Rick-
I hear that point of view all the time...
kids will be kids,
everyone does it,
you are blind & naive if you think they're the only ones doing it,
it's no big deal - just a little fun & partying,
we did it too...etc...
Well, I have a slightly differing opinion - but please don't take it too critically because I am sure I will be accused of being a hypocrite or goody-two-shoes..
Here is my opinion summed up succintly:
-Rules are rules..once you begin excusing or ignoring rules violations it's a bad slippery slope
-The athletes are held to higher standard than average students (even the Athletic Dept admits this)
-All scholarship athletes agree to and sign CONTRACTS binding them to a behavioral code (referred to often in the media as Athletic Code violations)
-the entire atmosphere changes to a higher pitch when multiple players are or have been already in trouble and punished - should have been at the zero-tolerance level.
-All athletes should have 1 or 2 stern & inviolable rules on being in their dorms by 1am - especially weeknites, and NOT violating underage or other ALCOHOL laws
(especially since multiple kids at Bradley have been KILLED recently in alcohol related misbehavior - or had you not heard -
LINK -
LINK)
-lastly any talk of how it's benign, everyone's doing it, and we are being unreasonable by citing it as a problem - only serves to make the problem WORSE and downplay dangerous, self-destructive & "others-destructive", and criminal behavior.
And I am here to say NOT everyone is doing it....
to claim everyone's doing it is downright stupid and/or dishonest...
I did not do it and know many people who did not do it -
a comment like "everyone's doing it" it as senseless and inaccurate as "everyone's cheating on their tests" or "everyone's cheating on their wives"...