Letters to the Editor

Eating clubs give alumni a continued sense of belonging

Regarding 'Valuing the eating club system' (Thursday, Sept. 22):

I have never understood why our eating clubs — in plain sight and open to all who want to join the system — have generated charges of elitism and of hurting admissions when Harvard and Yale are known to have completely secret societies that are hardly egalitarian institutions. I think the point that the University's longstanding attitude toward the clubs has created the negativity is right on the money.

From an alumni perspective, the sad thing is that the University does not realize the importance of the clubs to its longterm health and prosperity. Just this week, an alum of my club told me that Charter has been his touchstone with the University since graduating 29 years ago. When I go with my husband to his alma mater, he and his friends wander around aimlessly, not belonging anywhere. When Princetonians return to campus, their clubs welcome them. They are our homes at Princeton and, for many of us, the scene of some of our happiest college memories. They are places we are guaranteed to see our old friends before football games or after the P-Rade. The clubs are an essential part of what makes Princeton alumni so loyal. It's a shame the University doesn't get that. Carol C. Cronheim '86 Chair, Princeton Charter Club

Rice inappropriate choice for speaker

Regarding 'Rice to speak Sept. 30' (Tuesday, Sept. 20):

As a member of the student body in the Wilson School, I would like to express my unease that Secretary Rice should be invited as a keynote speaker to celebrate our 75th anniversary. It is a great honor to have the sitting Secretary of State speak, but surely this occasion called for a more appropriate speaker.

As a public policy school, we should welcome and embrace a diversity of political views. Indeed, this is one of our strongest guiding principles. But, it seems to me that the policies of Rice and this administration sit uneasily with what is — at some fundamental level — a celebration of Wilsonianism. Indeed, whether it is in the application of a doctrine of "preemptive" self-defense or in the appointment of John Bolton to the United Nations, it is only too easy to find evidence of a complete opposition to Wilsonianism running right through to the core of this administration's policy.

Surely Wilson, the pioneer of American multilateralism, would be unhappy to share a platform with the world views that Rice represents. Conor Healy Wilson School lecturer

Cannon Club myth and Shields unconnected

Regarding 'Princeton Legends' (Thursday, Sept. 22):

It's easy enough to debunk at least one of the "Princeton Legends" mentioned in your article: Cannon Club closed long before Brooke Shields '87 arrived at Princeton.

I suppose Ms. Shields might have swung from the chandelier at the Office of Population Research, but it's not the same ... Ira Matetsky '84