=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = F.U.C.K. - Fucked Up College Kids - Born Jan. 24th, 1993 - F.U.C.K. = =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= BED BUGS -------- One thing good about going to college is you get to make a lot of choices. My fourth year I made a choice to question authority. In otherwords, I told the Division of Housing I was not going to obey one of their rules. Fall 1991-- I had about had it with dorm life especially after getting stuck with another roommate I had problems getting along with. I wanted out. I did what I could to exit on-campus housing but was denied-- I signed a one year contract agreement and they didn't intend to break this contract. After much grief I accepted my fate and for the Spring semester I transferred to another dorm room within the same complex. It was my decision to do anything and everything in my power to make life more comfortable within my 8x6' cell even it if meant breaking the Division of Housing's rules. INCIDENT REPORT MEMORANDUM--JANUARY 13, 1992 Nature of incident-disciplinary. Witnessed Incident-yes. Individuals involved and witnesses listed. [Unrelated sections deleted and only first names used] During Fire Safety Inspection for new residents on 1-9-92 at approximately 5:45pm, I, R.A. Paul, observed that the individual involved, Daniel, had removed the bed-frame from his bed in house 5-103C of the New Facilities. This was also observed by R.A. Pam, who was accompanying me on my inspections. I notified him of this violation (9.24) both verbally and written with an inspection form. I informed Daniel that he must immediately replace the bed to it's normal condition to come in compliance with university regulations. He expressed discontent with the policy (9.24) but agreed to comply. I told Daniel that I would return in a few days-week to check. On 1-12-92 I, RA, Paul returned to see if Daniel had put the bed frame and bed back together. He stated that he hadn't. Daniel asked me of the consequences for not complying and I stated it was up to the conduct board and that my function was to report the happenings. I asked Daniel if he intended to comply and he said no. I signed and received a copy of this Memorandum on 1/14/92. CONFIDENTIAL LETTER--FEBRUARY 26, 1992 >From the Division of Housing came an "Accused Memorandum" reminding me of my upcoming Conduct Board Disciplinary Hearing. You have been referred to the Residence Hall Conduct Board because of your alleged involvement in a violation(s) of Housing or University policy, which occurred on 01/09/92 in 38-103C New Fac. It is alleged that you violated the Code of Student Conduct: 9.5 -- Failure to Comply 9.6 -- Furniture Your hearing is scheduled for 03/02/92 at 5:45PM, and will be held in the Weaver Hall Board Room. Enclosed you will find a pamphlet describing the proceedings, and a map displaying the location of the Board Room. It is important that this matter be resolved promptly. As such, failure to respond to this request could result in cancellation of your registration and/or a referral to the Director of Student Judicial Affairs. [Some stuff deleted] THE HEARING Waiting in a room before my "hearing" I ran into some people who committed a serious offense--drinking. I knew one of the guys and told him what I did--what a joke we both agreed. I'm sure some worthy hearings take place in the Weaver Room but today the bullshit was pretty thick. I was listening to the Rollins Band "The End of Silence" quite a bit during these trying times. In fact I wanted to read the lyrics of "Grip" to the conduct board but I doubt they could have understood or related to something like: "See me-Put yourself in my place, Be me-Put your eyes in my face, Maybe then you'll see why this place terrifies me, And why I've got to get myself away, So hard to deal with the ones who can't feel." I couldn't bring myself to read Rollins "Grip" but I did read a couple page write-up before the board. SPEAK CLEARLY AND DON'T BE NERVOUS I spewed out my guts about previous living conditions, roommates, space restrictions--how my stuff fit better with the bed disassembled, comfort, how I applied for off campus housing and was turned down, and about how crummy I felt I was being treated [all detailed in the appeal below]. I wanted to keep the bed disassembled and I did everything I could to make them understand. HOW DO YOU PLEAD I plead guilty to the Failure to Comply violation and not guilty to the furniture violation. After about ten minutes of questions about rules and why I should be allowed to break the rules I was asked to step out of the room while the "jury of my peers" made a decision. When I re-entered the room the decision was made. They found me GUILTY on both counts. My sentence include a bunch of bullshit including conduct probation until I graduated. They tried to explain their decision to me but I couldn't relate to it much like they couldn't relate to my situation. I left pissed off and wondered why the hell I fought so hard instead of taking the easy (and smart) way out--why didn't I comply and just take apart my bed after fire inspections. What a bunch of shit I kept thinking. MY APPEAL FOR A LIGHTER SENTENCE I had the ability to appeal so I did such with the following letter: Dear Madam or Sir: On March 2, 1992 I spoke in front of the Residence Hall Conduct Board about two "violations" I committed on January 9, 1992. They were: #9.5 Failure to comply #9.24 Furniture Both of these come from the 1991-1992 Rules and Regulations handout given to students at the beginning of the semester. Below I discuss the course of events that led to my facing the Residence Hall Conduct Board. I am appealing their decision on March 2, 1992. My situation is as follows: In the Fall of 1991 I became a resident of the New Residence Facility. During the time I was moving in my possessions, I inquired about reconstructing a loft in the New Facility that I had used the previous semester at Beaty Towers. To my dismay I found that lofts were not