Mark Hecker has a number of bitter words for the Duke police after they cited his friends for having too many drunks in a car. While I agree that punishing a designated driver is a bad example, I refuse him victimhood in this situation. Clearly someone knew there would be a keg at this "social gathering at (his) house,"--kegs are nasty buggers to get up stairs. And if those drinking indeed "all returned to their rooms" on East Campus, they were almost certainly underage.
Guess what, Mr. Hecker? The University has no responsibility for your illegal activities--you do. If you are going to be getting minors--or anyone--drunk, you should make sure you have a sufficient number of sober drivers to get everyone home, or offer a place to crash. When you serve--or even open--a can of beer, you have already entered into this contract with the alcohol. You serve it, you deal with the consequences, even if it means walking someone home.
The idea that the University should "start providing shuttle service" for keggers is absolutely ridiculous. It is time to stop accepting that drunk driving--or drinking off-campus--is an inevitability, and to instead demand responsibility from the source.
Tierney Ahrold
Trinity '06
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.