theexorcist
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Post by theexorcist on Apr 18, 2011 15:54:00 GMT -5
If Kemba hadn't been a basketball player, do people think he would have graduated in 3 years? Or did he get special treatment b/c he was on the team? Especially considering the fact that most of the players don't graduate but stay eligible? And I say that in the context of UConn. We're not talking Harvard, Georgetown, Stanford, Duke, etc. We're talking about an "accredited university". Everything that I've seen has indicated that being a Division I athlete takes a massive strain on your time. Since UConn is graduating players at a 33% clip, the focus seems to be on keeping players eligible rather than letting them graduate. Relative to the GU/Stanford/Duke comparison to UConn, let's not be too high and mighty. I've known a variety of Ivy Leaguers who were duller than a bag of hammers and lots of non-Ivy Leaguers who were very sharp. As Rosslyn points out, even top schools don't necessarily challenge their students. Once again, this just seems like trying and failing for schadenfreude. Kemba's team was better than Georgetown's, Kemba as a player was better than any of Georgetown's players, and Kemba's going to deservedly make a lot of money very soon. AND he's going to graduate in three years. Seems like we should be celebrating it rather than trying to bring him down.
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Post by nashvillehoyas on Apr 18, 2011 16:07:51 GMT -5
It's amazing that in 2011 folk still hold on to their old stereotypic prejudices. If Kemba was a white person the same folk would be giving him praise. Kemba Walker is an intelligent, educated young man destined for success whether in NBA or corporate america. I am a long time Hoya fan that is just as proud of this young man as his family....I recall when Patrick Ewing enrolled in Georgetown he was accused of not being able to read.
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kchoya
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Post by kchoya on Apr 18, 2011 16:39:11 GMT -5
It's amazing that in 2011 folk still hold on to their old stereotypic prejudices. If Kemba was a white person the same folk would be giving him praise. Kemba Walker is an intelligent, educated young man destined for success whether in NBA or corporate america. I am a long time Hoya fan that is just as proud of this young man as his family....I recall when Patrick Ewing enrolled in Georgetown he was accused of not being able to read. So you're saying that if Kemba Walker was white, people would be praising him making his way through college without reading a book? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard.
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Post by HoyaSinceBirth on Apr 18, 2011 17:20:14 GMT -5
I can't believe anyone who made it into college or got a passing SAT/ACT score has never read a book. I'm sure there are tons of people who never read book but not someone who made it into school and graduated.
and I agree with Tbird. 0% chance he graduates in 3 years if he wasn't an athlete. Not only from the benefits teachers give athletes but also he wouldn't have been taking classes in the summer.
He should be commended for graduating when he could've taken the easy way out. But that doesn't mean it's ok he's never read a book. It doesn't matter his race or where he went to school. I'd Condemn chris wright if this story had come out about him too. I'd condemn Nate Lubick if this story came out about him. I think if you asked and person on Georgetown's campus they'd be able to name dozens of books they've read from start to finish.
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Post by strummer8526 on Apr 18, 2011 17:24:19 GMT -5
If he doesn't like to read books (which I think is safe to say because if he enjoyed it, he would presumably do it), and despite not reading a book, he is getting a college degree and becoming a professional athlete, then doesn't that make him even smarter? He's been overwhelmingly successful without doing something he hasn't wanted to do. Good for him.
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TBird41
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Post by TBird41 on Apr 18, 2011 17:32:14 GMT -5
If he doesn't like to read books (which I think is safe to say because if he enjoyed it, he would presumably do it), and despite not reading a book, he is getting a college degree and becoming a professional athlete, then doesn't that make him even smarter? He's been overwhelmingly successful without doing something he hasn't wanted to do. Good for him. Or, perhaps. a certain HoF coach put pressure on his teachers to pass him whether or not he actually earned a passing grade? (This, by the way, is why I'm suspicious here--if Kemba had gone to Duke, or UNC, or any of the schools that put effort into graduating their players, I'd probably be a lot less suspicious)
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hoya9797
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Post by hoya9797 on Apr 18, 2011 19:28:53 GMT -5
That pretty much sums up the story for me too. Seems like we should be focusing on the big issue, the real story, not the kid who came in and got it done -- on the court AND in class. I am sure there are a LOT of folk on this board who managed to do quite well in many many classes without reading a book for those classes from cover to cover. This. Though I went to college many years ago, I am almost certain that I never read a book cover to cover while I was in school. And though I was a science major, I did take those crappy english, history, and other "soft" classes that one must take to graduate and that always had some reading lists. We all view the world through the prism of our personal experience. Kemba's world is likely extremely different than that of many on this board. Give the kid credit for a significant accomplishment in his world. The fact that it's possible to graduate in three years while playing a very high profile sport without ever having read a book completely invalidates the accomplishment. It's really not that hard to graduate especially when it's handed to you on a silver platter which obviously seems to be the case here. What good is a degree if you learn nothing?
