"We don't smoke we don't drink, at least that's what they think, and under the covers we Um, Yah, Yah, Yah!"
It's inevitable that once you get to college you are going to encounter Facebook and substances such as alcohol, even if you don't own a computer or are allergic to yeast and sugar cane. Facebook is a social networking site that reveals how big of a partier someone is by their "tagged photos" and "bumper stickers" (little pictures with captions). My favorite bumper sticker is the always classy, "Enjoy it now [shots of vodka], because later it's called alcoholism!" Cute, right? Many of us leave up embarrassing drunk pictures on our Facebook pages.
So when will we finally communicate with our friends that we're sick of every image we see of ourselves as a drunken image? We may live on a dry campus, but that doesn't mean we don't wet our mouths with Coors Light and Karkov. If someone really does have an alcohol or drug problem, what are they supposed to do? I don't see any "Alcoholics Anonymous" or "Narcotics Anonymous" posters hanging up above the P.O. boxes.
According to the government, 31 percent of college students are "diagnosed" as alcoholics. That number may seem a little presumptuous, but it does still make you think, "Maybe I'm tipping back the Franzia box a little too far every weekend." But why are college students so prone to not just drinking, but to binge drinking? Drinking frees inhibitions and makes a group setting seem much more fun. People "bond" over things they may have never had the guts to talk about when they were sober.
Americans are pretty competitive people; we have some of the tallest buildings, and we defend our sports teams religiously. Binge drinking and drinking games adds to our competitive nature. Coming from the aggressive state of New Jersey, I've seen drunken fist fights over whose "flip cup" team is better. People drink to have fun and to be social. We can't be studious all the time; it's exhausting. But then, drinking all the time can be exhausting as well. One night of binge drinking affects the way one's brain operates for 31 days. Some people never get tired of drinking, some people are capable of not drinking, but why are there people who are tired of drinking but continue to drink and come back to their dorm to hug the toilet bowl and puke up that last round of "beer pong"?
I used to ask myself why it was so impossible for me to not drink. Back at home, I have some pretty awesome friends, but for the most part I hang out with the "party people." Most of them have spent in the thousands on their alcohol consumption, even though all of them are under the age of 21. I wondered why in the summer I was drinking every single night and why my belly was protruding more and more over my jeans.
And then one night, it hit me. We talked a lot about alcohol, a lot about what how much we consumed, but we never really communicated. I was drinking so much because I didn't know how to communicate that I didn't want to drink. Even if I had said, "I'm not going to drink tonight," my words would not have been understood.
So here I am at St. Olaf College, surrounded by intellectual individuals (for the most part), and I see the same lack of communication. We have hundreds of groups on campus who discuss everything from athletic Christians to Zen music. Why don't we have any groups to discuss and communicate the problems we have with ourselves? The administration doesn't forbid it; yet there also aren't any substance abuse counselors in the counseling center. If one were to have a problem, they would have to trek into town, which can become not only time-consuming but also expensive if the individual is without a car.
Two weeks ago Cat Haueter wrote about the lack of communication when it comes to sexuality, and now I ask the question: why are we so afraid to talk about problems with alcohol? We live in an era of instant communication - text messaging, cell phones, Skype, iChat, "stalkernet" (a.k.a. stolaf.edu/personal) and e-mail, just to name a few, and yet have we lost the ability to communicate our innermost thoughts?
I know there is that whole "Minnesota Nice/Passive Aggressive" lifestyle (which is totally true, by the way; believe me, I'm from Jersey … the complete opposite of good ol' Land of 10,000 Lakes) but "Minnesota Nice" does not have to translate into "Minnesota Unspeakable Problem."
Everyone has some kind of issue; it's part of our human nature. Talking with a friend helps, yet to have a group of people to talk to who can relate to your problem is something beautiful and powerful. Let's start up a dialogue here - make a witty and anonymous poster about something you need to talk about and hang it above the P.O. boxes or in the cafeteria.
Julia Aaker '11 is from Teaneck, N.J. She majors in English and religion.
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