Ignorance at Ithaca

Student suicide at Cornell University has increased dramatically, and officials there don't seem to have a clue. Well, let me put my two-cents worth here. There are certain academic institutions that are very challenging and have very high standards. Students who attend them are put under a lot of pressure to do well and maintain a certain grade-point average. These individuals think that there will be no life, if they fail or don't get good enough grades. Some end up with nervous breakdowns and, ultimately, take their own lives.

This is all very sad because it is all very silly. In the real world, having a diploma from a certain institution or graduating with honors means very little if you can't perform, when called upon to do so. Academic success doesn't necessarily translate into professional success, because conditions in school are very different from what you find outside those ivy-covered walls. So, it's very tragic that young people do not realize that so much worry and pain is really not worth it. It certainly is not worth losing their lives over it.

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