[76lsjumb]

And, if you want a bright side ...
The stated end goal, the band reinstated under the guidance of a paid director, is both what was about to happen anyway and what has been the situation for most of the past 50 years. Obviously the intent of those instituting the ban is far broader than that, but the actual wording is helpful in that it provides for the possible resolution where the Title IX and OCB folks can claim victory with the band reconsituted under a new director but the LSJUMB to continue on unchanged in its key elements.
[Please pardon me for my moments of excessive optimism.]

Actually, IMHO this is a fairly accurate description of where things stand now and how they are reasonably likely to work out in the longer term.  In other words, I think this is reasonably, not excessively, optimistic.  Of course, I also thought that CMAC was serious when he said on 12/07 that he didn't want to create a distraction but, instead, wanted to focus on winning the Sun Bowl, and that hasn't quite turned out as expected, so, who knows...

As for how the LSJUMB situation got to where it is, my original view of the University as monolithically evil in all of this has changed somewhat based on the statements that have come out.  I do believe there are constituencies/offices within the University that want to see the Band [at least in the form in which it has existed since 1963] destroyed, and they have acted very much as Dean Wormers in all of this.  Then, there are other constituencies/offices who more or less support the Band, don't particularly want to see it destroyed, but are basically deferential to that first group, for organizational reasons.  Their actions have struck me as malignantly neglectful, but not intentionally so.  Finally, there are constituencies/offices who haven't really been paying attention to things, have been basically accepting at face value and relying upon what the first and second groups have been saying for the past few years, actually are fairly supportive of the Band, were caught by surprise when the whole thing blew up as badly as it has, now [hopefully] realize that the current Band has, in fact, done quite a bit to eliminate the issues that gave rise to the latest brouhaha, and really do want an outcome that preserves the Band as everyone knows it [minus the stuff that might actually create liability and with a new emphasis on raising the quality of the music/sound -- which is something the Band itself has been working on for a while].  I would put the most important current decision-maker [Etchemendy] in that last group.

[76lsjumb]

And, if you want a bright side ...
The stated end goal, the band reinstated under the guidance of a paid director, is both what was about to happen anyway and what has been the situation for most of the past 50 years. Obviously the intent of those instituting the ban is far broader than that, but the actual wording is helpful in that it provides for the possible resolution where the Title IX and OCB folks can claim victory with the band reconsituted under a new director but the LSJUMB to continue on unchanged in its key elements.
[Please pardon me for my moments of excessive optimism.]

Actually, IMHO this is a fairly accurate description of where things stand now and how they are reasonably likely to work out in the longer term.  In other words, I think this is reasonably, not excessively, optimistic.  Of course, I also thought that CMAC was serious when he said on 12/07 that he didn't want to create a distraction but, instead, wanted to focus on winning the Sun Bowl, and that hasn't quite turned out as expected, so, who knows...

As for how the LSJUMB situation got to where it is, my original view of the University as monolithically evil in all of this has changed somewhat based on the statements that have come out.  I do believe there are constituencies/offices within the University that want to see the Band [at least in the form in which it has existed since 1963] destroyed, and they have acted very much as Dean Wormers in all of this.  Then, there are other constituencies/offices who more or less support the Band, don't particularly want to see it destroyed, but are basically deferential to that first group, for organizational reasons.  Their actions have struck me as malignantly neglectful, but not intentionally so.  Finally, there are constituencies/offices who haven't really been paying attention to things, have been basically accepting at face value and relying upon what the first and second groups have been saying for the past few years, actually are fairly supportive of the Band, were caught by surprise when the whole thing blew up as badly as it has, now [hopefully] realize that the current Band has, in fact, done quite a bit to eliminate the issues that gave rise to the latest brouhaha, and really do want an outcome that preserves the Band as everyone knows it [minus the stuff that might actually create liability and with a new emphasis on raising the quality of the music/sound -- which is something the Band itself has been working on for a while].  I would put the most important current decision-maker [Etchemendy] in that last group.