To the Editor:
Tucked in at the end of the recent article on Amarna ("Amarna invites new members," Feb.2), almost as an afterthought, is a quote from Christine Carter '94 explaining that the alcohol policy that applies to Greek houses "will apply to undergraduate societies."
This is not the case at Panarchy, also such a group. One of our express purposes is to provide the Dartmouth community with a social space free of common source alcohol. Therefore, the use of house funds to purchase common source alcohol is explicitly forbidden in our constitution. If Amarna wants to be an alternative to the Greek system in practice rather than in name only, it should adopt the same policy.
The two common criticisms of the Greek system include gender discrimination and demeaning rush and pledge processes. But another aspect which is just as problematic is the dominance of alcohol. Alcohol abuse along with gender inequality contributes to rape and sexual harassment. Alcohol abuse along with demeaning pledge processes contribute to homogeneity and the de-emphasis of the individual. Since the availability of excessive, common source alcohol catalyzes alcohol abuse, common sources are central to many of the problematic aspects of the Greek system. Common source alcohol has no place in any alternative to that system.
Shortly after I came to Dartmouth, the administration sought to revise its alcohol policy to bring it in line with federal regulations. This was the first time the College took any steps to interfere with student alcohol consumption in College-recognized social space outside the residence halls. The outcry by defenders of the Dartmouth "tradition" (of, one is left to conclude, alcohol abuse and alcoholism) was as impassioned as it was pathetic. At Dartmouth, as on many campuses, the availability of excessive alcohol seems to be a necessary condition for a party. What's more, the right of students, whether of age or not, to drink to excess seems at times to be held second to nothing.
Is drinking to excess worth the alcoholism and other health problems risked by the drinker, not to mention the danger it presents to the Dartmouth community?
NATHAN SAUNDERS '94