permitted in the New Facility. It was actually put to me like this, "if you want to build a loft you can transfer to another dorm." The response to my polite question was rather rude however the message was clear. The New Facility does not allow loft building because it is new and building a loft would cause undue wear and tear on the walls. This seems like a good reason but it was my first clue that the New Facility was more concerned with appearance than the comfort of its residence. Where as Beaty Towers does allow building lofts and the condition of the walls is quite good, especially since the lofts are not allowed to be anchored to the wall-a design constraint I took into account when building the loft at Beaty. Having accepted the unusual policy of forbidding lofts, I found myself short of adequate space. I then disassembled the bed frame- a trivial task that had never before merited questions. My roommate also did the same. Our reasons for doing this were: 1) Easier to get to sleep on 2) Better for the back 3) Less "springy" noise 4) More space 5) There is a convenient storage room 6) There is no wear-and-tear on the disassembled bed 7) These beds were made to be disassembled without tools. The Resident Assistant, having seen the disassembled bed various times, never complained. Throughout the semester other problems arose. First and foremost, noise caused by one of my roommates as well as noise generated by the showers, parking, and field caused difficulties in studying and sleeping. Other problems consisted of excessive bugs, humming lights, and echoing of sound in rooms. It was a depressing situation. I spent many hours frustrated by my "New Facility" environment. This may seem silly, but it is really hard to concentrate on work when there are all these things constantly bothering me. I tried to block them out but there was no escape. So, I did the only think I could--I petitioned to be released from my Housing contract. My roommate joined me on this decision. We both figured we would be released--if not for the above reasons, then at least because there was a waiting list to enter the New Facility. Adding to my depression was the denial of release. We tried to appeal, however, our response arrived only a week before the rent deadline and the person we had to appeal through was on vacation until after the deadline. We asked if we could appeal to someone else for release but were told no. My R.A. said that since we could not be released from housing an effort would be made to lessen our difficulties. His exact words were something like, "We'll make every effort to accommodate you here." That sounded good and things started looking better. However, as I found out the words held no value. To get away from the field noise and other complications in that room I moved to another house--in which I later was placed with a smoking roommate. Before moving, I reassembled the bed I had disassembled earlier in the semester. At the time my room options were limited, but I found an opening where I now reside. Seeing that there were no problems in the previous room I disassembled the bed in my new room also. Unfortunately, my new R.A. viewed this as a violation. He asked me to re-assemble it. He didn't ask why I disassembled it or give me a chance to explain. He was of the opinion that, "These are the rules and this is what you have to do." His lack of compassion upset me and so I refused to re- assemble it. After a long delay my hearing came up. During the hearing I discussed my reasons for disassembling the bed in front of the board--basically what I have written above. When I completed with the "why" part the board asked various questions. Questions such as "Why do you think we have rules, why do you think you are different, what if everybody modified the rules like you have done, and what if an `unskilled' person disassembled the bed and it was rickety?" My complaint is that the board never saw things from my point of view. They dwelled on their view that "rules are rules" and they are not meant to be broken. However, there was not any discussion on my comfort. It seemed as though they don't really care about how I felt. They didn't really listen to my reasons for disassembling the bed. It is my wish that things can be seen from my point of view and belief that rules are governing principals that fail to correctly apply in all situations. In this case it would be nice to think that my happiness and comfort would prevail over the rules written to preserve the furniture. Actually, having the bed disassembled for a full semester causes less stress on it than daily wear-and-tear and these beds were made to be disassembled--a process that could not possibly weaken the beds. I have never had any desire to break rules for the sake of breaking them. My unblemished school conduct record since kindergarten is evidence of this. Also, I have never been arrested or gotten a speeding ticket. On that note I feel the punishment is rather sever considering that I'm only standing up for what I believe is right. Please reconsider the decision. THE VERDICT--AFTER APPEALING The following letter arrived a few weeks after my hearing. It was dated March 19, 1992. After appearing before the Residence Hall Conduct Board for a hearing of your alleged violation of Student Conduct Code, and appealing with the Assistant Dean for Judicial Affairs, you were found to have been responsible for failure to comply and violating furniture policy on January 12, 1992. As a result, you have been found responsible for violating Section(s) V.A. 9.5 and 9.24. You are hereby placed on conduct probation through Fall Semester, 1992. You must also have a one-on-one discussion with Norb at [phone #] regarding rules and regulations and authority problems with selective choice of rules by April 15, 1992. Also, you must submit a 1-page reaction paper on what you have learned, which is due to Diane by April 30, 1992. During this time period you are deemed not in good standing with the University of