Everyone Thinks Its Bizarre That Playboy Named UPenn America's #1 Party School

On Monday, Playboy named the University of Pennsylvania the top party school in the country. The crowning of the Ivy League school appears to have been met with a collective "...What?"   According to Playboy, "Smarties can party too, and UPenn puts other Ivies to shame with its union of brains, brewskies and bros. Boasting a notorious underground frat scene that school officials have deemed a nuisance, these renegades pony up thousands of dollars’ worth of liquor for their parties—and competition among the houses means a balls-out war of debauchery." But most people seemed totally dumbfounded. Even Penn students and alumni seem to be confused as to why their school was awarded this distinction, with some asking whether the magazine meant to crown party-loving Penn State instead. The Daily Pennsylvanian's Under the Button blog had this to say: "While students at state schools, or really any school, might be asking some questions, we at Penn know not to submit a re-grade when we've got the A+. So whether it was our "notorious underground frat scene" or the fact that "casual sex is rampant"  that piqued Playboy's interest (we assume its the latter), we'll celebrate the only way a true Quaker knows how, by doing nothing, because it's Monday." Last year, West Virginia University took the top spot on Playboy's list. Playboy noted WVU's annual parties such as St. Patrick's Day and FallFest, which Business Insider described as "a massive concert/party on the first week of classes that welcomes students back to campus" in our ranking of the "Most Fun Colleges." Here's a sample of what many members of the Penn community had to say about Playboy's ranking on Twitter: Penn has just been named Playboy's number one party school. They clearly didn’t interview the @pennband. — Melody Joy Kramer (@mkramer) September 15, 2014 So we're not sure what happened, but @Penn was named the Top Party School by @Playboy http://t.co/oBr8ga7pyv #WorkHardPlayHard #QuakerPride — Penn IAA (@PennIAA) September 15, 2014 I had fun at Penn, but not THAT much fun :) Playboy Magazine Names UPenn Top Party School http://t.co/xejhezdhZ9 via @bi_university — David-Michel Davies (@dmdlikes) September 15, 2014 If Penn really is the #1 party school like Playboy suggests, y'all need to step up your game. http://t.co/ufchKaaJsk — Enid Chiu (@enidchiu) September 15, 2014 Playboy rated Penn the top party school? Either they've never visited or they mistook us for Penn State - don't get your hopes up Quakers — Theresa Pic (@TheresAPicProd) September 15, 2014 Bruh, @Playboy just said we have the number one party school in the country.... Okay who over there is a Penn Alumni? It's pay I won't tell. — Basil Jackson (@dropthebas) September 15, 2014 Several comments on Business Insider's original post about the Playboy list also shed light on the Quakers' confusion: "I went to UPENN. I can personally attest to spending almost all of my time away from lectures at the library, including many 4am's and 5am's on Friday nights/Saturday mornings. The libraries would all be mostly full too. There's no way UPENN is more of a party school than 98% of other schools across the US." "Another Penn Alum here. I wouldn't say I was studying all the time, but there was not much of a party culture from Sunday to Wednesday, and almost none during finals. To say that it is a bigger party school then Arizona, for example, is a joke of epic proportions. Students at schools like that party 7 days a week." We'll agree with Playboy that Penn does have a solid party scene, with vibrant Greek life, an abundance of local bars (though they do close at 2 a.m.), and events like Spring Fling. But #1 party school in America? Maybe not. SEE ALSO: The 20 Most Fun Colleges In America Join the conversation about this story »

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US Cites State Secrets Defamation Lawsuit of Greek Shipping Magnate

NEW YORK — Citing state secrets, the United States has asked a judge to toss out a defamation lawsuit a wealthy Greek shipping magnate brought against a nonprofit organization seeking to thwart Iran’s efforts to obtain nuclear weapons. Victor Restis, a billionaire Greek citizen, sued the American Coalition Against Nuclear Iran last year, claiming it […] The post US Cites State Secrets Defamation Lawsuit of Greek Shipping Magnate appeared first on The National Herald.

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China UnionPay signs collaboration agreement with Greek lender Alpha Bank

ATHENS, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- China UnionPay (CUP), a leading card issuer in the world, on Monday signed a collaboration agreement with Greek ...

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FDNY investigating fire incidents at Greek Festival site

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The FDNY is investigating after organizers of the 44th annual Greek Festival say someone started one fire and attempted ...

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Greece will not become Weimar, Samaras says

Greece has returned from the brink of collapse, said Prime Minister Antonis Samaras Monday, while lauding the country’s ability to keep going through the damaging effects of the crisis. “There will be no Weimar scenario for Greece... Greece is back,” Sama... ...

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Alleged Sale of ‘Navagio’ Beach a Fraud

The alleged sale of 15,000 acres of land around famous “Navagio” beach on Zakynthos island in the Ionian Sea is characterized as a fraud of massive proportions. Greek newspaper “Ethnos” published information proving that the case was a fraud. The alleged deal mentioned areas that cannot be sold since they include forest land, streams and roads and are held without title deeds, at prices well below the actual property value. According to the article, the case is going to be examined by the judicial authorities since the newspaper implies that politicians, Forest Service officials, the state mortgage company, tax inspectors and notaries are allegedly involved in the sale, the cost of which is estimated at 9 million euros. According to the sale contract, dated May 7, 2014, the actual value of the land was estimated at 17.2 million euros. The potential buyer, the Emir of Qatar, through his company Pimana, would get a coastal area of unique beauty, which includes the Navagio beach, for 600 euros per hectare although its actual value is estimated at around 1,100 euros per hectare. Furthermore, the article says that the sale contract should be void, since the property does not belong to the alleged owner, George Charos, as he does not hold any legal deeds to this property, while part of the property belongs to the Church of Greece. Charos is a heir of the Flampouriaris family, which owned the land with a Venetian decree just before the Venetians lost sovereignity of the Ionian islands in the late 18th century. However, as lawyer Dionysis Gouskos stated, “there are no titles of ownership, except from a Venetian decree, but ownership cannot be justified by decrees. This decree must be translated by the Foreign Ministry, as it uses an unknown Venetian dialect and it does not clearly state the property boundaries or the owners’  names.” The case is even more complicated as a trial for arson is still pending against the alleged owner and seller, Charos.

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Greece Places Last on EU Social Justice Index

According to the Social Justice Index, developed by researchers at the German Bertelsmann Foundation, Greece holds the last place in the rankings of the 28 EU member states. Sweden was placed first, followed by Finland, Denmark and the Netherlands. Deutsche Welle published an article on the subject, explaining that high unemployment in Greece was one of the most important factors for the low score. This factor has been strongly affected by the economic crisis. The article also stated that mostly young people have been affected by social injustice in the crisis-hit countries. The gap in social participation opportunities between the rich northern countries and the poorest countries of southern Europe has grown to such an extent that it now constitutes a threat for European integration, claims the study that was published today, September 15, by the Bertelsmann Foundation. The study also stressed that while the economy is showing signs of stabilization, the level of social justice in most EU countries has reduced. “If EU social disintegration is consolidated or exacerbated, the future of the European integration project will be jeopardized,” noted the researchers. Overall, the EU Social Justice Index examines 35 criteria based on six fields: poverty prevention, access to education, access to the labor market, access to health services, intergenerational justice and social cohesion through discrimination tackling. From now on, the research will be conducted annually.

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