Stanford Bound!

[hairy_hand]

MaxTennis, you're right about the new housing project that you all will not be able to live in (unless you defer--slated to be ready by 2007, i think). it's drawing objections from some students, faculty and staffers since it'll be built on the current sites of a few *picturesque* older houses that are used for various academic and other purposes & will be a couple of stories taller than everything else in the vicinity.

Headless, I'd say that the attitude here (University in general), if you can generalize this way, is of support or official tolerance. so: not really close to the extent of friendliness you ascribe to yale. Part of the reason may be that the separate schools at Yale are all just departments here*, without a terrific presence, so anything besides a policy of tolerance is not as obvious to those students not inclined in the academic liberal-arts way. I can't comment on the law school in particular and my neighbors aren't around for me to quiz them (at bar review, where law kids go to a different bar every friday; that and more to look forward to. dance socials. hallway cricket.)

Mari, I just started posting on both these sites after using them to figure out when I should hear from the various schools. And while the xoxo'ers are usually cruel and inane, the folks here are often overnice and inane (when trading redundant kudos and hopes instead of information) (posted there to this effect). I think you're right to not reply, but part of the objection is one of tone. (Though much of it is racist homophobic verbal phlegm/spit/bile that makes me prefer this place, despite the slower load times and a confusing array of menus). 

*if that--architecture is a concentration in the civil engineering dept. which I'm told is an improvement on what it used to be (a concentration in the urban studies dept.) for aspiring architects.

[maximumtennis82]

: rolls eyes at xoxo :

I'm with ya MariC, I would care more but I'm too busy being jazzed about all the great *&^% occuring in my life to spend time trashing on anonymous others.

[pass the curry?]

Hey folks.  I'm a Stanford 2L, stumbled across this procrastinating (we're in the middle of exams).  First, congratulations!  Stanford is an awesome place to study law.  It comes exactly as billed--the students are collegial, the professors are by-and-large engaging and committed to teaching (with open door policies, answering emails... one of mine even took a detailed survey at the end of the course in order to improve it). 

I wanted to make a couple points before I recede back into my casebook.

While it's true that Michelle Alexander is leaving (initially for maternity leave, but she may not return), I imagine that the school is actively looking for a replacement.  It takes time to find qualified people, but remember that you couldn't take your class til 2L anyway.  Also consider the Supreme Court Litigation Clinic, the only one of its kind in the country.  Its run by Pam Karlan, a prominent civil rights litigator and the skills it teaches transfer to any kind of appellate litigation.  The students are currently intimately involved (as in, they wrote the initial cert petition then the briefs--they cannot argue because the Supreme Court does not allow students to do so) in four cases that you can read about on the law school website.  An alternative to clinical education are term-time externships, usually in San Francisco (some people go full time elsewhere, like the SEC in washington).  You get full of half credit for working for the organization of your choice.  I know people working at the Sierra Club and a DA's office.  San Francisco is the legal center of the west coast, so there's a lot to choose from and they love Stanford kids.

Yale is probably slighly more gay than Stanford (at least among the undergrads the saying is "one in four, maybe more"), but Stanford has its share of gays.  Our Dean through last year (Kathleen Sullivan) is gay, as is the above mentioned Pam Karlan.  I've heard of others, but (because I don't know them) I'm not sure if it's the kind of thing where they're actually out or if it's just known.  One of my gay classmates got married in SF. 

Outlaw has a pretty big presence and helped get us to openly join the group that sued the Defense Department over JAG recruiting (it was uncommon among law schools to join openly because some feared recriminations in defense department funding of other university departments).   The univ as a whole is very friendly--one of the big undergrad traditions ("full moon on the quad") involves gathering in the main quad and smooching with random people during the first full moon, and there's a queer corner.   

That's all I can think of off the top of my head.  My classmates are great--talented but modest, sharp but (at least generally) not showy. I probably won't be back to the board, so let me congratulate you all once again and wish you luck.

[maricutie]

Ah, yes. I'm going to Stanford. Was just happily reminded. On to better things ...

As for the housing projects --- it seems like Stanford doesn't have a problem providing housing to its students. When Berkeley had a housing problem they converted doubles into triples; when stanford had the same thing in '96, they got new dorms about 4 yrs later. I read somewhere that up to 90% of students live on campus. Of course, I don't remember if these were grads or ungrads, nor do I remember the link ... so how useful that little tidbit ultimately is may be debatable.

[A.]

Ah heeeeeeeellllllll nooooooooooo ....

EDIT: I was initially going to try and post a response, but it seems like they are beyond hope. There's nothing that I can accomplish by posting a response -- I will inevitably sound like I'm being defensive, and thereby demonstrating that I feel the need to be defensive. I've shown my merits to the people that matter -- the Stanford admissions board. Not the morons on xoxo. Bitter fools.

Lol, we are not all "morons" or "bitter fools."

Anyway, just stopping in to say congrats to all of you for getting into Stanford.  I also got the call from Faye Deal (11/23); however, I am leaning towards Harvard at this point (which, apparently, is not too uncommon: http://daily.stanford.edu/tempo?page=content&id=13800&repository=0001_article).  That said, I fully intend to visit both schools before deciding.  Perhaps I will see some of you in early April over admit weekend.

Alright, back to XO land.  Best of luck to all of you.

[maricutie]

All is better now.   

[PennQuaker]

Wow, was that a peace offering?   

[maricutie]

[headlesschicken]

re:xoxo:

At some point during college, I learned that sarcasm and cynicism were usually defenses against insecurity and emotional immaturity.

[newy]

re:xoxo:

At some point during college, I learned that sarcasm and cynicism were usually defenses against insecurity and emotional immaturity.

Also, sarcasm and cynicism are good defenses against boredom.  But you're probably mostly right in this case... It's decision season: watch the claws come out.