Take this seriously, at least for the next five minutes while you read this post that in one way or another is related to you.
I am not a big fan of irresponsible drinking. I don't even like talking about it. Yet, because of what I have seen happening around me lately, I have decided to do the school a small favor by sending this message across. I hope that you can really reflect on this life-threatening matter.
Dear friends, have you ever asked yourself: how much did you drink at each social event or party? A little? A shot? A bottle?
Let's roll with the statistics. According to the Core Institute, an organization that surveys college drinking practices, 300,000 of today's college students will eventually die of alcohol related causes, including drunk-driving accidents, cirrhosis of liver, cancers, and heart disease.
Well, mates, you may think that number does not apply to you; you may say you know how much you are drinking. Now, can you recall how many shots you took the last time you when for drinking?
Many students think they can relax and hang out better if they drink more. The reality is - if you happen to stop sipping for a second and look around - people do not drink heavily so they can enjoy more. In fact, only a few (normally the same few) who get trashed at parties, lose control and made a fool out of themselves in the public. You call that relax and hang out?
On top of that, you become somebody else's burden. You think it's no one else's business how much you drink? Think again.
Your brains are not fully at your command when you are drunk, same goes to your body. If you lose your keys, you need your roommate to let you in; if you injure yourself somewhere along the way, you need somebody else to take care of you.
Studies have solid proofs that one person's drinking habit can affect an average of five other persons other than the drinker (Factsontap.org).
Worse still, if you are injured or permanently impaired, your parents and spouses are the ones who have to worry for you the most. So you still think it is no one else's business?
Let's be realistic. You drink, you puke, you get hangover, you miss classes, you don't do well - you are wasting your time here. Your parents did not send you here to drink, remember that.
We are humans, our bodies are fragile as it is. Please do not hurt yourself that way.
I do not even want to go into issues with alcohol poisoning and death. That's nasty, yet, it happens.
If you call yourself a good friend, kindly watch for your friends at social events. I cannot imagine how cruel it is to leave someone who has passed out at a corner. Do not assume that your friend is just passed out and just leave him or her aside. If it so happens, check for response. No matter how badly one is drunk, he or she should be able to respond to external stimuli.
If you find that your friend is not responsive at all, don't delay to call for help. Most alcohol-related death sprung from unattended individuals who were left behind. Watch "Haze" (available for free on Hulu.com) and see the reality for yourself.
We call St. Cloud State a party school, but are we proud of it? What are we doing in order to yield the decade-long trend?
Dear Student Government, we have talked on raising the athletes fees, and now the smoking policy; what are we doing regarding this life-threatening issue? Please don't wait till things get serious before we take actions.
Dear faculty, have you really educated this generation in terms of being responsible for their own wellness?
And dear parents, have you really cared? Are you watching closely what your children are doing with their lives?
It almost happened, but I really do not wish to see any life on this campus being taken away because we did not pay enough attention on this tangible matter.
To all of us, do think before you drink, because there are really way to many things to consider.
