Empath, 1984 October 16

              P a g e 5 THE EMPATH O c t o b e r 16, 1 9 8 4
Editorials
WHERE ARE THE LETTERS?
The Empath is the newspaper of
the students of St. Mary's College.
It is a means to provide informa­tion
and exchange views, comments,
and praises within the college com­munity.
In this it reflects the
open-minded forum that charac­terizes
a liberal arts college.
But to function well we need
input from our readers. And we
have a special place for it too -
the Letters to the Editor column.
This column is reserved every week
for your comments and opinions. It
can be used to express criticism of
the paper, a note about something
that has or has not occured, or any­thing
that strikes your fancy.
However, if no one cares or bothers
to write, what good is the column?
Is the lack of responses or com­ments
indicative of growing stu­dent
apathy? I think not. St.
Mary's over the past two years has
seen tremendous growth in student
activity, involvement, and spirit.
Yet for some reason this lively
feeling is not being expressed in
le t t e r s .
It is the obligation of you, the
students, to use this space as you
see fit. But if it isn't used,
then the consequences also rest
with you. The Empath provides this
column as a medium for you. Use
it. --M.S.
Letters to the Editor
Contribution to Abuse
Much has been written and said
about the violation and abuse of
SMC's alcohol policy by its stu­dents.
But does all the blame rest
with the student body?
Alcohol abuse cannot be
entirely the fault of St. Mary's
College, especially when the
college is part of a county with
extremely permissive attitudes
toward alcohol. In St. Mary's
County, drinking is an established
tradition. Alcohol is easily
available to anyone. The saying
goes that if you can see over the
counter, you are old enough to
buy.
This availability has a number
of bad effects, on students and on
the community in general. First,
there is the obvious violation of
the law as bars and stores sell to
underage students. Second, it
increases patronage of local bars,
after which students must often
make their way home in an inebria­ted
condition. This is not safe
College Press
in a county where over 80 % of car
accidents are alcohol-related.
Third, as long as stores and bars
continue to sell to underage
students, the students will take
advantage of this opportunity.
And yet what can be done with a
business community that refuses to
obey the law? They don't seem to
feel any legal obligations, even
after some were fined for
violations this summer. The
profit motive of selling to a
large number of underage students
is simply too attractive.
The local bars and stores in
St. Mary's County must be made to
realize that they have a moral
responsibility toward helping SMC
regulate its alcohol policy,
instead of contributing to its
abuse. If the county will not e n ­force
the state laws, then perhaps
we should ask the state to
interfere, if only for the p r o t e c ­tion
of SMC students.
— M.S.
I S& \T, NllLO, m GOT THR& Ulem TO FlSfiSR K my to throw out mm vsnm n » a ia
This space is devoted
to all those who have
no opinion whatsoever,
• E/M
F&CKV MTN. Cpe fS
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