Posted by Eugene Volokh:
Equality of Filth:
[1]OpinionJournal's Best of the Web points to this [2]remarkable
Harvard Crimson editorial:
Dean�s office, and all 12 House Masters, a new student service is
sweeping onto campus. Dormaid, founded by Michael E. Kopko �07, is
a cleaning service that allows students to avoid the perennial
problem of dingy, smutty, questionably-habitable rooms. But as
appealing as the thought of a perpetually tidy room may be, . . .
Dormaid could potentially mess up as many rooms as it cleans. By
creating yet another differential between the haves and have-nots
on campus, Dormaid threatens our student unity. . . .
A service like Dormaid can bring many levels of awkwardness into
this picture. For example, do two people sharing a double split the
cost? What if one wants the service and the other does not? What if
one cannot afford it? Hiring someone to clean dorm rooms is a
convenience, but it is also an obvious display of wealth that would
establish a perceived, if unspoken, barrier between students of
different economic means.
Of course, the cleanliness of one's room is a lot less obvious than
the clothes one wears; and cost-splitting concerns arise when friends
decide what restaurants to go to together, or even which ski trips or
the like to take together. How about mandatory uniforms for Harvard
students, then? Or a ban on off-campus eating? Or a prohibition on
pleasure trips?
The fanatical pursuit of equality is as foolish as other fanaticisms.
References
1. http://opinionjournal.com/
2. http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=506289
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