by John Murray II

I am writing this letter in response to J. Michael Rodriguez’s Oct. 20 article Alcohol to blame for SIUC dropouts. Mr. Rodriguez quotes Barb Fijolek, who states (alcohol) is a factor in 40 percent of all academic problems and 28 percent of dropouts here at SIUC. The article goes on to blame alcohol for causing students to miss classes lowering their grades and as a result, flunk out of school.

I read this article many times and can’t help but think that blaming alcohol for the irresponsibility of college students is a grave mistake. Alcohol is an inanimate object that, if consumed responsibly and carefully, can help students relax and give them a sense of well being.

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My question is this:If the article can blame a mindless social lubricant for the horrid actions of a few immature students, then why can’t we attribute the successes of the majority of responsible drinkers to the use of alcohol?

I realize that this is a stupid question. This argument, no matter how ridiculous it may seem, is essentially the same as the DE’s article blaming alcohol for poor student performance. Alcohol has no mind of its own and cannot force anyone to do anything at any time, period.

Alcohol does not skip classes, drive impaired or drop out of school, but irresponsible people do. The students at SIUC are legal adults and should be treated as such. If they receive bad grades because they spend too much time partying, then they have only themselves to blame for the bad grades that are sure to follow. If they drink too much and get behind the wheel, the impending accident is no one’s fault but their own. No bottle of liquor has ever forced anyone to act stupid, and it never will.

Responsible adults know this. Blaming alcohol for bad decision-making only gives irresponsible people an excuse for their actions and treats adults like children.