Recent Comments

That doesn't seem to negatively affect SEC schools one bit.

The song "pour some sugar on me" has forever been ruined by the Sugar Bowl

I got a good chuckle out of the comments and look forward to many more settle jokes. Maybe they'll even eventually replace TE jokes....probably not though.

Giant Turkey Leg for you. I'd also like to add that not only is the band just one part of the University, this songbook was known of and used by less than 2% of members.

@ Hokie_x3_HI - You nailed me on that. That was a really poorly worded comment. To elaborate - Meyer typically spends most of his time with the offensive & special teams units. Before our opener against Navy he has admitted that he spent way too little time with his offense, because he spent much of camp getting the defensive team ready for Navy's triple option. Although he respects Beamer & Foster he has said he didn't expect anything like the BEAR being thrown at us and wasn't ready for it. It took him until the second half for us to even begin to adjust. We were clueless at first. Fortunately, I expect him to be better prepared for both the bear front & variations off your base defense.

The whole investigation was nothing more than a witch hunt. What you have read is a very one sided view point.

I am friends with multiple Ohio State Band Members and Band Alumni, none of whom were aware of this book, and none of whom were ashamed of their nicknames.

"I feel obligated to share as an alumni member of the band who is Jewish. Never once did I feel discriminated against or hated because of it in my 3 years.
I also have to say this: people have been targeting me with Holocaust jokes since I was in middle school. If the mere existence of that song is evidence of a "culture problem," it is not with the band. It's with the widespread youth.
Thanks for writing, NAME DROPPED!" - OSU Band Alumni on this letter written by another band member to the author of the WSJ article.

"Ms. Terlep,

i know that in our brief, yet honest, interview that I didn't have time to tell you
about my study abroad experiences while here at Ohio State. l'd like to share a bit
with you now, because of its newfound relevance. In May 2014 I spent May-term in
Jerusalem as part of a course taken here at OSU, and it was one of the most eye-
opening and beautiful experiences I've ever had. For two weeks we spent time
touring the most important political and spiritual sites on both the eastern and
western sides of the city, meeting wonderful people on all sides of the modern
conflict, enriching our knowledge of history, and eating incredibly delicious food.
One of the most poignant things i learned from that trip was the impact of our living
history- that events such as W" and the Holocaust are not horrors of our past so
much as the predecessors to the aftermath in which we live. They are grim, daily
reminders of the hideous capabilities of human nature when perverted to the
extreme. In short, not a joke. Not even close.

imagine my surprise when, instead of a well-rounded article with contributions
from my interview throughout, a tabloid appears from the Wall Street Journal
further denouncing our already embattled band for having sung songs mocking the
Holocaust. The article makes it appear as though all 225 of us regularly stood in a
circle, held hands, and sang this filth as a campfire song. l had never heard it in my
life.

For four years this band has been my identity, the highlight of my university career,
and my family. i searched vainly in your article to find anything resembling my
experience, any evidence that I even spoke with you. I found nothing.

What is most painful is the idea that a song which most of us never even knew
existed and would be appalled by if we heard sung is now highlighted
internationally, and with MY name tied irrevocably to it. Can you imagine having an
integral part of your identity, one that you held so dear and were so proud of,
suddenly reduced to a shameful remark made by someone else and then smeared
across headlines without warning and without reason? it disgusts me to think of the
amount of people who will be unnecessarily hurt and offended by this, when before
the story broke the tasteless joke was shared between perhaps three members of a
university band in Ohio. Was there any purpose of integrity for making this national
news?

it will not enlighten you at all to say that this pathetically small spectacle is not at all
representative of the band: its leadership, its students, and certainly not its core
purpose of representing the Buckeyes and the entire state of Ohio. You already
knew that, having interviewed students like me who have spent years in the band
and have overwhelmingly had positive experiences.

The fact of the matter is that my story (or any real story from the band members
you interviewed) doesn't sell, does it? N 0 one cares that a woman like me
auditioned for and spent four years in a majority-male organization and was never
once harassed. How terribly boring! Never mind that the story about the songbook
was already broken- you were going to have your piece of it by hurling it back into
the spotlight. To say that you knew that this story would hurt many people and that
you wrote it anyway is beside the point. You knew this story would outrage many
people, and 50 you wrote it. You are a journalist experienced enough to know that
truth isn't particularly lucrative, and you capitalized on it.
In the 12 months since the unjust firing of our director, we as band members have
all been shouting the same things. We do this via social media, local news sources,
even with a demonstration of strength and solidarity by playing a particularly
meaningful piece at a skull session, hoping someone will listen. Our experiences
with all forms of media have thus far been immensely disappointing. They are
looking for the dirt, not the whole story, and our voices are lost each and every time.
Yet I must admit, during our short meeting, that you gave me a small glimmer of
hope that a just representation of the band might come to light. Maybe, just maybe,
my voice would be heard and have impact. It's clear to me now just how foolish that
was.
The best I can do is to continue to fight the stigma, the misconceptions, and the
insults to the best of my ability and on my own. In the OSUMB we often like to
remind each other that this band is bigger than just one person, that we are a part of
something greater. 1 know that one day, when I am much older and you have retired
with a handsome amount of money and no longer remember even writing this story,
that the band will continue doing great things. For now, that knowledge will have to
be enough.
Regards, (name omitted)" (Forgive odd capitalization/Formatting, used pic to text internet site)

The way this band member describes the "investigative journalism" (see hack journalism) is also the way 100% of band members I have met describe how the entire investigation into the OSUMB.

Forget all the rest of the comments. This guy gets it.

Thanks Joe!

Amazingly, the person who has the best attitude about this is Settle himself.

"I want to play, but if I don't, I understand," he said. "They just want to do the best stuff for the team. If I do play this year, I know I won't have a lot of snaps, but I'll have experience."

What an awesome attitude for such an elite level recruit. After a year or two of preparation, and a little bit of weight loss, this guy is going to be a nightmare for the rest of the ACC... and maybe beyond...

Id like to think of the MV's as the poor saps in "Enemy at the Gates" where one has a spare clip ad the other the rifle.

The HT's then are they dudes set up behind them to kindly encourage the first group to keep going forward, you know, with indiscriminate automatic weapons fire.

I really hope "The Big Easy" catches on before "Big Baby" gains any real traction. Otherwise Mike London might sue Tech for trademark infringement.

Ended up deleting the old recurring payment and setting up a new one. Guess Joe gets a double payment from me this month!