LETTER: Publicity will not help two arrested
To the editor
I’m writing in response to the recent front-cover story about two unfortunate USU students arrested for underage drinking. We are all adults here. We’ve all learned countless times of the dangers of alcohol. We have alcohol awareness weeks and programs in high school and even on campus (one’s happening this week, right?). What, then, does this recent event teach us about alcohol and drug abuse? We know that regardless of legal consequences, underage adults will continue to drink. People of all ages will continue to use drugs. These are facts that even the most hardcore educational programs will and cannot reverse.
The question then becomes what we, as society, can do to minimize the painful effects that drug and alcohol abuse can have on an individual and society as a whole. I do not pretend to know the answer to this question, but I know one thing: publishing the drunken escapades of two young men on the front page of their school newspaper will do nothing to help them improve their lives. These individuals, who were explicitly named, will have the article in Wednesday’s paper following them for life.
The problem goes beyond the fact that the individuals and their crimes were named. Now we know that “Oh, that’s that one kid that passed out, ran away from the cops, lied to them and had a bunch of weed in his car.” Although surely the actions of these individuals were in no way commendable, I doubt that our reactions will do anything to improve their situation. They’ll probably be thrown in jail for a few days where they will play cards a lot, after which they will be forced to pay more than $1,000 in fines, after which they may drop out of school and will have the long-lasting effect of a drastically more difficult time finding a job.
This event may prove to ruin these young adults’ lives — I’ve seen it happen before — and the sad part is that it’s because of what we do to punish them and not anything under their control. I guess what I’m trying to say is that when our “cure” for the “disease” becomes worse than the disease itself, maybe it’s time to re-evaluate things.
Justin Jerez