Word: classing
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1980-1980
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...mass of uniformly gray buildings that are West Point has become indistinguishable from the atmosphere. In the courtyard, a brigade of cadets--dressed in gray rain slickers, gray caps with gray rain hoods, and gray trousers--lines up for formation and review. It looks somber and depressing, one first class cadet (senior) says, but look on the bright side. Things get even worse during January and February (they call it the "period of gloom" at the Point) and everything--the grass, the water, the faces of 4000-plus cadets--turns gray...
...train officers for the army--officers-to-be have passed through the halls of what one historian has called this "citadel of sense and stability." Although things at West Point look much the same as they have for decades, much has changed since Douglas W. MacArthur led his class of cadets through the Long Gray Line. No longer can upperclassmen harass plebes throughout meals so they don't get a chance to eat; no longer must plebes be able to spout back on command how many lights there are in Cullen Hall (340); no longer is "silencing" permitted--a form...
...BASE of this school for soldiers is the fourth class system, a social system which allows a first class cadet to stop a plebe headed for bed at 1 a.m. and demand that he "talk" because he's heard the freshman is Australian and has an interesting accent. It starts on day one--"R" day they call it at the Point--when the new cadets come in at 8 a.m. and by 5 p.m. are shorn, supplied and marching in military formation...
Even with its irrationalities, cadets say that the fourth class system is important because it separates West Point from other colleges. "Beast" is necessary, they say, for it helps them to adapt to a military environment--something they function within for at least five years following graduation. People who come to West Point in search of the "free education"--cadets actually receive half a second lieutenant's pay during their four years--don't usually stay around. The attrition rate hovers at 25 per cent. "No one comes just for the education," says one cadet who wants...
...THOSE who adapt, each year brings increased privileges and freedom from the reams of rules and regulations. Following classes and duties on Saturday, seniors are allowed to take weekends off. They are also allowed to drink at the First Class Club, keep their cars at the academy, and skip certain meals. Those with special responsibilities are excused from formations and parade duties. And, as the time passes, as with any college, they learn how to beat the system. Cadets sleep in their "green girls" (army comforters) so they don't have to make their beds every...