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hoyainspirit
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Post by hoyainspirit on Apr 18, 2011 20:49:57 GMT -5
The fact that it's possible to graduate in three years while playing a very high profile sport without ever having read a book completely invalidates the accomplishment. It's really not that hard to graduate especially when it's handed to you on a silver platter which obviously seems to be the case here. What good is a degree if you learn nothing? And you know graduation was "handed to [him] on a silver platter" exactly how? That certainly is not obvious to me. Perhaps it's your naivete (or your arrogance) that leads you to conclude that the kid "learned nothing" while obtaining his degree. theexorcist earlier pointed out that UCon graduates players at a 33% rate. If obtaining a degree were as easy as you seem to believe, why are rates not higher? Good for Kemba. He beat those 33% odds, most likely in more ways than one. It took me four years to graduate, and I did not play a high profile sport such as D1 basketball. I hope the fact that I probably did not read a book from cover to cover while an undergrad does not invalidate my accomplishment. Actually, since I graduated so long ago, it really doesn't matter. As I said during the season though, I just don't get the Kemba bashing.
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Post by nashvillehoyas on Apr 18, 2011 22:11:02 GMT -5
I think that this nonsense about this young man not reading books is just as silly and stupid as President Obama's birth certificate issue.
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hoya9797
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Post by hoya9797 on Apr 18, 2011 22:11:48 GMT -5
Again, no books, ever. That kind of person really doesn't belong in college let alone graduating a year early all while carrying a max extracurricular load. Sorry, but I'm extremely skeptical about this one.
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Elvado
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Post by Elvado on Apr 19, 2011 9:17:19 GMT -5
Maybe he did all his reading on a stolen laptop or Kindle. This is Fagan's house you knwo...
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Post by strummer8526 on Apr 19, 2011 10:01:13 GMT -5
Again, no books, ever. That kind of person really doesn't belong in college let alone graduating a year early all while carrying a max extracurricular load. Sorry, but I'm extremely skeptical about this one. Sure. So just as soon as we as a nation ensure that our inner city schools stop passing kids along like products on an assembly line without regard for whether or not they know/read/learn a damn thing, then I'll get on board with you. (I didn't bring this up earlier b/c I hadn't bothered to look into where Kemba went to school. But a quick Wikapedia search confirms he went to Lehman HS in the Bronx, which last year managed to break its way onto the "failing schools" list.) Until we address issues like "whether kids read" in our elementary and primary educational institutions, why are we going to knock a guy who kept his head down, worked hard at something, and succeeded at every level in a competitive endeavor? If he's out there smacking women, or stealing cars, or dealing drugs, then I'm all for taking shots at him. But issues relating to education in this country are far too complicated for me to draw significant conclusions from an offhand comment about not reading books cover-to-cover. I agree with the above post that this is like the Obama birth certificate nonsense.
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ScreamingHoya
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Post by ScreamingHoya on Apr 19, 2011 10:20:03 GMT -5
This thread is really bringing out the elitists of the Georgetown contingent. It also speaks to the fact that people put "graduating college" on way too high a pedestal in terms of it being an accomplishment.
It's not that hard to graduate college, provided that you have the financial stability to pay for all four years. I went through Georgetown, had some wonderful experiences, made a lot of great friends, met my soon-to-be wife, and did very poorly academically- graduating in the bottom 10% of my class. Am I proud of it? Absolutely not. If I could go back, I would love to have gotten a lot more out of the education that so much money was spent on. I can chalk my performance up to a lot of things- being a terrible test taker, allowing myself to enjoy my friends and extracurriculars too much at the expense of not studying, and generally just not caring enough about my grades. Do I consider myself to be unintelligent. Certainly not. I read books for pleasure every day, as well as the Washington Post and New York Times every morning.
