Georgetown Stance/Counterargument

Although the Washington D.C. officers are doing something good and safe for the community, they are completely taking away the freedom college students have to throw a party if they are of legal age. It is unfortunate that the college is located in a city and so space is limited. However, the rules they are enforcing go against the freedom these college students have a right to. They shouldn't be worrying about the amount of students at a party or how many kegs one party has (Kinzie). Rather, they should be worrying about patrolling the city and locking up bad people who actually commit legitamate crimes. Students are going to party; it's just a fact about college. Enforcing these rules could just turn students off to applying to Georgetown, which is a very far-fetched thought, but if the school is going to regulate something like how many people students are allowed to have at a party it isn't so absurd to think. Susan Kinzie eludes to this possibility stating, "many students say the changes...have pushed social life off campus." The law states that at 21 years of age, people are allowed to legally drink alcohol. If the parties these students are throwing aren't harmful to others around them, affecting the neighbors, and not dangerous then there is no reason the school should regulate these new rules.

Although students should have the freedom to have a party when they of legal age, what are the chances that everyone at the party is actually legal. Many parties are hosted by students of legal age, but are attended by students who are not allowed to drink legally yet. So, even if the students try and say that they will only allow people who are legal to drink, that isn't a definite because underage students always can get in under the radar. Also, by limiting students to only one keg parties, the police could possibly be saving many students from alcohol poisoning and trips to the hospital from drinking way too much. In response to 2nd District Cmdr. Andy Solberg's statement about he'd prefer to protect the entire community, Kinzie states, "rather than hauling students in for public drinking or public urination." Students may say they can control themselves, but everyone knows that when a bunch of friends get together, things can get out of control. If these students are drinking excessive amounts how are they going to be able to control themselves or even the other guests at their party. Because the school is in a city, there is limited space between neighbors. If a family lived next door to a group of college students, obviously the time the family goes to sleep compared to the college students is completely different. Friday, saturday, and sunday aren't the only days students have parties. Many college students have parties in the middle of the week. If a family was trying to sleep because they have to wake up early for school and work the next morning, it would be difficult if the college students were having a party because they would be loud. As much as students try to keep the noise to a minimum for parties, it is inevitable that the noise level will rise to the point where neighbors can hear it. For the protection of the college students themselves and others around them, the police should enforce a more strict policy on college students' parties.