Why USI should stay ‘dry’

Even though USI is a dry campus, alcohol use is rampant.

In my opinion, alcohol should not be such a big part of college life, and in response to last week’s opinion that campus should not remain “dry,” I respectfully disagree.    

In several of my classes, drinking has been joked about and sometimes even encouraged.

Walk across the UC and it’s impossible to avoid overhearing what happened at the latest party. Sounds more like a “moist” campus to me. When did drinking alcohol become a rite of passage? I find it a disturbing occurrence.

Not only is drinking under the age of 21 illegal, but it’s also dangerous to your personal health.

As young adults, we sometimes feel that we are immortal. We are not. Alcohol affects every system in the body, permanently killing various cells in the brain, eating away the lining of the throat and not to mention the liver damage.

It’s a serious drug no matter what age you are. Binge drinking kills students every year, and that’s a very popular activity at USI.

I’ve spoken to several under age students who fondly recall blacking out on a weekly basis due to binge drinking.

To those of you out there, that’s bad!

Another risk of alcohol use is addiction. Alcoholism is one of the most serious addictions out there, and those that begin drinking at an early age are much more likely to suffer from it.

Aside from health factors, drug use can hurt your personal/professional life.     

Professionally, drinking affects performance in classes and on the job. Personally, using any drug damages relationships.

People make horrible and potentially life changing mistakes under the influence.

College isn’t a place to ruin your life by developing an addiction or permanently damaging your body.

We go to college to make our futures great. Why would we want to jeopardize that future?

I am aware that a portion of the student population is over the age of 21, and to them a dry campus isn’t really fair.

The solution: move off campus, and live with other adults.

Alcohol is a dangerous drug, and should be treated as such.

If you or someone you know is drinking too much, craving alcohol, blacking out, unable to go without alcohol or experiencing withdrawal symptoms from lack of alcohol, you should contact the counseling center.