A few years back, when I was still at a certain university, I was in the middle of a big depression spell and was feeling incredibly lonely when it was suggested to me to join a student organization. I was in a student organization when I first started the school but left it after feeling it was a little lame (it was an anime organization for anyone wondering). I looked through a pamphlet that featured all of the student organization but was not impressed by any featured. One day, I think after leaving class, I had seen an ad for a non-religious student organization that interested me and ironically, it was meeting that same day. And to think, I almost went home and studied.
I went to the meeting, introducing myself as being agnostic, even though most of the group were atheist. It was a fun group and we spent that meeting debating over a political / religious subject I can barely remember. I think I spent 60% of the debate looking at one members...ahem...assets (sorry, Rachael). Besides that, I did enjoy the group and pretty much attended meetings weekly. I felt like, for a change, I actually had a group of friends in school that would eventually accept me. Well, most of them, I felt a few of them weren't particularly fond of me.
As the months went on, the group did it's good (we volunteered for a couple of homeless shelters), it's bonding, (after every meeting, we either went out to eat or to a members place or both), and it's debates (attended a couple and even had some of our own). And then, came fall quarter of the following year (I began attending meetings in the middle of spring quarter of the year before and the events mentioned took place between that time and summer) came and that's when everything began to change.
Some members left, some new members came but the group felt different. Sure, we still had meetings but instead of being accepting of anyone, no matter what their religious beliefs, it now felt like "We're right and not only are you wrong, you're an idiot". A huge difference in the group is that it almost became a swinger group. I'm not saying the group was having sex with each other but it did feel like everyone was flirtatious with everyone. Even I was flirtatious with the women in our group in an effort to prove to myself I was attractive. It didn't quite work out.
The straw that broke the camel's back (yes, I used that phrase) was a debate with a religious student organization. This supposedly peaceful debate got ugly really quick and not only did this ugliness spread out of the debate but it felt like it had truly spread inside some of our core members. When about five of us went to get refreshments for a party, our fearless leader mocked the members of the organization we had just debated with, loudly. When leaving the chip aisle, ironically, those same organization members came around the corner, having heard everything our fearless leader had said, I'm sure. They looked at us as if we were demons and we just walked by quietly, until we left the store and the mocking started again. At this point, I felt the group wasn't for me anymore and kinda began cut ties with them.
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