My point is that we shouldn't equate graduating college to smarts. You can go through Georgetown, UConn and most other colleges doing the bare minimum, getting by, and graduating (yes, even in 3 years if you wish- it just means taking more classes). Maybe Kemba didn't have the highest GPA, or maybe he did. I know plenty of people from Georgetown who graduated with me and finished high in the class without having read a book cover to cover. They were good writers, good test takers and knew what classes to take.
So, let's not excoriate this kid for making a statement about never having read a book from beginning to end. He comes from a much different walk of life than I imagine most of the people on here come from. One person was talking about the academic rigors their 10 year old nephew has to go through. I'd wager that your nephew doesn't go to school in the inner city in Harlem like Walker did and that his school system is probably quite a bit better. There's no reason for people on here to berate this kid for not previously having read a book from cover to cover. It just shows your true colors.
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kchoya
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Post by kchoya on Apr 19, 2011 10:35:24 GMT -5
This thread is really bringing out the elitists of the Georgetown contingent. It also speaks to the fact that people put "graduating college" on way too high a pedestal in terms of it being an accomplishment. It's not that hard to graduate college, provided that you have the financial stability to pay for all four years. I went through Georgetown, had some wonderful experiences, made a lot of great friends, met my soon-to-be wife, and did very poorly academically- graduating in the bottom 10% of my class. Am I proud of it? Absolutely not. If I could go back, I would love to have gotten a lot more out of the education that so much money was spent on. I can chalk my performance up to a lot of things- being a terrible test taker, allowing myself to enjoy my friends and extracurriculars too much at the expense of not studying, and generally just not caring enough about my grades. Do I consider myself to be unintelligent. Certainly not. I read books for pleasure every day, as well as the Washington Post and New York Times every morning. My point is that we shouldn't equate graduating college to smarts. You can go through Georgetown, UConn and most other colleges doing the bare minimum, getting by, and graduating (yes, even in 3 years if you wish- it just means taking more classes). Maybe Kemba didn't have the highest GPA, or maybe he did. I know plenty of people from Georgetown who graduated with me and finished high in the class without having read a book cover to cover. They were good writers, good test takers and knew what classes to take. So, let's not excoriate this kid for making a statement about never having read a book from beginning to end. He comes from a much different walk of life than I imagine most of the people on here come from. One person was talking about the academic rigors their 10 year old nephew has to go through. I'd wager that your nephew doesn't go to school in the inner city in Harlem like Walker did and that his school system is probably quite a bit better. There's no reason for people on here to berate this kid for not previously having read a book from cover to cover. It just shows your true colors. So if one is not black, or is not from Harlem, he or she cannot criticize Walker? Ok, got it. And how the Edited does this have anything to do with Obama's birth certificate?
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ScreamingHoya
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Post by ScreamingHoya on Apr 19, 2011 10:39:09 GMT -5
This thread is really bringing out the elitists of the Georgetown contingent. It also speaks to the fact that people put "graduating college" on way too high a pedestal in terms of it being an accomplishment. It's not that hard to graduate college, provided that you have the financial stability to pay for all four years. I went through Georgetown, had some wonderful experiences, made a lot of great friends, met my soon-to-be wife, and did very poorly academically- graduating in the bottom 10% of my class. Am I proud of it? Absolutely not. If I could go back, I would love to have gotten a lot more out of the education that so much money was spent on. I can chalk my performance up to a lot of things- being a terrible test taker, allowing myself to enjoy my friends and extracurriculars too much at the expense of not studying, and generally just not caring enough about my grades. Do I consider myself to be unintelligent. Certainly not. I read books for pleasure every day, as well as the Washington Post and New York Times every morning. My point is that we shouldn't equate graduating college to smarts. You can go through Georgetown, UConn and most other colleges doing the bare minimum, getting by, and graduating (yes, even in 3 years if you wish- it just means taking more classes). Maybe Kemba didn't have the highest GPA, or maybe he did. I know plenty of people from Georgetown who graduated with me and finished high in the class without having read a book cover to cover. They were good writers, good test takers and knew what classes to take. So, let's not excoriate this kid for making a statement about never having read a book from beginning to end. He comes from a much different walk of life than I imagine most of the people on here come from. One person was talking about the academic rigors their 10 year old nephew has to go through. I'd wager that your nephew doesn't go to school in the inner city in Harlem like Walker did and that his school system is probably quite a bit better. There's no reason for people on here to berate this kid for not previously having read a book from cover to cover. It just shows your true colors. So if one is not black, or is not from Harlem, he or she cannot criticize Walker? Ok, got it. And how the Edited does this have anything to do with Obama's birth certificate? Not at all. I'd say that nobody really should be criticizing Walker for this- black, white, latino, whatever. I would point out, however, that a person from Harlem might have a little more insight than yourself into this matter and consider it a major accomplishment that this kid used his God given talents to ensure a good future for himself and his family.
