Lately, there's been enough talk on this campus about the impending destruction of the "Greek system-as-we-know-it" to make any conspiracy theorist proud.
That's not to say that such concern is unwarranted. As Alan Arkin said in "Catch-22," "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you." It doesn't take a genius to imagine the slippery slope of hand stamps and tighter keg regulations leading to an ultimate crackdown on Greek parties altogether and a very different social scene on this campus in the near future.
Champions of the Greek system will defend it in pointing to the benefits it brings to the Dartmouth community, including socially- conscious programming, philanthropy and a membership support system that on a campus fragmented by the Dartmouth Plan is unrivaled by any other existing institution.
But we all know that those parts of the system are not currently in any danger. What we are really talking about here, clear and simple, is access to alcohol. Maybe it was inevitable, but someone's going to take away the free-flowing kegs we've grown to know and love, and it's going to be sooner rather than later. This prospect has a whole lot of us very worried. After all, currently 52% of Dartmouth students are members of a sorority, fraternity or coed house, and many additional students rely on the Greek system as a primary form of weekend entertainment.
Any mention of a threat to alcohol consumption within the Greek system results in a self-conscious defiance on the part of many otherwise reasonable, law-abiding members of our community. At first glance their argument seems a little indefensible. After all, who are we trying to kid, we're talking about underage drinking here -- a clear violation of the law, whether we like it or not. And despite the Libertarian heritage of our home state (Come on, Dean Pelton, Live Free or Die!) we are an Ivy League institution under constant scrutiny, with an "Animal House" legacy that is an embarrassment to the administration, albeit a badge of honor to students and alumni alike. There's really not much room for argument here.
But a little pragmatism and perhaps a little cynicism demonstrate that reason and yes, common sense, tell us that we would be wise to leave some parts of the social aspect of the Greek system alone. The basic fact is that college students drink, have always drank and probably always will drink. Not all college students -- of course not. But many, perhaps even the majority, consider alcohol consumption, at least occasional, an enjoyable activity and, indeed, a way of life.
Why substance use (and abuse) and college life are so inextricably linked is an important question for another day. The simple truth is that it is a phenomenon far greater than our own sheltered community. Show me a "dry campus" that has been subjected to administrative crackdowns on alcohol use, and I'll show you a campus where marijuana smoke clouds dorm rooms like an English fog. At city schools that have no centralized social outlet -- or even some which do, like the University of Pennsylvania -- false identification is as key to student life as an ATM card.
Clearly, the social scene provided by the Greek system is far from ideal. There is no denying that there remain issues that need to be dealt with. But for the sake of argument, let's consider the benefits of drinking in the basement of a fraternity, sorority, or coed house. These arguments may not be new but they are worth noting.
First of all, our current Greek system is egalitarian and non-elitist. Members and nonmembers alike will tell you that the single best aspect about the Dartmouth CFS system is the open parties rule. And that's not just because we like free beer. Though no one ever claimed beer pong as a community builder, there's something really cool about having the option of going to a party at any house. Not to say that open parties break down all walls, but the potential is there. Having open parties presents the Greek system as another option for socializing on the weekend for the entire student body.
Second of all, drinking at a CFS house is safer than many of the alternatives. This can be a difficult case to make because clearly there are situations where such an activity is not safe. But the alcohol consumption at Greek house allows students to drink with their friends nearby, and home a short walk away.
It's more reality than scare tactics to point out the almost inevitable results of curtailing Greek partying. First of all, anyone who's ever been a freshman here will tell you how fast limiting CFS drinking would send alcohol back to the dorms. Besides driving non-drinkers crazy this surely would create brand new liability problems, for though Safety and Security would surely do their best, they can't catch us all.
Curtailing Greek parties would also likely send large scale alcohol use off campus, widening the gap between first years and upperclassmen, increasing the appeal of off-campus housing, and leaving keg policing to the jurisdiction of the local authorities. An even more sobering result is a likely increase in drunk driving, especially during the winter. Drug use would also probably sky rocket.
These results are all speculation, of course, but the bottom line is that student behavior cannot be ignored in creating responsible policy. The simple truth is that neither the administration nor the Upper Valley can possibly provide the one kind of social option of which constant demand is ensured: the kind involving alcohol. The College and the student body may evolve and even "improve," but some things never change.
Clearly, it's time to make some tough decisions about the behavior that can be tolerated with great concession to legality and liability. While the administration may be unable to permit the level of underage consumption that currently goes on, it must not be blind the possible repercussions of decentralizing "partying" when it cannot possibly provide suitable alternatives -- and the benefits of a system that has served us well, literally, for years.
