The Best Education at Harvard

Sheba didn't need to worry about police breaking up the festivities on Saturday--there were none in sight. Nor were there any "right-wing thugs, flag wavers, or sports enthusiasts" that had terrorized gatherings in the past, according to Franzen.

Nor, for that matter, were there many Harvard students at the event. Although several walked by on their way to or from the Quad, few stopped to participate.

Those who did attend said they were taking a needed break from writing papers and studying for finals, or that they were simply curious about the gathering.

"I came here to get away from the ridiculous pressures building up at Harvard," said Mike M. Stockman '94. "I thought this would be a good antidote for them."

Stockman said he thought more Harvard students would have come to the event had they known about it. "I don't see why there aren't more students," he said. "There is nothing to actively dislike here. I guess the event wasn't well publicized around the Harvard community."

Stockman's friend, Nick B. Cowell '94, said students ought to participate in events like the love-in because it gives them the opportunity to think about how they can make their life's work socially beneficial. College does not provide the same opportunity, according to Cowell.

"I'm not knocking anything about Harvard, but it is contrived compared to this," Cowell said. "College is an absurdly reified experience, especially at Harvard because we think we are so good that we forget what a big world is out there."

Cowell said he thought he was learning more by coming to the love-in than by studying for his finals.

"This is better than anything else I could have done at Harvard today," he said. "It is crucial that people get together. This is a gathering of people who know why we are here and who can truly offer something to each other. This is where it's at."

From the Sublime to the Ridiculous

One man, who called himself the Grand Magus of the Sacred and Mystical Order of the Sword and Shield, said he dropped out of Harvard because he decided he "wasn't going to sell out."

"There's more to life than becoming a member of the Establishment," he said, explaining that he came to this "understanding" while dropping acid with former Harvard lecturer and drug guru Timothy Leary. Leary left his post in the early 1960s, amidst charges of distributing hallucinogens.

The 40-year-old Magus, who claims he is from "every-where"--and Watertown--added, "Right now you are going to Harvard--someday you will understand."

Carrying a staff and wearing a crown of lilacs, Magus threw handfuls of candy into the crowds and gave trinkets to passers-by. "I'm handing out eternal life, rainbows, and peace," he said.