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Post by strummer8526 on Apr 19, 2011 10:41:17 GMT -5
And how the Edited does this have anything to do with Obama's birth certificate? Because the same "I don't like the guy, so I'm going to find a half-assed reason to like him even less" mentality fuels both.
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Post by HoyaSinceBirth on Apr 19, 2011 11:03:20 GMT -5
I disagree. I think most people are more aghast at a system that would allow a kid to go his entire academic career from kindergarten through graduating college with out reading a book. Yes most likely Kemba is most likely the victim of the flawed system around him. But once he got to college that's not an excuse for not taking advantage of the university while there. He made it to college despite the odds thanks to his ability to play basketball. I'm not saying it's impossible for him to have gotten anything out of college with out reading a book cover to cover. But it certainly raises suspicion that he didn't. Never reading a book raises suspicion that he couldn't or at least wouldn't do the work necessary to do the work to graduate college.
It's also different from the obama thing because Kemba admitted the issue in question, where the birther thing is just made up crazy garbage.
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ScreamingHoya
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Post by ScreamingHoya on Apr 19, 2011 11:58:50 GMT -5
I disagree. I think most people are more aghast at a system that would allow a kid to go his entire academic career from kindergarten through graduating college with out reading a book. I'm not saying it's impossible for him to have gotten anything out of college with out reading a book cover to cover. But it certainly raises suspicion that he didn't. Never reading a book raises suspicion that he couldn't or at least wouldn't do the work necessary to do the work to graduate college. First of all, let's try to clear up this insinuation you're making that the kid hasn't read a book in his life. He's said himself that he has. You don't read textbooks from beginning to end, and most people I know didn't read beginning to end in 95% of the books they were assigned in college. As I pointed out before, you're really putting "graduating college" on a pedestal. It's not. that. difficult. Ask anyone who's been in the business school in the last 10 years. I'm not saying it's a good thing to go through life never having read a book cover to cover. But getting up in arms over this doesn't make much sense to me. What difference does it make to you that this kid has never read a book from cover to cover? If you want to make the argument that it should be harder and require more academic attention in order to graduate from college nowadays, I agree with you. But just getting mad at Kemba Walker for graduating from college in 3 years without having read a book from cover to cover or insinuating that somehow he had strings pulled for him in order to do it is the height of elitism.
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tashoya
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Post by tashoya on Apr 19, 2011 12:06:39 GMT -5
So, let's not excoriate this kid for making a statement about never having read a book from beginning to end. He comes from a much different walk of life than I imagine most of the people on here come from. One person was talking about the academic rigors their 10 year old nephew has to go through. I'd wager that your nephew doesn't go to school in the inner city in Harlem like Walker did and that his school system is probably quite a bit better. There's no reason for people on here to berate this kid for not previously having read a book from cover to cover. It just shows your true colors. If you're going to single me out, at least read my entire post. I have nothing against Kemba. I fact, I began my post by congratulating him. I was questioning the system, not the person.
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kchoya
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Post by kchoya on Apr 19, 2011 12:10:45 GMT -5
So if one is not black, or is not from Harlem, he or she cannot criticize Walker? Ok, got it. And how the Edited does this have anything to do with Obama's birth certificate? Not at all. I'd say that nobody really should be criticizing Walker for this- black, white, latino, whatever. I would point out, however, that a person from Harlem might have a little more insight than yourself into this matter and consider it a major accomplishment that this kid used his God given talents to ensure a good future for himself and his family. Wow, without knowing me, where I came from, or anything else about me, that's quite a bit of insight you have.
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