Policing the Campus

Are the media reps who attend news conferences stupid or do they just ask truly stupid questions at news conferences?

There’s a major drug bust at SDSU involving dealers—drug traffickers—and the media reps ask about violating the privacy rights of the students; the comparison of drug usage today to the 1960s, when the college President was a college student; and the lack of prior notification to the faculty and staff regarding the undercover operation that led to the arrest of almost 100 criminals at SDSU.

As the President of the college stated, these individuals were engaged in overt criminal activity on the campus. The college has an obligation to the majority of the students who are not engaged in criminal behavior to ensure that the academically engaged adult students are free to pursue their educational goals without interference from the criminals, both students and off-campus visitors, who share their campus.

When it comes to rights, law-abiding citizen trumps criminal activity.

How about applauding the courage it takes for a college president not just to acknowledge that there is a problem, but also to be willing to do whatever it takes to deal with it? Keep in mind that there are approximately 30,000 students attending SDSU, and not quite 100 were arrested. It would have been easier to sweep this problem under the artificial turf, to keep it confined to the campus, but silence is permission. With this campus element publicly exposed to media glare, perhaps others who are tempted to set up shop at this and other college campuses will reconsider.

Too many young adults assume they can act with impunity because they are still in school. The drinking, the drug use, and the sexual promiscuity become the focus of college life, rather than academics and sanctioned activities. I was in college during the 1960s and sure, there were those who drank, who used, and who did it—but the majority of college students were there for the education, not the recreation. I believe that is still the case and want to assure that the student who wants an education can get it, while the student who wants drugs will have to go elsewhere.

Adult college students are not exempt from law enforcement: there is no get out of jail free card issued to criminals who coincidentally attend college classes! And it’s no longer either Daddy’s or Mommy’s prerogative to ride to the rescue: you do the crime—you do the time. You're not a "college kid," you're a criminal, and rather than matriculating with a college degree, the criminal earns a felony conviction and a prison sentence.

I say, "Job well-done, SDSU."