When the University Judicial Board and President Turner agreedto expel Cornelius Smith, Brandon Perry-Russell, Ekbert Parker andByron Sanders, they began a thorny precedence on this campus.

These four students appeared at a series of hearings regardingthe charges of hazing and assault. Although the hearing records areconfidential and will never be available to the public, thisuniversity cannot continue to function within a shroud of secrecy.Students should always ask why and ask for more information fromour administrators.

So why then did these hearings only include the four abovestudents? Officials have said that they wanted to combine the fourhearings so there would be no hearsay. What about Braylon Curry andthe other student who was allegedly hazed that night?

If officials wanted to promote a neutral environment for thesestudents to have fair hearings, then they should have all beenbrought up together. If officials wanted to split the hearings,they should have either been done where each individual was triedseparately or at least grouped appropriately.

Since Smith and Perry-Russell are facing criminal charges, theyshould have been together. Then Parker and Sanders could have beenput together since they are not.

Officials have told students that the entire expulsion processso far is in accordance with policies outlined in the Student Codeof Conduct Handbook. So now students need to fight to change ourhandbook so administrators cannot be so secretive.

Senate and Student Affairs should set up another forum. Theaffirmative action forum, if it did not accomplish anything else,set up a venue for discussion. Everyone can agree that hazing is anepidemic, not only practiced by some members in the greek systembut also some in the athletics department.

Why is it that people allow others to abuse them? Is it to provethat they are tough and can survive? What is it? Why do people haveto show survival skills through physical pain?

Then maybe all of the above is just a naive look into whatshould be an ideal future. Maybe we should keep on condoninghazing. Because if we only punish a few of the parties involvedwith hazing and not everyone, then not even talk about hazing andits effects, we both consciously or unconsciously condonehazing.