@SouthFloridaMom9 Maybe the punishment will help them re-think their worldview and recognize their words have consequences.
They aren’t being barred from college, they’re being barred from Harvard. And Harvard isn’t obligated to educate these kids, have their image associated with these kids, or make other students have contact with these kids.
I have a different interpretation.
I think what H is saying is that, 'we are offering you a wonderful opportunity and if you wish to leverage all that H has to offer, don’t be a knucklehead" (to borrowTQ’s term).
Or, how can smart kids be so stupid? https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/06/05/harvard-withdraws-10-acceptances-for-offensive-memes-in-private-chat/?utm_term=.1ddd4e2df254
Of course there is no ‘obligation’ on the part of Harvard.
I’d be surprised if this happens, at least with some of the students involved (I don’t know anything about it personally, just speculating).
There is a reason we have to political climate we do.
That being said, I’d love it if the students were introspective enough to look at what happened and why.
Those kids are idiots who lack the common sense to make it in today’s world. Schools today should offer a one-week mandatory course on social media.
From the WaPo article posted upthread:
“According to Kaplan Test Prep, which surveyed more than 350 college admissions officers, 35 percent of admissions officers said they check social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to learn more about applicants. About 42 percent of those officials said what they found had a negative impact on prospective students.”
I would speculate that stories like this will only increase that number in the future.
Good thing they don’t check 4Chan.
@reuynshard @TheAtlantic I never said evil people are entitled to a spot, nor did I say that no action should be taken, all I said was that rescinding acceptances was something that should not have been done (lighter punishments may be acceptable) as I saw it as invasion of privacy with the private chat and simply “dropping the hammer” without understanding the situation/humor.
You just know one of these clowns is going to go public by criticizing or suing Harvard, wrongly assuming he/she will imbue sympathy from the community.
4chan is anonymous - FB is not.
If I were a parent of one of these students, my conversation with them would be: You are free to say what you want. You are not free from the consequences of saying it. I am not going to save you from the stupidity of your actions. Welcome to adult accountability.
@crimsonmom2019 Lots of people would probably say that. But, for these kids, I’m guessing the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree as far as racism.
They were engaged in action unbecoming of Harvard students in a group that used the Harvard name. This is not the first nor will it be the last time where private messages can get you in trouble. People routinely get fired for “private” Facebook posts. Schools, employers, etc. do not want to be associated with any form of crassness or bigotry that negatively reflects on the school. There is nothing wrong with rescinding their admission, just as there is nothing wrong with firing an employee that does something similar.
I also take issue with something you said earlier. Meme groups are not totally “private” as they’re made up of hundreds of enrolled students, and there are no “rules of engagement”. College meme groups are not made to offend (as someone that is part of one). There is no assumption of extremely dark or inappropriate humor. It is in no way analogous to “going to a KKK meeting and not expecting racist language” and I’d advise you to retire use of that analogy.
You made the statement that Harvard should allow “KKK members” into institutions as long as they’re smart enough. And while I don’t think these students are “KKK members”, that kind of thinking is somewhat alarming. Being smart does not absolve your words from having consequences. Getting into Harvard was not something they “earned” but something they were “offered”, and offers can definitely be revoked. Nobody is entitled to an elite education.
@doschicos - the result of increased reviews by admissions folks will continue a migration away from universally popular sites. MySpace to Facebook to Instagram to Snapchat to Minds to who knows what…
Over the next few years, schools will catch those who dabble in stupidity, but don’t stand a chance against those who are truly bad people. Welcome to adulthood…where 3 seconds of stupid can cost you a lifetime of hard work.
“where 3 seconds of stupid can cost you a lifetime of hard work.”
I have a feeling all these students will go on to perfectly fine colleges and do just fine. Maybe even better from this experience if they learn something fruitful from it.
@EyeVeee :
I have a feeling most of these kids have been stupid for longer than three seconds.
Once again a good reason never to post on social media.
I applaud Harvard for taking swift and decisive action against these students. We all know that colleges, especially the elites, are looking to recruit future leaders who have integrity and high moral characters. That’s the point of the essays, right? So adcoms can get the students who are not just out to chase more facts and figures, but who have a higher purpose to be great contributers to society.
This reminds of the time I chaperoned a group of 8 yos on a field to trip to another elite university. While on campus, some students walked by, saw the group of noisy kids and said “I wish I could mess up all these kids and stuff them in my trunk”. Thankfully only me and one other parent overheard this. To this day every time I hear people speak in awe of this university and it’s “exceptional” students, I think back cynically to those foul mouthed guys. To be fair I know of many outstanding, good people who attended this univ, but it just takes a few bad apples to sour the punch.
@TheAtlantic I never called the people in the article KKK members, it was an analogy. And my analogy still stands and is applicable when some memes include comedy about killing oneself, destroying property, and other actions. No one is actually going to do it, but its for the comedy, and as such is analogous in the sense that both a meme page and a KKK meeting have “triggering” information that leftists like you find so offensive, and so a rule of engagement is that you dont get triggered and complain.
The memes were shared in PM’s (private messages) and as far as I can tell the only reason why the students were caught was that someone received a message they did not like and narked on them. It is unclear what “sent” means in this context (i.e. privately, on a page, to a mass message?) but to me that makes all the difference. Getting mad at someone for using awful language in a private conversation to me is an example of the invasion of privacy.
Finally, I do believe there are some entitled to an elite education. Harvard is responsible for bringing in the best of the minds intellectually, and not supply for social justice like many today want. I do not believe in safe spaces, and that if you do you have no place in modern academia. As such, even if you are a horrible person, but with properly exceptional grades and EC’s to Harvard’s standards, then you should receive an acceptance and not have it rescinded. The only time an acceptance should be rescinded in my mind is academic failure, as that is directly what the college has accepted you on. I do not believe character, background, race, or anything else besides academics, EC’s, and essays have a place in the application process.