Fight for your right to... party?

You would have to be very naive to believe that teenagers would avoid partying once they get to college. Georgetown University, known for their strong academics, is no exception. I understand why the school and the police would want to limit how rowdy the Georgetown parties become; when students are close to destroying the college housing and constantly disturbing the peace, there needs to be some restrictions so that no one is bothered. However, the new rules that Georgetown University are enforcing are having the opposite effect; they are pushing students away. It is safer to have students party in an area that is close and separated from any dangers or disturbances outside of the school. Students are going to move elsewhere for their entertainment, and as Camille Kolstad mentioned, she does not feel safe walking home from the bars at night. If students are distancing themselves from the school, it would be harder to reach the students if certain accidents were to occur. The amount of work it takes to keep party environments together is becoming strenuous due to the new regulations. How many twenty-one year old students want to spend their weekend babysitting students having a party? Kayleigh Brown, a sophomore at Georgetown University, mentions campus life relying too much on alcohol and the consequences, including students ending up in the hospital; still, "you can't just suddenly clomp down, put all these rules in after letting people do whatever they want for so long" (qtd in Kinzie). College kids will be what they are, and if there are going to be new regulations, they should be introduced over a longer period of time so students will have time to adjust. That way, they won't rebel against the administration that is trying to keep them safe and out of jail.

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Let's face it, college can get a little crazy sometimes. Police aren't new to finding students having off campus parties in some house ten to twenty minutes from campus. It's perfectly normal until students begin to cause disturbances that could be easily avoided. "We would prefer that the college kids control their own actions . . . but if they can't or they won't, we'll lock them up," says Andy Solberg, a second district commander in D.C. (qtd in Kinzie). I completely agree with the fact that if young adults can't control how much liquor they shove down their throats or how wild they decide to get at a party, then they should have to deal with the consequences. It's similar to punishments when we were in grade school: if we did something wrong, we get our privileges taken away. As kids, we never tried to sign petitions just so we can get out of time out and play outside. Now, I understand that the rules are a little abrasive, but we want to avoid destroying private property and disrupting the peace of individuals who live on and off campus. Administrators work hard to keep campuses safe and lively so that students have a place exciting enough to keep them from excessively drinking; however, it's becoming a useless effort since students will drink until their livers give out, anyway. (qtd in Kinzie). The students can hate the police and school all they want, but their whining is not going to change the situation; they are causing problems that is dangerous for themselves and others. When the students of Georgetown University learn to party without getting the police involved every five minutes, then I'll agree that the school needs to relax on their partying laws and allow the kids to be kids.