Puzzling words

Dartmouth College President Jim Yong Kim and Acting Dean of the College Sylvia Spears gave a press conference on Tuesday prior to a presentation about new alcohol and sexual assault reduction initiatives the administration is planning to implement. At this press conference, as reported in The Dartmouth, President Kim had critical words for the way the local police handle cases involving intoxicated students. "I think the current approach of the Hanover Police Department is putting our students in danger every single night," he is quoted as saying.

Huh? The police department is not forcing underage students to drink illegally. It's certainly not providing alcohol to minors. What it is doing is enforcing New Hampshire state law. I honestly don't see how that imperils undergrads. Some students loudly insist that they will refrain from calling for help for a classmate in need out of fear of the legal repercussions for the incapacitated student. If you don't call for medical assistance for a classmate whose life may be in danger to avoid a citation for underage drinking--a violation that in New Hampshire carries no more venom than a speeding ticket--then you are an idiot.

The responsibility for choosing to break the law--and for facing the consequences of that choice, should there be any--rests solely on the shoulders of the students who make those choices. When it comes to illegal consumption of alcohol, the only thing putting Dartmouth students in danger is those selfsame Dartmouth students. I was surprised and disappointed to see President Kim add his voice to the chorus of those who would shirk this responsibility.

Erratum: In my most recent post I gave the Dartmouth football team's 2010 Ivy League record as 4-3. This was, unfortunately, wishful thinking on my part. Their Ivy record was actually 3-4.