More bad press on OSU Marching Band

Submitted by Lt. Pete Mitchell on July 30th, 2015 at 11:26 AM

WSJ article on a secret song book with some very unsavory lyrics. The hits keep coming and it seems the culture has really snowballed out of control with the "Best Damn Band in the Land"

http://www.wsj.com/articles/holocaust-victims-mocked-in-ohio-state-band…

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RGard

July 30th, 2015 at 12:00 PM ^

deserves some brutal taunting come November 28th.

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M-Dog

July 30th, 2015 at 12:09 PM ^

THIS MUST BE DONE.

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Former_DC_Buck

July 30th, 2015 at 12:05 PM ^

Waters is gone. Most of the members of the band have graduated or were underclassmen. They lost travel privledges when the original allegations came out. They are supposed to go to London for an NFL game. I was a member before the dawn of political correctness. I don't recall anything Holocaust related, I know the article says it is new. But the old version had its fair share of racist, sexist, antisemetic. I justify it a bit by saying it is somewhat unfair to judge 1988 by the norms of 2015. Though, I will say I don't make those kind of jokes anymore nor tolerate my kids making them. Which gets back to my original question. I have already lost former band friends when I agreed Waters needed to go. As much as I feel for them, especially the incoming Freshmen. I think they should shut it down for a year. Including not letting the Alumni Band play this season. We established this. We thought it was in good fun, but the world changed, for the better, but the culture we left behind did not.

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quigley.blue

July 30th, 2015 at 12:13 PM ^

It is and always will be 100% valid to severely judge anything from any year that uses Holocaust jokes.

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Former_DC_Buck

July 30th, 2015 at 3:46 PM ^

The Holocaust jokes were after my time. Or I don't recall any. But we did have other tasteless lyrics. Would I sing them today? No. But it was a different time. There was a wildly popular series of books called Truly Tasteless Jokes. As a parent, Dead Baby jokes not funny, as an 18 year old in 1988, hilarious.

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kehnonymous

July 30th, 2015 at 12:22 PM ^

If you don't mind me asking - were you a OSU band member yourself? I imagine that would color the reactions of your bandmate friends. It's hard to break out of that insular mentality ESPECIALLY when it's a group that has justifiably won your loyalty in all other aspects. I mean, I too am glad the internet didn't exist at the scale it does now when I was in HS/college or I might be damn nigh unemployable, but at some point - yeah - institutions have to be dragged kicking and screaming into the modern age.

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Former_DC_Buck

July 30th, 2015 at 1:01 PM ^

H Row. Baritone. H Row was the last row to get a woman member, about 10 years before I was there. That's why I said the Alumni Band should get dinged as well. Too many of us have been too willing to close ranks and put the Band before the University.

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Bando Calrissian

July 30th, 2015 at 2:15 PM ^

There are still people in Columbus walking around with "I Support Waters" gear. The OSUMB is basically a paramilitary cult. When you have the ROTC come and do your uniform inspections before the Michigan game...

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Former_DC_Buck

July 30th, 2015 at 4:26 PM ^

For what it is worth, is he was making changes. And he was, to be fair. But he was getting pushback from band alumni. Many who defend him were the same that complained he was making too many changes. And his changes were incremental. We are insular. It is very much a meritocracy, and because of that Directors have traditionally left a lot of responsibility to the Squad Leaders. That has its advantages, but also makes it easier for certain things to happen without the Director being aware. Being a former member and assistant, Waters was more aware. Whether he knew about the updated songbook, I can't say.

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Bando Calrissian

July 30th, 2015 at 6:30 PM ^

Here's a little secret about marching bands: Directors always know. Members like to think they keep things from the suits, but if there's one thing I learned from 4 years in the MMB and being in a gazillion different musical ensembles over the years, it's that the directors always knew way more about what was going on than they let on.

Which is why Waters' little "I never knew! (Even though I was a band member, staffer, instructor, and director!)" routine is just hilarious.

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Former_DC_Buck

July 30th, 2015 at 9:47 PM ^

Waters I agree with. Woods, may have, but did a better job with plausible deniability. Actually he was a bit like Marcus Brody from Indiana Jones. And he withdrew the last part of his tenure after the murder of his daughter. Or that is my impression at least. I was long gone by then, and living in DC at the time.

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kehnonymous

July 30th, 2015 at 3:19 PM ^

If we're being completely dispassionate here, most marching bands are R-rated insular cultures and while I'm glad that this level of obnoxiousness didn't happen with Michigan, let's not pretend there is zero-point-zero percent chance it could've happened here or any major US university not named Brandeis.

Sincere props to you for taking an unpopular and moral stand, though - when I spew invective about Ohio State and their fans, I mean it 50% less as it applies to you. ;)

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Former_DC_Buck

July 30th, 2015 at 9:55 PM ^

I don't take any of it personally. You can't or you come of as a troll or worse. I have said before I know my opinion on OSU and don't need it reinforced online, I live in Central Ohio again. I get plenty of that on the radio. I like to get the view of other fanbases. Some of you have your own biases which color your views but you also point out interesting blemishes that we overlook or don't see at all.

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mulhemp

July 30th, 2015 at 12:08 PM ^

When I was in the MMB (early 90's) we had uncooth songs. We made up lyrics to MSU, OSU and USC fight songs. Mainly they were dirty and mocked their school's but were harmless. One for OSU was titled "We'll kick their Ass Across the Field" Essentially we mocked them for being from a rival school. This crap of mocking people for being murdered and burned, as well as the attempted elimination of an entire race of human beings is beyond pathetic. I met many bands over the years. All treated us with repect and diginity with the exception of USC and OSU. But this is beyond that. What low class people. Pathetic

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shookie

July 30th, 2015 at 12:09 PM ^

PLANT POTATOES.....GET POTATOES

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ChicagoBigHouse

July 30th, 2015 at 12:10 PM ^

I think the interviews with the former members of the band is the worst part. The "people knew I was only kidding" when they referenced gay people in the songs and in the band is terrible. I'm sure he didn't have a clue whether those people were offended or not. They probably wouldn't say anything about it in fear they would be ridiculed. It's sad that even after college these people didn't figure out their mistakes.

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Poster Nutbag

July 30th, 2015 at 12:11 PM ^

So when do they start waving the confederate flag and wearing white pointed hoods at games?

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The Mad Hatter

July 30th, 2015 at 12:24 PM ^

Start?

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JamesBondHerpesMeds

July 30th, 2015 at 12:25 PM ^

I've never liked the OSUMB. So, this is really par for the course on my end.

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rockediny

July 30th, 2015 at 12:41 PM ^

Bands usually have individuals who display questionable behavior, but this is on another level. How did this not get earlier? There had to be some Jewish band members.

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LSAClassOf2000

July 30th, 2015 at 1:12 PM ^

“I knew a lot of people in the band were gay and they knew I wasn’t being serious,” Cominski said. “If I were writing to a broader audience or anyone other than a few close friends I would be horrified by those words.” - in reference to the homophobic stylings of their Nebraska parody

See, there's little reason to believe this contrition is genuine. You should be horrified by these words regardless really, and yet that quote is from the person who wrote the song. You have to wonder if indeed he ever really asked them if they were offended. If he had and they said "yes", would it have altered his thinking as to the wisdom of publishing this "song"? I somehow find it difficult to believe that it would.

The whole article....wow....just wow. There aren't words to sufficiently describe that level of utter depravity.

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