“Banning Beer at Hughes Solves Nothing”
“Beer. The cause of, and solution to, all life’s problems.” –
Homer Simpson.
Beer, liquid bread, manna of the gods, the devil’s juice,
whatever you call it, has been causing a ruckus here at jolly old
CSU. Apparently, the decree from on high is that $5 pints of 3.2
percent alcohol by volume beer at football games are bad. I
couldn’t agree more. Five bucks for a pint of 3.2 percent beer is
grand theft alcohol. But that act of larceny is the status quo at
every professional sports arena in the country. So, when the
huddled masses of CSU students wanted beer at football games, they
could simply put one on layaway and enjoy it next week. The system
worked.
But all is not well in Ramland. The powers that be think that $5
cups of 3.2 percent beer are so bad they just won’t sell them
anymore. So now, if students want to get a nice buzz while a team
named for a common rodent scores 30 points on the home team, they
will have to do it before they enter the friendly confines of Sonny
Lubick Field at Hughes Stadium. Is anyone out there charmingly
innocent enough to believe that not selling alcohol at Hughes will
keep people from drinking heavily? Right, and maybe Ralph Nader
will get elected if we all believe in ourselves and eat all our
vegetables.
College students will drink. Alcohol is ingrained in university
culture. Student drinking is not unique to CSU, or Colorado, or
America. Banning weak beer at one venue is not going to stem the
tide of liquor.
We have been tragically shown the results of binge drinking, and
I for one applaud the administration for trying to take some action
to curb this epidemic. But actions taken have to make sense. CSU
President Larry Penley recently told ABC news that, “We are sincere
in our desire to address the issue of substance abuse head on.” I
do not doubt his sincerity, and I’m glad that we have a president
who is willing to take action when action is needed. But head on?
Not even close.
For an example of a more direct action, look at the Greek
community. The student presidents voted to remove alcohol from the
few houses that still allowed it. Binge drinking can be especially
prevalent in big Greek houses, so this vote is a major step in the
right direction, especially if the Greek organizations make a real
commitment to keeping their houses dry. Only time will tell if all
the members of Greek life are sincere in their pledge to fight
alcohol abuse. I am cautiously optimistic that they are heading in
the right direction.
But back to Hughes. Who among us has the cash to actually get
drunk off of $5 cups of 3.2 percent beer? So whom, then, does this
ban really affect? Alumni and other fans with real jobs. How much
revenue will the university lose from selling beer? The official
line is less than six figures. But, according to last Thursday’s
Collegian, how will that loss be made up? Possibly in student fees.
It used to be that students who chose to could pay to drink at
games. Now, all students may have to pay to not drink at games.
College is expensive enough today. Why the university is cutting
off a source of revenue when times are so tight is beyond me.
Giving us the bill for that choice infuriates me. I urge everyone
to join the Associated Students of CSU in lobbying the
administration to makes its decision quickly, and bring the booze
back to Hughes.
Matt Hitt is a sophomore theatre major. His column runs in the
Collegian every other Monday.
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