It’s Not Lycanthropy That Threatens Stanford

Well, tonight will see the annual practice of a particularly devilish Stanford tradition: Full Moon on the Quad.

In most of our minds, the only cultural reference we have to full moons involves lycanthropy (that’s a 50 cent word referring to werewolves).

At Stanford, Full Moon means something completely different (and I’m not sure the metaphor of man turning into beast is entirely inappropriate).

For Stanford students, Full Moon on the Quad is a major cultural initiation: freshmen head to the quad and get royally smooched (kissed within an inch of their lives) by seniors. As you might imagine, the evening has more than a hint of debauchery about it.

Here’s an excerpt from the Stanford Daily: (full article)

FMOTQ is a true Stanford tradition… and one more evidence that Stanford needs Jesus!

There are lots of web links related to this festival, including a poem, tame photo galleries (here’s one and here’s another), and a mildly humorous essay entitled Got Mono?.