As any college student knows, the social scene is a big deal in college. Bars, dance clubs, and areas like our very own Northgate are packed until the early hours of the morning. Lots of times the partying doesn’t stop even then. And the majority of the time, alcohol is involved. While it’s everyone’s personal choice whether to partake in drinking or not, there tends to be an expectation to drink. A typical night out begins with “pre-gaming” so by the time it’s time to hit the bars most people are significantly buzzed at the least. The drinking continues until the end of the night (or morning) when everyone must figure out how to get to their respectable destinations after a liquid filled evening. Many students are familiar with this situation, yet I doubt many have taken the time to consider just how big and wide-spread alcohol really has become.
I’m currently a junior at Texas A&M majoring in Nutritional Sciences with a minor in Psychology. I’m also a member of the Greek community, so I feel I have a fairly good grasp on this topic. I’m curious to really look into this issue and the impact on the community and businesses here locally, as well as impacts on the rest of the world.
As I already stated, I feel that drinking is a personal choice. Yet I wish there was less of a stigma on refusing a beverage. Some people say they aren’t fun until they “loosen” up, and dancing sober is usually completely out of the question. With alcohol so readily available, its impact is spreading. For example: alcohol provides business with steady revenue, it brings money to a city through minor citations (very common in college towns), and can also seal business deals after a successful wining and dining of a client. How did alcohol, a toxin to our body in all technicalities, become so interwoven in our lives? How would it affect businesses if students didn't drink? How would the dynamics of "going out" or interaction between people change if no alcohol was involved and people were sober all the time? How did alcohol come to stand for what it means today? This blog will explore such aspects of alcohol, and its growing effects.
Lauren,
ReplyDeleteYour topic appears to be about general alcohol consumption in college and your experience having been that its consumption is expected of all "Social" people in your age group. Is this correct? How will you demonstrate that your opinion is more than simply your opinion, but something that is widespread? I like the numerous questions that you ask at the end of the blog and encourage you to make these questions the topics of your individual blog posts. Consider writing out 12 questions, one for each blog post. This will help you structure your blog. Good luck!