I woke up in a closet.

I’ve probably said this over and over again, but if you know anything about Pratt and Pratt’s student body, you know that ALMOST everyone here is an entitled brat.  I’d like to relegate myself to the smaller group of students/staff/faculty who hang out in the corner and feel like they shouldn’t expect much from a private art school with an $86 million endowment.  We’re bitter, annoyed, probably really presumptuous about the way things work around here, but we’re also really passive aggressive so you don’t hear official complaints from us that would change anything.

Moving on.

Yesterday when a well dressed, clean looking girl was literally trying to RUN out of the library set off the alarm at the door, my supervisor asked if she had anything in her bag that would set off the alarm.  Laptop, books from other libraries or this library, cell phone, etc.  She pulled out her laptop, then after a couple seconds of nervously fidgeting through the contents of her tote bag, she pulled out the Vogue Italy’s Black Issue with the Pratt Institute stamp on it.  I know you shouldn’t judge someone by their appearance, it could just be a well-thought out deception, but it was so obvious that this girl could part with the $10+ it cost to purchase this magazine.

There have been plenty of times that I’ve wanted to cop the mags from the 2nd floor reading room, but I’ve resisted or just read the copy in the library.  As the copy was intended to be read.

Since she didn’t get away with stealing the magazine, it’s but a small offense.  She didn’t even get a slap on the wrist and she was on her way.

But here’s the kicker.

I was just told that President Shutte, who gets paid half a million dollars a year and lives in a mansion on Clinton Avenue, takes a copy of the New York Times from the security booth on campus.  He doesn’t do this every day, but the copy he takes is meant for the library to have in the reading room.  Picking up the paper from a news stand is something like $5 at the most, and getting a subscription for a copy to be delivered to your home is $5.30 a WEEK.

I guess that the people in reference just put two and two together: sometimes the New York Times wasn’t in the security booth, and sometimes President Shutte had a free copy of the New York Times.  Apparently because he was too lazy to pick up a copy or didn’t have time.  I can’t even comprehend what that man does in his office every day.