student Piet de Kock pulls this look off best, especially when his chest hair matched his wig. After the wax though, I'm not too sure whether the same rockstar result will be achieved.
9. Ugg boots exude that "just don't care" attitude a lot of Rhodents appreciate. They are best complemented with scruffy tracksuit pants that are one size too big: ideal for an ever expanding first year waist line.
10. One of my favourite looks includes a pillow crease on the cheek and can be emphasised by running in late to a 2nd period lecture.
11. Permanent marker is a goodie because of its uhm, permanence. Write all over people's backs when they are out because it has a longer lasting effect than a reachable area. Without the confidence to pull it off, the look is lost. I myself have had to ask a (close) friend to scrub my back, ridden with insecurities of being judged. I have sinced realised that the greatest gift at Rhodes is not to judge or be judged in return.
12. Piercings and tattoos add spice to any look. Bored in swot week, I got a second hole in my ears and let me tell you it's awesome. It's the ultimate paradox of being a non-conformist while conforming to a trend.
And there you have it! Tips and trends to make you cooler than cool - you'll need it in the Grahamstown summer :)
Posted by Megs
JMS1 Blogging: Reflexive piece
Productivity is determined largely on how busy you are with other work. If I had to study for a Legal Theory test, I would avoid my blog like dining hall meat. The thing with blogging is the more you do it, the more you want to do it. If you receive positive feedback, you feel recognition from what is an otherwise anonymous audience. If the comments are negative, you want to clarify your point of view, re-iterate your post and counter their argument e.g.“Beit is the best girls residence on campus!”
I think I lot of story ideas are generated from other blogs, particularly when your blog is narrative-orientated. I was inspired by provocative bloggers like General Futch who declared “This is my opinion and I make no apologies for it.”
In my opinion, by constructing our first-year oriented blog within a narrative genre we restricted ourselves from posting entries about what was happening in Grahamstown. With no real experience to write about them, I chose rather to leave things unsaid.
I must admit I sometimes felt frustrated at my group’s attitude towards experimenting with the medium. The only way to learn how to better your blog with edited photos, widgets and xml coding is to test it out. No one is good at blogging! People become good at it and even when you think you are good you can improve. I think the technological aspect is scary because with every other task everyone was more than happy to contribute. We resolved the problems of diverging from our chosen genre by brainstorming what we could blog about (long distance relationships, drug abuse, language barriers etc). In terms of personal growth I think my growth was just that – personal. Unfortunately, no amount of Alette whizzing a cursor around a vast screen at Eden Grove could teach us the intricacies of blogging. You can only really develop your skills in front of your computer screen. I would give myself an eight out of ten for development but most of it was technical more than anything else. I think particularly writing for a first year audience lulled you into a false sense of comfort - you felt you knew exactly what you were talking about and needed to draw from nothing other than your own experiences.
Being confined to a genre changed the experience of reporting because you constantly have to ask yourself what is relevant to your audience and your theme. The restrictions make it easier to a certain extent because you already know what kind of an angle your pieces will take. I think the types of posts we were instructed to produce were helpful because they added to this direction. It enabled us to try out that kind of post whether it be opinion-based or focused on a particular person. The encouragement to produce additional posts meant that we could apply what we had learnt with more freedom. I would not say that I tried out a lot of different writing techniques however. Instead, I developed a level of comfortable expressing myself within the mould laid out by genre.
I certainly feel that blogging can be journalism. It can convey news events with their corresponding news values and often the personal approach taken is more appealing. There is no difference in power between the consumer and the producer: it is produced by someone with no more than a computer and an internet connection. Blogs are readily accessible (especially using sites such as Amatomu) and it is easy to select exactly what you want to read. If you want a satirical approach you can get one – with a click - and I think this makes it a particularly satisfying form of journalism.
The JMS 1 2008 theme of surviving first year was powerful in that we could relate so strongly to it. Everyone’s experiences of first year are relevant as we are neither the first nor the last to experience them (much like a Smuts boy). I think a major weakness is the lack of engagement it condoned. Entirely within my comfort zone I sat blogging in bed - sipping on Rooibos tea and oblivious to the world and its events. The life of a student in Grahamstown, however unfortunate it may seem, is isolated to a large extent. With a campus that engulfs a lot of the town, events at Rhodes seem of disproportionate importance given their lack of context. Maybe our blog was an accurate reflection of that.
