DOUGLAS HARDMAN
Opinions Editor
We all have a little party animal in us. We like to dance, stay up late until we see the morning sun, drink and have good times with friends. But, it seems that the good times will have to end early as the new Virginia Wesleyan policy slashes the party time limit from 2:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. So how does this affect the student body? Personally, I do not see the point. Is this time cut going to actually solve anything? Parties on campus are still going to happen, they are going to be just as rambunctious as they were before, people will still get wasted, take off their clothes or do other stupid things. I guess now the only difference is it ends at one o’clock. Parties already have to be registered and last only four hours. Who really goes to a party at 9p.m.? If we’re going to be honest: no one! Especially for 21 year olds, this time change is ridiculous. At least on campus, they have a safe place to crash and don’t have to drive anywhere. With parties ending at 1am, and if they still want to drink, they are tempted to go to a local bar, which is generally open until 2a.m., meaning they would have to drive somewhere drunk or call a cab. If parties on campus were still allowed to end at 2a.m., it would definitely lower the risk of drinking and driving for students on campus.
Shortening the time a party ends seems a little ridiculous anyways. It iss like setting a curfew for adults–pointless. Even as kids we did not follow curfew; we waited until our parents were asleep and broke out our video games and comic books and stayed up late. What makes anyone think this time change is actually going to alter anything? As a smart yet rebellious generation, we understand why this type of policy is being put into place, but seeing as it is a ridiculous policy, we are going to elect to ignore it. It is not because we have problems with authority (well, maybe), but because it is just really absurd. It is more than two weeks into the semester and the new curfew has not even changed anything. People are still leaving parties around 2 a.m., still wandering around campus, while continuing to be loud and obnoxious. Now, formally speaking, I can see the purpose of enacting a policy like this. If a party is too loud at 2 a.m. while someone is trying to sleep before an exam the next morning, I can see how the curfew would be beneficial. If people are screaming and yelling at each other because they are wasted at 2 a.m., I see the disturbance. Situations like that are understandable, but wouldn’t it still be an issue if parties are too loud at 1 a.m.? Aren’t students still trying to sleep? Or do students only fall asleep after one? Unlikely, considering college turns you into insomniac zombie. Again, no win-win.
If we’re going to be serious about cracking down on campus parties, we cannot just turn back the clock one hour and hope everyone simmers down when we tell them to stop. We are adults, for one, so there is no use trying to wrangle us in. And, to be quite honest, I do not see the reason to try and crack down on parties. As long as no has died or burned a building down or caused a riot, parties on campus are fine. For non-party people, plug in your headphones and listen to the sounds of the rainforest (but you are missing out on the fun).
We are adults, between 18 and 22 years old. We want to party, have a good time, dance if we want to and just be crazy. Yeah, we are here to learn, but why shouldn’t we have some fun once class lets out? Implementing strict party times does two things: inhibits us and frustrates us.
Let’s face it, college parties are loud, obnoxious and intoxicated. Changing the time they are supposed to end will not change this fact. It may even end up causing parties to be louder and more obnoxious.
This is the time for us to create awesome and, hopefully, memorable experiences. We are the youngest we will ever be in this moment, so let us college kids party our hearts out until 2 a.m.