New York Times Investigation Reveals Sororities Cliqueish and Shallow

Via the New York Times, we are shocked-- SHOCKED to learn that sororities may be choosy [may req. registration] about their members, even on such grounds as appearance or weight.

The 23 members [asked to leave] included every woman who was overweight. They also included the only black, Korean and Vietnamese members. The dozen students allowed to stay were slender and popular with fraternity men — conventionally pretty women the sorority hoped could attract new recruits. Six of the 12 were so infuriated they quit.

If this were an Onion article, I'd be laughing harder. As an occasional observer of the national "scene", I do have to wonder, why is this news? Apparently, a large number of news organizations believe that the discovery that a college sorority may engage in such behavior is in fact, big news. I first read this story on the-- I hesitate to say it-- front page of the Seattle Times. Yes, it was below the fold, but the front page, nonetheless. It must have been a dismally slow news day when the reporter penned this one.