Swim Out Past the Breakers, Watch the World Die

Congratulations to Mr. Danny Scott, my dad, for correctly naming "House of the Rising Sun" by the Animals as the Monday Song of the Day.

The NYT recently had a very interesting story about a push from a group of Cornell alumni who are seeking to enhance the image of their school through the promotion of more traditional Ivy League apparel and memorabilia.

There is nothing wrong with the idea of promoting one's alma mater and seeking to enhance its image, but there is one quote in the story that I find incredibly troubling and pitiful.

"Their fear is being viewed as a country cousin to Harvard, Yale and Princeton, more like a Midwestern flagship state university than a core member of a prestigious club. "Because of when most people go to college, their identity becomes closely associated with the identity of their university," said Peter Cohl, a committee founder who graduated last spring and is now working on Madison Avenue. Let the college's standing drop in publications that rank universities, he said, and "my value as a human being feels like it's dropping.'"

Peter, come on buddy. Your alma mater was recently ranked 13th nationally by U.S. News and World Report and you have something to complain about? What about somebody who attends South Central South Dakota State University? Is their value as a human being any lower than yours because they did not attend Hahvahd, Yale, or Princeton?

How about you learn to find your innate human worth or value in something really meaningful like your favorite NASCAR driver, band, or talk show host? Trust me, that's where the answers lie.