Rules might suck, but they beat than anarchy and danger.
That is the only lesson deemed so important that it is poundedinto every single elementary student in this country, and with goodreason.
Well, I suppose elementary students learn two other concepts:America is the best country on earth, and eating paste is very,very bad.
But I digress.
Although I've always accepted that rules are an unavoidableevil, I used to favor the loosest possible interpretations and theslightest possible penalties for offenders. For example, while Iunderstand that alcohol must be forbidden in most dorms, I alwaysthought that the "good" RAs turned a blind eye.
Rules are meant to be broken, right?
Wrong.
I spent my Fall Break visiting my brother -- a freshman at St.Joseph's College in Rennselaer, Ind. -- and gaining new respect forenforcement.
You see, people say that Ball State is a party school. They sayour "dry campus" policy is a joke and beer is easier to find herethan lady bugs in October.
They might be right, but they have no idea how bad it couldbe.
Maybe it's the cold weather in northern Indiana. Maybe it's thetiny town of Rennselaer, which boasts only about 4,000 residentsand not many attractions. Maybe it's the culture of the university,which actually has a bar in its student center.
Whatever the reason, St. Joe's puts Ball State to shame.
At night, my brother's dorm becomes the site of a seeminglyendless party. Students, apparently knowing no fear, brazenly carrytheir beers through the hallways. Unfortunately, all of drinking'snegative side effects also fill the building: puke, smoke andlate-night noise.
My brother's room is fairly depressing during the day. It'sabout half as big as a room in LaFollette, and the pipe on theceiling and lack of natural light make it resemble sailor'squarters on a submarine.
But at night, the din makes it even worse.
I am accustomed to staying awake until the wee hours of themorning, but when I finally do crawl beneath the covers at 3 a.m.,I expect reasonable peace, not drunks running, yelling and shoutingoutside my door.
I don't mean to suggest that St. Joe's is a bad place. Thecampus is gorgeous, the classes are rigorous and the small size ofthe school makes for great interaction with faculty.
I'm sure the school even has quiet hours and rules againstdrinking in the dorms, but because the rules aren't enforced,students throw caution to the wind and behave as wildly as theychoose.
I love the chance to have a good time at the end of the week,but I returned to Ball State glad beyond imagining because studentswho drink here are forced to either be discreet in their rooms orventure far from campus. The penalties might seem harsh forsomething as simple as being caught with a couple of beers, but itkeeps our residence halls livable.
St. Joe's reminded me that anarchy is bad.
Write to Stephen at stevehj@mac.com
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