Politics in the Yard

Judging by the recent political activity, one could easily conclude that Harvard undergraduates are incapable of running a clean, graceful election or conducting any sort of dispute in an atmosphere of fair-minded reasonability.

The feud over the Class Marshal election continues to be as ugly an argument as any national election scandal--and with less reason. The Young Republican Club remains the hotbed of personal spite and political pettiness that has characterized it for lo, these many years. And the Student Council would appear to be warming up to a nasty little fight for officers--again, it would seem, more a clash of personalities than of issues.

There is no easy settlement for any of these squabbles; there are only a number of well-worn cliches which could be applied to the various contending parties. Taken in the aggregate, however, these battles present a very unflattering commentary on Harvard and on the level of political activity among her students.