Editor's Note (9/22/09)

Story by Carson Vaughan 

| Published Sep 22, 2009

Mmmm. Can you smell it? I’m baking Homecoming cookies—I always do. I must admit I’ve fallen a bit out of practice on my Homecoming carols, but I’ve still a few hours before the family arrives. I should have plenty of time to polish up my “Dear Old Nebraska U” and wrap all my Homecoming gifts before the holiday rush sweeps me away. I told the little ones they could open one present each before they coronate the King and Queen!

Happy Homecoming, readers! I hope this note finds you doing very well, indeed. As you could probably tell, Homecoming season makes me a bit restless. There’s always so much to do and so much to see. From drunkenly erected $10,000 Greek house lawn displays to giving blood for all the wrong reasons, Homecoming truly is the season of vanity, waste and philanthropy exploitation!

Nothing rubs me the wrong way like a Homecoming Scrooge; you know, the kind that attends the Homecoming blood drive out of real humanitarianism rather than fraternity house obligation, the kind that paints a banner for “school spirit” instead of social inebriation.

I don’t mean to dampen the holiday cheer, but I think it’s important that we not forget the real meaning of Homecoming, which is……um….it’s uh…..[searches Wikipedia] “the tradition of welcoming back former residents and alumni of an institution.” That’s right! We must not lose sight of the fact that we celebrate Homecoming in honor of those students who walked across the stage before us. And we do so by showing our school spirit, an homage to the fine University that ushered those successful alumni into the world at large. And we show our school spirit the only way we know how, through binge drinking, reckless disregard for needless consumption and organizational jingoism of the pettiest kind.

For those of you unfamiliar or unassociated with Homecoming week at UNL, let me break it down. Every recognized student organization on campus, especially the Greeks, competes throughout the week in a number of activities to earn points. If you give blood you earn points for your organization. You also help save a life, but that’s beside the point. If you appear at the Homecoming concert, you earn points. If you attend the parade, you get points. If you construct the best lawn display on campus, your organization is recognized on Husker Vision at the Homecoming football game.

Some believe that a Greek house with $10K to spare should donate it to a local philanthropy, but they don’t understand the spirit of Homecoming. Some believe pomping chicken wire with thousands of squared feet of dyed tissue paper that will litter the streets by the week’s end is wasteful. They don’t get it either. Some believe that getting involved should happen more than once a year. Some believe that a university tradition could be honored without misplaced priorities and misguided efforts. Pshaw!

So this year, don’t forget the true meaning of Homecoming. Grab a beer, waste some paper and squander thousands.

Respectfully-er,
Carson Vaughan
Editor-In-Chief
DailyER Nebraskan