Letter from Steve Orsini ... re: mascots

[abezontar]

I must say I do not understand why a loud few of you are making such a big deal about this. I have talked to many current faculty, staff and students about this and the vast majority are in favor of the Mustang once you talk to them about it, since before I bring it up they really haven't concerned themselves with it at all. If a tradition causes so much apathy amongst the current students, then its effectiveness and meaning must be questioned. I can't tell you how many are basically unaware of any of this controversy, most of it is really a tempest in the ponyfans teapot.

One thing that aggrevates me is the use of "Big Horse." What we are talking about is a small horse (the Mustang) and a tiny horse (Peruna)

Arguably, the same would be true if we changed our colors to Burnt Orange and White, or replaced the mustang with the longhorn. Most of our faculty, staff, and students wouldn't give a rat's [deleted].

On a side note, I think having a cycling club at SMU is too European. I think we should disband the cycling club because we want to better identify with the right-wing conservatives from whom we draw our students and donations.

[EastStang]

The current faculty and staff are too busy whining about the Bush Institute to think about anything else right now.

[couch 'em]

I associate cycling with our recent losing football years.

We should disband it because it is associated with losing. Replace it with the motorcycle club!

[PK]

Hmmmm
cycling=Peruna
motorcycling=Big horse (more macho)

[EastStang]

Hmmmm
cycling=Peruna
motorcycling=Big horse (more macho)

Not to rain on your analogy, but....

[PK]

Hmmmm
cycling=Peruna
motorcycling=Big horse (more macho)

Not to rain on your analogy, but....

[DiamondM]

I must say I do not understand why a loud few of you are making such a big deal about this. I have talked to many current faculty, staff and students about this and the vast majority are in favor of the Mustang once you talk to them about it, since before I bring it up they really haven't concerned themselves with it at all. If a tradition causes so much apathy amongst the current students, then its effectiveness and meaning must be questioned. I can't tell you how many are basically unaware of any of this controversy, most of it is really a tempest in the ponyfans teapot.

Polling the typically apathetic "current faculty, staff and students" about whether they care about the prospect of replacing/diminishing 77-year-old SMU traditions is like polling African bushmen if they care about replacing Coke with New Coke. It makes no sense because OF COURSE they're going to say they don't care --- because they don't CARE. Period. For the most part, the vast majority of those same apathetic "current, faculty, staff, and students" that you informally asked don't go to games, don't care if we even had a football team, and certainly don't donate to the athletic department. They should not be the arbiters of determining which traditions stay and which should go.

The fact is that the "few" of which you speak represent the vast majority of the athletic department's loyal customers -- the "few" that have stuck around, cherish the history of this program, want to preserve the few links to SMU's proud tradition (of which Peruna is one), and want us to return to that proud tradition. The idea that we are going attract the apathetic African Bushmen as new customers simply because we now have New Coke, i.e. 2 new horses, is just ludicrous.

I do not begrudge the gift, the cause, or the prosepect for future meaningful financial support of our program. I will not boo, or call the donors names. I will even accept a different role for the 2 new horses that carves out a brand new tradition. But I will not accept the patronizing party line that says that the "plans" for Peruna on gamedays haven't been finalized (wink-wink-nudge-nudge). And I will continue to remind the administration, our coaching staff, and others that honoring and preserving traditions like Peruna is what separates us from [insert random directional school] with no history or tradition whatsoever.

[Bergermeister]

A+

[Arkpony]

AMEN! DiamondM!!!

[PK]

She nailed it.

I do not begrudge the gift, the cause, or the prosepect for future meaningful financial support of our program. I will not boo, or call the donors names. I will even accept a different role for the 2 new horses that carves out a brand new tradition. But I will not accept the patronizing party line that says that the "plans" for Peruna on gamedays haven't been finalized (wink-wink-nudge-nudge). And I will continue to remind the administration, our coaching staff, and others that honoring and preserving traditions like Peruna is what separates us from [insert random directional school] with no history or tradition whatsoever.

I agree!

[couch 'em]

Wonderful post.

[George S. Patton]

She nailed it.

I do not begrudge the gift, the cause, or the prosepect for future meaningful financial support of our program. I will not boo, or call the donors names. I will even accept a different role for the 2 new horses that carves out a brand new tradition. But I will not accept the patronizing party line that says that the "plans" for Peruna on gamedays haven't been finalized (wink-wink-nudge-nudge). And I will continue to remind the administration, our coaching staff, and others that honoring and preserving traditions like Peruna is what separates us from [insert random directional school] with no history or tradition whatsoever.

I agree!

She sure did. That's why you keep the heat on them.

[KnuckleStang]

DiamondM gettin the job done. Post of the month

[Z-Man]

DiamondM gettin the job done. Post of the month

agree, 100%

[Sam I Am]

If JJ had Hawaii drop Rainbow Warriiors to become just the Warriors and wants SMU to use Mustangs instead of Peruna, then maybe there is some school that would like to be called the Rainbow Perunas to compensate for these mascot purges. I'll join their boosters club before I ever rejoin the Mustang Club.