By now most of you probably heard this story. The story about the Brigham Young University basketball player who was suspended for the rest of the season by the university.
Yup, Brandon Davies was suspended for having pre-marital sex with his girlfriend. To mostly everyone who lives on this planet, that action doesn’t even seem like an offense in the least bit.
HOWEVER, upon enrolling at the very Mormon BYU, every single student knows the rules, and this “honor code” they must follow:
• Be honest
• Live a chaste and virtuous life
• Obey the law and all campus policies
• Use clean language
• Respect others
• Abstain from alcoholic beverages, tobacco, tea, coffee and substance abuse
• Participate regularly in church services
• Observe the Dress and Grooming Standards
• Encourage others in their commitment to comply with the Honor Code
Honesty, respecting others, living a virtuous life, and obeying the law all seem like fine ideas, but I must admit, everything else on this list is pretty unreasonable in varying degrees. In fact, the rest of this honor code is — dare I say stupid?
In this p.c. hyper-sensitive society we’ve become, we’re all afraid to criticize religion, in fear of being labeled intolerant or even as someone who’s prejudice. But being afraid to make fun of, or criticize religion I believe is counterproductive to becoming a more progressive society —- a society that promotes both humor, and intelligent dialogue.
While I can respect BYU for treating a basketball player like any other student who violated a university policy, I also think they are nuts for having this ridiculous honor code in the first place.
Anyway, I thought the whole point of college was sex, drinking, smoking, cursing, and dressing like a slob.
I thought the point of college was to become more liberal and to denounce whatever religion in which you were raised. I thought the point was to come home during that first winter break freshman year, and proclaim to your parents you’re now an atheist — of course mostly to just upset them.
Tags: atheist, basketball, brandon davies, brigham young university, byu, honor code, Mormon, pre-marital sex, suspended
