You Gotta Fight for Your Right to Party (or Just Do it Anyway)

What comes to mind when you think of college? In all honesty, I don't think of intellectual individuals with glasses sipping coffee and arguing the pros and cons of some far-fetched scenario like some would. I think about the parties. Not because I'm interested in attending them. I'm actually not in the least bit, but I think of parties just because that's what college has become renowned for. Alcohol has become the leading staple in the majority of college dorms and houses. Parties for "Thirsty Thursday," parties on game day, and parties just because they can. This lifestyle has become so common, but what the people at This American Life want to know . . . Why do they do it?
From a survey taken by several hundred college students across the United States, the number one party school is determined each year. This episode takes place throughout the campus of Penn State, the number one party school of 2009. This American Life sends a man and woman to interview college students, residents, college administrators, and local business owners about the newly claimed title; the results are surprising.
As the episode opens, loud screams and laughs can be heard in the background already setting the scene. It's only ten o'clock at night as the narrator describes drunken students stumbling down the streets, taking a pit stop to"water" a nearby resident's flowers. According to longtime resident, "it's typical." One can only imagine the things he would see on a night like this when an estimated 75% of students are drinking. But why do they drink so much? One student confesses, "We like the way it makes us feel," and another states, "If there was a 'drunk button', I would buy one." The audience learns from this scene that since alcohol leads to impaired judgement, fights, injuries, assaults, unwanted sexual experiences, getting behind in school work or even missing class are all very common.
From the stories told by students and average statistics, it seems like going to a "party school" is something I want to steer clear from as I make preparations for my future. The slurred speech and gibberish that the interviewed students present one after another creates an uncomfortable feeling. Knowing what potential nights like these hold, by placing oneself in any party scene automatically admits him into danger.  The students seem to treat college life as if it were microcosm where nothing can go wrong by living the "you only live once" lifestyle. Even the school seems to promote the partying idea by the easy accessibility to alcohol and the seemingly little punishment. The students appear to express very little self-awareness and responsibility making it easy for dangerous situations to arise. It is only the great hope of many that these students will soon become one with reality by taking responsibility for their actions and moving forward with their lives.