EDITORIAL: The dangers of firing up
It’s time for students to wake up. The city is cracking down.
Even as you stand idly by, beer in hand, while furniture burns and bottles are flung at police officers, you are in danger of arrest.
The president of your school and the mayor of your city have joined hands in promising punishments. It’s time to take notice.
Regardless of how you may offend your neighbors, or chip away at the greater student body’s reputation, it’s time to face the facts.
After a weekend of couch burnings and assaults on police officers, an emergency ordinance came down from the city commission to expand reprimands to even those in attendance of the anarchy.
You will be arrested and charged for merely enjoying the spectacle of your classmate’s crimes. Step up and say something.
When one of your friends decides to get wasted in public, commit arson and perpetuate the chaotic stereotype built by the infamous drinking parties, you too suffer the consequences.
Mayor Sharon Tilmann recently demanded for students to police themselves. The city is tired of taking on the burden, and your career won’t end well if this continues.
Central Michigan University President George Ross echoed the mayor in demanding an end to this behavior.
Although the nihilism has been tolerated as cliché college foolishness, we all know what we’re actually here for.
We’re not here to lay waste to the community, and we’re not here to blow off steam when it comes with such violence.
The mindless rituals may detract from the academic excellence needed for this university to survive. The black smoke from your illicit bonfires may disgust your neighbors and damage the homes you’ve shamelessly taken for granted.
But we know those offenses take a back seat to your good time. Smart up and stop the destruction. Learn how to get through college without risking painful court proceedings and dragging our collective name through the mud.
It comes to question if the students who involve themselves in these end-of-the-year rituals of pyromania should even be here in the first place.
The incidents of last weekend should be enraging for those able to take college for what it is – a time to become adults and act like decent human beings.
Too many students at CMU seem to come to this great university with the idea they are indestructible.
While this mentality is common to your average teenager, it’s frustrating to see those pretending to seek knowledge and growth debasing the efforts of the truly motivated.
It is not your right to ruin this place for all of us.
But we’re not telling you to stop having fun. And we’re not judging you.
We just don’t want you, our peers, to face any unwarranted legal trouble because of one outrageous act of college delinquency.