Florida and may not hold an appointed or elected office in a registered student organization. You may not represent the University of Florida on any athletic team other than through intramurals [I was an intramural softball team captain/manager at the time]. A record of this incident will be maintained in the Office for Student Judicial Affairs according to University Rule 6C1-4.26 F.A.C. Please understand that should you be found responsible of a violation of the Student Conduct Code while in a probationary status at the university, the Code of Conduct requires that you be subject to suspension or expulsion. As you were notified in your hearing, any appeal of this sanction must be made in writing to the Dean for Student Services within five working days of the hearing. Failure to do so with forfeit your right of appeal. You may contact my office a the completion of this probationary time period if you wish to have written verification that your probation had ended. I hope there is no recurrence of this or any other offense in the future and that the remainder of your state at this university is successful. REDUCTION OF SENTENCE The appeal reduced my probation status from "Graduation" (which was Spring (May) 1993) to Fall (December) 1992. Regardless, I felt my sentence was too harsh. I didn't express sorrow for what I had done so I think the conduct board gave me the maximum sentence they could. SENTENCE--MY REACTION PAPER Earlier this semester I disassembled the bed in my "New Facility" dorm room. One thing led to another and thus I have this reaction paper to write about what I have "learned." Okay, the "sentence" was conveyed as probation (9 months), a one- on-one discussion, this paper and a 12 dollar "fine" or maintenance fee for someone to reassemble the bed. From the one-one-one discussion earlier this month with Norb I discovered that Housing does have reasons for creating the rules they do. In my case I was informed that the rule is such because of a liability or safety reason. Of course the complex is "new" so to keep it as such the rule applied double. In order for housing to stay out of a lawsuit and keep people from lackadaisically dissembling and discarding furniture in an inappropriate location these rules were instated. There are people who would do such, however I would have to single myself out as someone who does "give a shit" and thus would be more respectful. Thinking I contradict myself between that statement and my disassembling of the furniture is a contradiction in itself. Unfortunately some people or person abused their privilege or something went awry and thus the "no disassembling" rule was implemented. It almost seems like a joke--the sentence that was "handed" down. It is almost real; the university life is a mock "real life" system right on down to the "court" hearing I had. There are many choices I could have made when the RA presented me with the dilemma between what I wanted and the "iron hand" of housing. I choose to stand up for my rights, the reason for pleading not guilty to the charge although it was obvious I was guilty. It is funny, because I believe (and there is no doubt now) that had I plead guilty and gave in to the powers that be that I would not have had such a "heavy" sentence. Not being familiar with the system didn't help either. And to think this could have all been avoided by taking the easy way out and complying. I felt that my voice would be heard and some understanding would be made of my situation thus the reason for standing up for what I believed in. When I relocated between breaks housing later relocated a smoker into the apartment I was located, but did I ever tell housing where to go...no! Perhaps it is a bit of ignorance and inexperience that lead me to into this "unfortunate circumstance." Hopefully I can walk away from all this with a little more knowledge about "real life" realizing that sympathy will not be found in the tight corners of a rule bound institution. As I look back I do see some promise with the system I unfortunately battled and lost. I am actually glad there was a one-on-one discussion so that someone would "hear" me unlike how I felt during the hearing/appeal. For a justice system to work there needs to be reform and education and not just jail time/probation/community service. If someone has a problem it needs to be faced and dealt with and not just given a sentence and told to "Serve your time." So, at least some concern is shown to try and help an individual who has a problem here. I have learned that there are easy ways out and in many cases they should probably be take. The RHCB doesn't take shit thus I should have been more prepared and perhaps gave in a little when faced with them. It's life, real or almost real and everything tells me experience helps. Be simple and smart or pay your dues. I've paid, hopefully I will be smart enough and not have to pay any more. Life is an ongoing process of learning and many situations will have an unexpected twist, amusing or not. FINALE In my talk with Norb I almost broke down. My voice trembled a little and I had problems (again) expressing myself. He kept saying I had rationalize. I was frustrated, angry, and nervous. My eyes watered a little and there was period of time where my throat locked so I couldn't even talk for about a minute. The situation felt hopeless. I did do some talking and once I realized what I said didn't make a difference I accepted defeat. Norb was just another higher up in the unflinching system of bureaucracy-- this took awhile to sink in. After about twenty more times of "rationalize" from Norb I was allowed to leave. I left feeling a sense of failure. On 4/6/92 a maintenance man came to my room and reassembled my bed for $12. It was the final part of my "sentence" although I still had to serve out eight months of probation. On the plus side I did have my bed like I wanted it for additional three months so the war was lost but a battle was won. 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