Point News, 1995 September 19

              September 1 9 /1 9 9 5 JitoFial page 4
Drinking: driving students
off campus- ... _
The recent attempts of the admin­istration
to curb partying and
drinking on campus seem to have
achieved the desired effect. Stu­dents
have turned to off-campus
locales, such as bars and residences,
for weekend recreation.
Ostensibly, student patronage of
local taverns and the migration of
parties to off-campus houses allows
the liberty to relax while completely
avoiding the conflict which is caused
by on-campus gatherings.
However, while it is perfectly
understandable that the adminis­tration
cannot promote debauchery
on campus, the byproducts of a
campus-wide moratorium on party­ing
may result in consequences
unforeseen by well-intended
admins trators.
Dean of Students, Michael Free­man,
repeatedly insists th a t the
alcohol policy has not been altered.
And, in fact, it has not. Enforcement
of the alcohol policy, however, has
become exponentially more strin­gent
in the early weeks of this
semester, driving students away
from the campus on the weekends.
Because most students live on
campus, off-campus events necessi­tate
transportation to and from the
event. Finding a safe ride to an
event is not a problem. Finding a
safe ride home is. “Last Thursday,
when we played at the Roadhouse,
something like thirteen people
were pulled over by the police for
DUI,” said Larry France, a guitar­ist
and vocalist in the local band
Cyprus Creek.
It is not the responsibility of the
administration to baby its student
body, nor should it be. However,
the problem of drinking and
driving is one which has consis­tently
plagued this campus. In
the past, a balance has existed
between on- and off-campus
gatherings. The new shift to off-campus
locales is likely to result in
an increase in drinking and driv­ing.
In the past few years, St.
Mary’s has seen more than its
share of injuries from alcohol-related
car accidents. It is just a
matter of time before injuries
become fatalities.
There is no arguing th a t it is the
prerogative of the administration to
enforce its regulations as it wishes.
Hopefully, reexamining the far-reaching
effects of preventing
campus parties will lead adminis­trators
to see the potential conse­quences
of encouraging students to
get behind the wheel.
JZlIen CBetfidnyLeddy
Jonathan J. Allen
Editor-in-Chief THE TOINT NEWS
Bethany Leddy and Joey Hipolito
Assistant Editors
Andrew S. Kitchenman
Production Editor
Carleen Treppe
News Editor
Benjamin Wvskida
Features Edi r
Cary FentzlofF
Editor-at-Large
Staff Writers
Katie Edwards
Emily Grimes
Jennifer Chapin Harris
Stacy Hope Alleyne
Karyn Kahler
Debbie Kemp
Sarah Loff
Karen Oakjones
Rebecca Miller
Rebecca Rosano
Vince Rozanskas
Mike Schumacher
Staff Photographers
Elizabeth Rose
Julie Ellis
Woodland Pomeroy
The Point News is published weekly during the academic semester by the students
o f St. Mary’s College of Maryland. The ideas and opinions expressed on its pages
are not necessarily those of the college.
We welcome all readers to submit commentaries and letters to the editor. Submissions
must be sent to The Point News or dropped off at our office in Lower Charles Hall. We
reserve the right to edit submissions in orderto correct errors in spelling and grammar, to
shorten length, orto remove libelous statements. The opinionsexpressedincommentaries
and letters to the editor are solely those ofthe writers.
illustration
by Meg Zorn
Let ims TO the Edttois
Dear Readers,
For the first time in recent memory, The Point News is appearing before the last
week of September. Our new staff felt that it was important to get the newspaper
in the hands of students as soon as possible.
It is our goal to provide our readership with pertinent information in an interesting
fashion. We are open to almost all suggestions, criticism, and assistance, so feel free
to write us letters, or attend our weekly meetings on Tuesdays at 8:15 pm in Lower
Charles Hall. We hope you feel informed.
Sincerely, . *
Joey ttLpo&to
To the Point News,
This letter is addressed specifically
to the gentlemen sitting behind me in
Pete’s in the late afternoon of Sep­tember
7th, and more generally to
the campus community as a whole.
To the person who observed th a t
there are too many “P**king fags” on
this campus I would say this. How
will you feel when you find out that
one of the group you were sitting
with, or your brother, or your cousin,
or your best friend, or perhaps one
day your son comes to you for support
and acceptance in acknowledging that
he is gay? Are you aware (and more
importantly do you care) how much
words can hurt? Why is it still accept­able
on this campus to make callous
comments about gay men and lesbi­ans
when it is clearly not acceptable
to make similar remarks about mem­bers
of racial or religious minorities?
Maybe it’s better to hear the remarks
about members of racial or religious
minorities? Maybe it’s better to hear
the remarks. At least we all know
who and what we are dealing with. I
don’t know.
As the members of this campus
community begin to examine again
our commitment to creating a cohe­sive
community based on valuing
diversity, I hope th a t each individual
on campus will examine her or his
prejudices andmake honest efforts to
overcome them. But you have to care
first, about yourself and about oth­ers.
I hope there are some people out
there who care.
Sincerely,
Celia Rabinowitz
x4267
crabinow@oyster.smcm.edu
Dear Editors:
I am an alumnus and have been
meaning to write this letter for years.
It is to commend President Lewis for
a fine job as head of the College.
Mr. Lewis and I each arrived as
“transfers” the same semester, by
way of upstate New York. I soon
began writing for the student news­paper
(for a while it was called the
Empath). I remember an editorial
th a t complained President Lewis was
doing too much for the future College,
and neglecting the present. Another
student j oumalist said th a t view was
“so true.”
I knew better, but wrote nothing in
President Lewis’s defense. I knew he
was making my future degree worth
more th an it otherwise would be.
Slowly but steadily, he helped make
the school ambitious, with higher
standards for performance. At a time
when many college presidents were
leaving their posts after a few years,
President Lewis stayed the course.
After I graduated, I found almost
everyone who spoke of it to me did so
favorably. One of my first and favor­ite
jobs out of college, a graduate
school internship with the Washing­ton
office of the International City
Management Association, interna­tional
programs, was with a supervi­sor
who had a son a t the College. He
saw the school on my resume and
suggested I be hired.
Many people contributed to the ad­vancement
of the College, and de­serve
credit. Surely President Lewis
has been one of the primary leaders.
Perhaps no one in the world could
have been better suited for the job at
this time. He represents a highly
successful match between an individ­ual
and an institution.
Sincerely,
CalebKriesberg ‘85