Drinking Ourselves Broke
Why CMC's Alcohol Policies are gambling with more than $13,000 of your money
Chase Gray
Last Updated: 12/30/09 Section: Features
If SUNY-Geneseo can be sued (very likely successfully) for a death that occurred at an off-campus fraternity, even a reincarnated Johnny Cochran would be hard-pressed to save CMC from a significant settlement.
I'm not attacking CMC's drinking culture, but in light of recent events here and recent lawsuits around the nation, I would hope that the administration and ASCMC will reevaluate their stance toward alcohol on our campus. The goal is not to unreasonably restrict drinking, but to minimize the college's potential liability in the event of an alcohol-related serious injury or death on campus. Fortunately, this is not as oxymoronic as it sounds.
There are a few simple things we can do to decrease our financial liability without changing many of our current drinking habits. First, we should start enforcing the rules we have. CMC already has an alcohol policy in place that pretty fairly bridges the gap between the law and our unique culture. Second, we should better enforce entrance into parties. If a townie comes on campus, drinks here, and dies, we would still be open to litigation on the grounds of accessory liability. Better regulation and enforcement of ID cards and guest passes would keep townies out and further minimize our liability, not to mention lower the chance of your keg, long board, computer, or any other valuable item getting stolen.
Finally, a recent article in the Claremont Portside offered a very sound suggestion: ASCMC needs to stop providing kegs at parties. If a CMC student dies, ASCMC could easily find itself listed as a co-defendant, especially if there is any evidence that the student drank from an ASCMC-provided keg. Besides, who really drinks that much from the kegs, anyway? Most of us seem to prefer drinking our own alcohol. Sure, we might have a beer or two from the keg, but I'm sure we'd find a way to compensate if it wasn't there. Additionally, the costs saved by not purchasing kegs could be used to pay for other events. One North Quad resident familiar who has had a hand in planning many of the parties this year estimates that ASCMC spends about $200 each weekend on kegs. By that account we could save about $6,000 each year. I'd rather have a whole battalion of Civil War re-enactors for one TNC than a keg that I may or may not ever drink out of for thirty TNCs.
In the end, we must realize that unsound alcohol policies risk our money. When Tyler Cross died in 2006 from alcohol poisoning at the University of Texas, his fraternity was found liable and ordered to pay his family $16.2 million in restitution. If CMC were to suffer a similar tragedy, the school would owe more than $13,000 for each one of us. Are we willing to risk drinking ourselves broke?
I'm not attacking CMC's drinking culture, but in light of recent events here and recent lawsuits around the nation, I would hope that the administration and ASCMC will reevaluate their stance toward alcohol on our campus. The goal is not to unreasonably restrict drinking, but to minimize the college's potential liability in the event of an alcohol-related serious injury or death on campus. Fortunately, this is not as oxymoronic as it sounds.
There are a few simple things we can do to decrease our financial liability without changing many of our current drinking habits. First, we should start enforcing the rules we have. CMC already has an alcohol policy in place that pretty fairly bridges the gap between the law and our unique culture. Second, we should better enforce entrance into parties. If a townie comes on campus, drinks here, and dies, we would still be open to litigation on the grounds of accessory liability. Better regulation and enforcement of ID cards and guest passes would keep townies out and further minimize our liability, not to mention lower the chance of your keg, long board, computer, or any other valuable item getting stolen.
Finally, a recent article in the Claremont Portside offered a very sound suggestion: ASCMC needs to stop providing kegs at parties. If a CMC student dies, ASCMC could easily find itself listed as a co-defendant, especially if there is any evidence that the student drank from an ASCMC-provided keg. Besides, who really drinks that much from the kegs, anyway? Most of us seem to prefer drinking our own alcohol. Sure, we might have a beer or two from the keg, but I'm sure we'd find a way to compensate if it wasn't there. Additionally, the costs saved by not purchasing kegs could be used to pay for other events. One North Quad resident familiar who has had a hand in planning many of the parties this year estimates that ASCMC spends about $200 each weekend on kegs. By that account we could save about $6,000 each year. I'd rather have a whole battalion of Civil War re-enactors for one TNC than a keg that I may or may not ever drink out of for thirty TNCs.
In the end, we must realize that unsound alcohol policies risk our money. When Tyler Cross died in 2006 from alcohol poisoning at the University of Texas, his fraternity was found liable and ordered to pay his family $16.2 million in restitution. If CMC were to suffer a similar tragedy, the school would owe more than $13,000 for each one of us. Are we willing to risk drinking ourselves broke?
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