Fight for your right

The Indiana Senate has just declared Jihad on our party.\nNow, whenever someone buys a keg of beer in Indiana, they must give their name, address, date of birth and signature, just in case any monkeyshines might arise from its use. If the keg is found at a party with underage drinking there is a $500 fine and possibly 60 days in jail, not to mention all the other citations that will surely follow.\nCars require registration. Guns require registration. Does Keystone Light really belong in that company? Do we truly need to legislatively deny Joe Senior from terrorizing a young freshman by handing them a frothy cup of Bud Light? \nApparently, yes.\nWell done, Indiana Senate! As with many other federal and state government actions, you've successfully attempted to eradicate unwanted activity without engaging in any worthwhile dialogue about the real issue. By doing so, you've made us want it more.\nBoo-yah!\nNo, let's not acknowledge drinking as a cultural institution of the college lifestyle. No, let's not talk about teaching tolerance and responsible drinking as a means of preventing drunk-driving, rape, alcohol poisoning and other damages that result from alcohol. Instead, let's just pass another law that inflates its chest in an attempt to ward-off evil-doers.\nTrack those kegs!\nAnd don't worry about those cases of beer or fifths of cheap booze, or six-packs, or forties or all of those ingredients that make jungle juice -- they'll never be used at a party. And if they are, you can make us register all of those as well, thereby solving the problem.\nCome on, we're college kids! We didn't get here by sitting on our asses and letting the system beat us down! By God, this is America and as Americans we've been trained at an early age to utilize every opportunity we can; to claw our way to the top of the bar and grind our butts into the crotch of freedom! That's how we got this far! We just see this law as another bump on the proverbial road that leads to Duffland. Keg, case or shot, we're getting wasted!\nAlcohol is enjoyed on a responsible basis here at IU, yet it is tainted by this notion that students just want to do a keg-stand and fall down the stairs.\nThe Harvard School of Health reports that 23.6 percent of college males and 9.9 percent of females have drank excessively in the previous two weeks. Of those, 90 percent reported a hangover, forty-six percent got behind in their schoolwork (compared to six percent for normal drinkers), and 22 percent had unprotected sex (compared to four percent). All of those surveyed said they engaged in this activity three or more times in those two weeks, and I'll bet that's not because they had access to a keg of beer. (http://www.centurycouncil.org/campus/a101/statistics.cfm)\nNo, that's Darwinism.\nDon't punish the responsible majority of students for the actions of their irresponsible peers whose binge drinking is primarily an act of rebellion rather than one of self-enjoyment. Most of us are not having a beer to accelerate negligent behavior and we are looking out for each other's safety. We are here to get down, get a little crazy and do some things that we may regret.\nAnd that's ok. Why? Because we are also here to make a future for ourselves by learning, and we will only learn what from what we experience, not from which we are protected.\nInstead of checking up on our kegs of beer, check up on our safety. Commend those who responsibly throw parties and look out for the freshmen who've never had a few.\nDon't make us fight for our right.\nWe just want to party.