One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor! (opinion piece)

By Nikita Singh

Before I boarded my plane, heading for Grahamstown and all the freedom that comes with it, my mother said to me, “Now watch what you do at Rhodes. Be careful and don’t drink too much!” I promised I wouldn’t while deceitfully crossing fingers behind my back. I thought I would be completely free in residence… but I was greatly mistaken.

I agree that most rules of residence are necessary for student safety and protection, but there are a few rules that are, in my opinion, very unreasonable. One of the rules that I most disagree with is the rule that no student may drink any form of “hard liquor” in the residence – including ciders such as Smirnoff Storm or Hunters Dry. (Residence Rules)

However, consumption of wine, beer and sherry is allowed on residence. Wine and sherry both have an alcohol content of at least 10% which is greater than the average cider (7%). Ciders are far less potent than wine or sherry, so why are they not allowed?

In any case, people can get just as roaring drunk with wine as they do with another alcohol. As students, we want to find the cheapest form of alcohol available so it won’t scratch away at our pockets like fierce cats. Wardens may argue that wine is safer than other liquor, but many people resort to cheap wines such as crackling which can make you drunk faster.

The Union. Equilibrium. Friar Tuck’s. Olde 65. All these popular student hang-outs freely sell alcohol. Students can quite easily get ferociously intoxicated, regurgitate the evening’s ‘mystery meat’ and pass out. Students can get drunk anywhere, so why has the university enforced rules about drinking in residence?
I enjoy drinking and ‘getting a buzz’ when I go out but I make sure that I do not get so inebriated that I can’t take care of myself. Furthermore, my hall warden is a lovely woman but she is not my mother and should not have to babysit me. Every student should take precautions to ensure their own safety and should not have to rely on university rules to keep them on the straight and narrow.

There are far worse rules that students could break than drinking alcohol in residence. Female students could have male guests after visiting hours or steal from other students, which would harm other people rather than the rule-breaker. The wardens are like policemen chasing down a petty thief while a murderer walks the streets: the university should rather focus on the rapists and thieves that have infiltrated campus.

I believe that students are responsible for their own actions and do not need to be controlled by university administration. People still sneak in hard liquor or get just as drunk on cheap wine, so the university is implementing old-fashioned rules that are no longer adhered to. I am over 18 and should have freedom to drink whatever I please because it is not a crime of any sort and harms no other person or object other than my poor disintegrating liver.