Very little research was done in light of the close proximity between our lives and the topic. I think this was self-evident because posts were often followed by a flurry of comments given the author had written from a narrow-minded point of view. When sources were included though, I felt uneasy revealing anything unflattering and in retrospect, I think this resulted in an artificial rosy-tinge. What surprised me was that questioning someone was awkward no matter how well you knew the person. Instead of the sources being wary to answer I found myself being wary to ask.Overly concerned with ethics given the possible vast audience, I questioned if it was not hard-hitting journalism we were aiming for then why should feelings be hurt? Can you, for example, say that someone is a virgin, or occasionally smokes marijuana - or is that revealed in confidentiality? I still feel as though these issues remain unsolved and the uneasiness left me thinking “rather be safe than sorry.” One of my friends was however, upset when his monthly income was revealed on someone’s profile of him and another disagreed with dismantling someone else’s opinion.
Overall, I feel as though blogging is an underrated medium. It has uncapped potential which can be freely released only by an astute and enthusiastic author – any takers?
Posted by Megs
| I |
s it ok if I speak my language Sir?
Caught between learning the language and speaking yours is just an addition to academic load. From all corners of South Africa students come with their different languages but those languages will just have to wait for a minute and lets speak English now. Even history says that African languages were proved not to be good enough for education or to formulate academic concepts, so hey! tell me were is that mother tongue of yours going to take you Ha!?. In high school my teacher always encouraged us to speak English in class although we would mumble just to avoid being kicked out. Another old Rhodian once said “what am I going to do with my language were is it going to take me”?. Parents back at home would be so proud to hear their son or daughter speaking English and would encourage him to do so.
In Most South African Universities English stands as the medium of instruction, now is it ok for me to speak my Zulu, Sotho or Xhosa or should I speak English on campus, and hey! guys If you are coming to university next year I suggest you polish your English or bring a translator if you have one. Naledi Pandor in her visit to Rhodes recently this year said, quoted in the Oppidan Press edition 8,3 September 2008 p 3 that “ language is deeply connected with identity” and does this mean that I am going to loose my identity?. She also explained how non English speakers are at a disadvantage of learning in a language that is not their mother tongue.
Positively though that Rhodes university has an African languages section and won an award previously this year in it’s efforts for promoting multilingualism. Negatively however that many institution have objected to the proposal of teaching one of South Africa’s eleven languages. I believe that in a society that wants to develop it is crucial that different languages are recognised and people are encouraged to speak and understand one another’s languages. This is very important at tertiary level and a person does not necessarily have to do a course in Xhosa, Zulu or Afrikaans but at least should make the effort of learning any of the languages. It would be very exciting to have such a society and everyone would feel free to speak in their own language. So guys let us celebrate our different languages and let one feel free to speak in his or her own language.
Re: Homosexuality at Rhodes
In response to “Homosexuality at Rhodes”
http://outtaurspace.blogspot.com/2008/10/homosexuality-at-rhodes.html
I hardly agree with your statement that straight people are forgotten on Rhodes campus. Societies like OUTRhodes aim to promote acceptance for homosexuality, not to ostracize straight people.
While university is a place to grow and develop your character, I do not think that the new found freedom coupled with how liberal Grahamstown youth tend to be would “corrupt poor first years.” As a first year you may be impressionable but you make it out to be like we are putty, or princesses to borrow terminology from Propp, in the overzealous hands of senior students.
Sexuality is a personal choice and personally I have never fell “victim” to this so-called fashionable trend. Rhodes and its societies allow you to be yourself and find a niche that you often couldn’t at school. Gay people are simply embracing the homosexual community which they may never have found themselves in before, and so come out the closet if they are not already openly gay.
Lastly, as a member of SHARC I can vouch for how actively it promotes HIV/Aids testing and awareness. It is the largest society on campus and from t-shirts to marches to workshops, its presence is undeniable and year-round.
Posted by Megs
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