If you're under 21, read BEFORE game

[Ikus]

Boulevarders beware
How SMU has planned to bust you and the organization on your jersey

By The Daily Campus Editorial Board
September 19, 2003


The SMU Police Department and the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission are on a mission to rid the Boulevard of underage drinkers.

Some aspects of their plan are a bit over the top. Starting with the positive, it is commendable to not rope off the Boulevard and have big burly men in black T-shirts, shorts and tennis shoes checking tailgaters’ IDs.

It should also be noted that they considered budget constraints by not distributing Harvard crimson wristbands and marking the under-21 crowd with Yale blue X’s.

While focusing on organizations who distribute alcohol to underage drinkers is also good, the planned punishment is outrageous.

Charging an organization is feasible but to also arrest the president of that particular group is insane.

We can sit here and say that any great leader needs to uphold high values in its members. At the same time, the members are individuals; they may choose not to follow their leader.

An organization’s president should not be responsible if Joe or Jane Idiot in the organization gives alcohol to a minor. The Idiots should go to jail.

Putting a hole in the alcohol-distributing organization’s budget to prevent reoccurrence is smart, but a meteorite is uncalled for.

A fine of up to $4,000 appears to be simply a blatant attempt to get more money from students. Now going undercover to catch under-age drinkers is also an extreme.

How are these “college students” going to choose which booth to visit? The task force should note that organization profiling is also a form of discrimination. We hope that they choose a random sample and not only attend greek organization booths.

If SMU PD really wants to take advantage of its recent undercover authorization, why don’t they have a stakeout in the Dedman Lot 3? Then, they might be able to solve at least one of those auto theft cases.

[Fresh]

What is this about? I can understand not wanting people to drink so much they get sick or endanger their -- or others' -- health, but isn't this a step toward going back to where we were before the Boulevard was created, when SMU was a "dry" (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) campus?

[FloridaMustang]

Wow.. only at SMU. Ikus, give an update and let me know if they actually enforce this crap.

How in the world did SMU PD get undercover authorization anyway?

[giacfsp]

Good plan - take away part of the fun of game day! Make sure people don't want to come back.

I could understand this if last year's pregame celebrations on the Boulevard had turned into brawls or had lots of people getting sick on themselves, but since its inception a few years ago, the Boulevard has been a nice, relaxed place where old friends gather for a couple of beers and a little BBQ, throw around a football and enjoy being a part of SMU. By all means, make sure that is never repeated.

[Stallion]

....the student attendance last night was pathetic for a reasonably big game-think that might have had something to do with it? Any students of fraternity members got some feedback?

[This message has been edited by Stallion (edited 09-21-2003).]

[Corso]

I would think the student attendance was low because this game looked like a mismatch before it even started. If we were playing a "meaningful" game against a team of equal talent, the students would have made a better showing.

That's my guess, anyway.