Pro

No-Shave November is all about embracing your naturally crazy and wild hair that, unfortunately, cancer patients don’t have. For the whole month of November, people all over the nation are not shaving their hair. All the money they save on grooming equipment is donated to the American Cancer Society. By donating to this cause, you are helping both the cancer patients and their families. The raised money goes to educating people about cancer and helps support the people who are going through the struggle.

This is a great organization because not only are you helping other people, but you also get to express yourself. You can design your hair any way you want. There are no rules except that you can’t shave. You can grow your mustache or beard in new or cool ways. You can braid your arm pit and leg hair, if you so desire. The sky is the limit.

No- Shave November can also bring people closer together. You can form teams and see who can grow the funkiest hair. You can do it with any group that needs some bonding time. You could form a team with anyone: friends, family, coworkers, classmates, teammates.  The friendly competition and helping others will bring out the best in people.

If you participate in No- Shave November, there is a great plethora of benefits. The only downside is you might look like a caveman for a month, but that is small fee for helping support a great cause by donating to the American Cancer Society.

Dani Tynan, News Editor

Junior Dani Tynan is News Editor for the 2014-2015 Colonel. She plays varsity volleyball and softball, and participates in Operation Smiles.

Con

As November rolls in, one of the United States’ fastest-growing traditions swings in full-tilt: No-Shave November, when the beards are grown to an extreme and leg hair is left undisturbed. However while it may seem like a fun and harmless tradition, as it grows in popularity and participation, No-Shave November, affectionately referred to as Noshember, is too extreme and causes more problems than it solves.

Noshember’s most obvious result is the long hairy beards proudly groomed by young men all over the country, making the halls of schools and office workplaces look like one huge episode of Duck Dynasty. While men may think these accessories are something to be proud of, beards don’t always prove to be a benefit. Not only do beards encourage stereotypes causing men sporting them to be judged on sight, but they make employment difficult; policies and negative first impressions from customers prove to be obstacles. Also, food gets caught in these hair-traps and growing hair is extremely itchy for the first few weeks, making beards gross and uncomfortable.

However, not only men participate in Noshember. When women get involved, the leg hair, and even worse, armpit hair, is unbearable; there’s a reason we started shaving in the first place. Furthermore, when men claim Noshember is a boys-only event, women jump to their defenses and turn the whole event into a feminism debate, rather than a fundraiser for cancer.

Although it’s true that Noshember raises money and awareness for certain kinds of cancer, it began as something with much cruder intentions. Created as a way for college boys to get away without shaving, the official “Noshember Website” reads, “The goal of Noshember is not so much the contest or even the ritual of shaving, but rather the sheer laziness of being unkempt and rough together for an entire month.” Only recently, in 2013, was Noshember allied with the American Cancer Society to raise awareness and funds for prostate cancer research.

If you do decide to join in this ridiculous affair, it should be for the right reasons: to raise money for cancer, rather than for fun, or as an excuse to be lazy. No-Shave November is supposed to be an opportunity to help people, not the joke that people are making of it.

In conclusion, No-Shave November turns civilized people into cavemen, interferes with the impression people make, turns everything into a huge feminist argument, and no matter how many cancer societies it allies with, it will always remain a proud display of laziness and bad intentions.

Alex Houdeshell, Staff Writer

Alex Houdeshell is a staff writer for the 2014-2015 Colonel. She is the Design Editor of Ledyard’s Horizons Yearbook, plays JV soccer, runs distance in indoor and outdoor track, and is President of Operation Smile.