Houston Buckley
JOUR 271
12/5/12
Research based
News Story redone
520 Words
Oxford,
Miss. – The University of Mississippi and the city of Oxford have always
received attention for the history that comes with these two places. Although
this city has been home to numerous literary and cultural events, the use of
alcohol is on the rise. Last year, Ole Miss jumped from the number five party
school to number three, but research shows that from 1991 to 2011 the alcohol
consumption rate by college students has dropped by 12 percent. The Oxford
Eagle reported this year that nearly 70 arrests were made for alcohol related
incidents on the first home football game weekend alone. While 70 arrests in a
town of 30,027 people doesn’t appear to be much, it does shed light on what
could be an impending problem.
On
the weekend of November 2nd and 3rd the Mississippi
Alcohol and Beverage Control made 48 alcohol related arrests, and 43 of those
arrests were minors. Kathy Waterbury, the director of tax commissions for the
Mississippi Tax Commission published, “Minors consuming alcoholic beverages is
a significant public safety issue and will continue to be a challenge for our
college leadership and law enforcement officers.” The website usdrugtrends.com
reported that in 2009 of the 30,027 people in Oxford 7,206 people say that they
drink enough to classify them as heavy drinkers. Heavy drinking is considered
five or more drinks at least five days out of the month. Heavy drinking is also
classified as binge drinking.
Some
students don’t think that binge drinking and alcohol-related incidents are such
a concern. According to the Center for Disease Control about 90 percent of the
alcohol consumed by people under the age of 21 is in the form of binge
drinking. The CDC also reported that in 2006 binge drinking cost federal,
state, and local governments about 62 cents per drink, while the income tax on
alcohol was only 12 cents per drink. The problem with binge drinking is that
most of the students involved in a Greek organization participate in heavy
alcohol consumption on their own free will. “I would say that being in a
fraternity definitely presents a bigger opportunity to binge drink.” said
junior Accounting major Justin Griffin. “I don’t necessarily participate in it,
but I know plenty of guys that do.” Despite the social influence some people
actually think this problem is getting worse.
Latavia
Sykes, an emergency room admissions representative at the Baptist Memorial
Hospital here in Oxford believes that alcohol related accidents are becoming a
growing problem. When asked how many people come in on a single day for alcohol
related problems she replied, “At least 10 come in every day.” Sykes also said,
“It’s definitely getting worse, more and more students come in with alcohol
related injuries.”
Whether
it’s having drinks at a bar on the Square, or playing a drinking game at a
fraternity house, heavy alcohol consumption is not hard to find in Oxford.
While drinking among college students has slowly declined, there are still
people out there who participate in binge drinking. To find more information on
the alcohol consumption of Oxford, visit the websites www.usdrugtrends.com and www.cdc.gov.
Sources:
Latavia
Sykes: Emergency Room Admissions Rep. 662-232-8100
Justin
Griffin: Junior member of Greek organization. 601-826-2915
Web Pages:
