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Alison Spurgeon

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Posted Wednesday, Aug. 18, 1999, at 7:19 PM ET

I have come to realize the true power of a sorority. Today, I actually got a break from what I would now like to refer to as "rush hell" and decided to catch up with some current events. I noticed that Elizabeth Dole, a former sorority girl, has been in the news for the Iowa straw polls. She took third place and I really believe that the power of the sorority system had something to do with it--some 600 former sorority girls came out to support her and her causes. I mean I don't think that she fits the typical "sorority girl" image--girls with big boobs, wasp-nest hair, and tons of makeup--if anything she fits the anti-Greek image, with her conservative hemlines, dire ambition, and no desire for legacies--i.e., children (they would be considered legacies in houses because their mothers or sisters were affiliated with the same house and are given special consideration during rush). Sororities also provide another power for girls in our house: job contacts and information. When I graduate, I can send my résumé to my sorority's national headquarters and they can pass it on to an alumni member that might be in the same field that I am interested in. (Talk about the ultimate network!)

At times I feel that there are also many downfalls to being in a house. For example, tonight we had to discuss many rushees in detail, and I can say right now that there are members in my house that I absolutely can't stand! For example, there is a girl in my house that absolutely hates an incoming rushee for the stupidest reason--she said that she was mean to her at work. Well, let me just tell you about this rushee--I rushed her today and absolutely loved her, I mean who wouldn't love a girl that is trilingual and got her name from a palace in France where her parents fell in love (plus 50 other girls in my house love her, too!). Let me just give you the scoop on the girl in my house who hates her--she is banned from five fraternities because she has had sex with a lot of their members (too bad for her she didn't receive a toaster)! I also had another problem tonight with a roommate of mine who just happens to be a pathological liar. She wanted to discuss this rushee who supposedly "stole her ex-boyfriend." First of all, I have lived with my roommate for a year now while she dated her ex, and I have never heard of this "boyfriend stealing rushee" before. So, basically this rushee, who is really good friends with a girl in our house, got dropped and is not coming back tomorrow because of my roommate's insecurities.

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This aspect of sorority life makes me wonder why I even joined a house. I guess at first most girls (myself included) are drawn to the rush process because of the promise of being part of something sacred and special and to be able to meet new people (boys included). I can't tell you how sick I am of the pettiness and insecurities that girls in my house have against these "threatening" freshmen. Right now, I would rather be anywhere but here. "Calgon take me away!"

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Posted Wednesday, Aug. 18, 1999, at 7:19 PM ET
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Alison Spurgeon is a senior at a large Midwestern university and is desperately looking for a job.
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