I have long theorized that four years at Bowdoin, while building up our minds, erodes our sense of personal responsibility. The evidence is compelling. Whiny and entitled comment cards at the dining hall. Messes abandoned all over campus, left for the College to clean up. Complete lack of hygiene that results in housekeeper exploitation. Cars are being driven from the Coffin lot to Farley while the driver complains about the environment. Students attack our president for not giving enough foreign aid while spending hundreds (thousands?) of dollars every weekend on alcohol, of all things.
However, recent issues of the Orient have demonstrated that the problem is worse than I thought. First, we had a letter from an angry senior who argued that the school does not do enough to bring speakers to campus and/or sponsor trips into Boston. Since the premise of the argument was that great speakers were easily accessible in Boston, it makes me wonder why this concerned senior didn't just choose to do something about it himself instead of writing a letter to the Orient. Starting a club is easy to do. Asking for funds is easy to do. Organizing student-led trips is easy to do?ask the Outing Club. Maybe it would not work, but I would hope that these avenues would be explored before attacking the college in the Orient.
The Orient, in its own right, did a superb job sucker punching the Bowdoin Student Government before break. In an effort to revive the sensational headlines and articles composed by Hearst and Pulitzer, the Orient sarcastically announced, "'Difficult Semester' for BSG." Then we all went on break, confused and paranoid that the Orient would come after us next.
No one knew exactly where all the anger from the Orient towards the BSG came from, but it must have been seething for quite some time without action. The Orient conducted a hard-hitting survey (of 14 people?!?) and wrote "news" articles so slanted they could have passed for opinion pieces. The survey was especially ridiculous. I could write a ten-page paper on this subject. It was not only statistically irrelevant and biased, but revealed shockingly shoddy journalism. Investigations are ongoing about whether the Orient hired Dan Rather's research team for the article.
Most telling, however, was a quote from a student who complained about the BSG's effectiveness. He wanted more results. Although he knew he could attend any of the meetings, he had chosen not to.
This is precisely the problem that I believe is getting worse at Bowdoin. The Orient editors could easily go to the BSG meetings and help out. They could write to Haliday Douglas. Irritated students could do the same thing. However, these parties choose to wait until they can slam the organization for not doing enough for them.
Many students do not feel as though the College does enough for them. However, many of these students have yet to explore the resources and opportunities that we do have here. We are treated like kings and queens. Our meals are cooked, our messes are cleaned, we are deluged with resource centers. But too few of us appreciate what we have and invest ourselves in our collegiate experience.
I hate to brag, but we have the best dining hall in the country (screw Wheaton), some of the best living arrangements in the country (#10 in the Princeton Review), a large endowment, one of the best liberal arts libraries in the country, a fantastic museum right on campus, first-rate athletic resources, and an excellent alumni network. We are one of the best run schools in the country (#19 in the Princeton Review) and are ranked among the best colleges in the world. We live well (#15 in the Princeton Review) in a beautiful part of endlessly beautiful Maine, to boot. We are blessed.
Bowdoin is not a perfect place, but she is trying her best. The question is, are we students complaining, or are we taking it upon ourselves to leave Bowdoin better off than when we found it?