Last night the students of College of Charleston recreated the flash rave, that epic event that no one thought would ever happen in the rotunda of Addlestone Library. Like last time, there were people dressed up in costumes (even a gorilla suit), sweaty bodies were lifted up and carried over the crowd, paper was thrown from the second floor balconies, “C OF C” was chanted, and there was a lot of techno music. Well-organized and rallied by student body president Seaton Brown, the rave was a valiant effort to reenact the awesomeness that occurred during finals last semester. The thing is, a good thing like a solitary and spontaneous flash rave in a college library cannot be replicated. If it’s not spontaneous, it’s lost its luster, and if it’s mostly comprised of a bunch of drunk freshmen who were never planning on studying that night, it’s just annoying to those studying for finals the next day. Granted, the original flash rave is College of Charleston’s claim to fame, aside from shrimp running on treadmills. Yeah, It got media coverage. It even made it into Maxim. It’s just kind of like the sequel to a really good movie — no matter how hard you try, if the first one was stellar, the next just ain’t gonna cut it. Now, don’t get me wrong. The rave last night was definitely a rousing good time for everyone who joined, and in terms of size and energy levels, it met the bar and then some. Shit was bananas. People were leaving with smiles plastered on their red, sweaty faces. Wallets, phones, and toenails were left back in the crazy pit, but it’s OK, because for most it was worth it. My premonition is that next time, there will be a blockade of angry librarians, public safety officers, and cracked-out studiers ready to put an end to Flash Rave 3 and willing to put up more of a fight than just keeping the lights on. But they’ll probably be trampled, too. After all, majority always wins, especially when it comes to ravers. —Hadley Lyman
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