But the benefits of a spring rush extend far beyond solidifying academics. The present rush system immediately segregates one third of first-year men, offering them little more than a few weeks to meet fellow students and explore other interests. This social division, grounded in the rush process, continues through the entire span of students' tenure at the University, and separates those who are greek from those who are not. Some first-year students certainly devote an equal amount of time to other organizations. The pressure to rush, however, is unmatched, and is exerted almost immediately.
Students have the right to chose how to spend their time.
But new first-year students are more easily influenced by social pressures and less able to maturely handle the alcohol inevitably made available to them. This simply is not true. The administration should act to curb alcohol abuse, but by banning kegs they simply will be altering its context and, perhaps, worsening its consequences. An increase in the usage of hard liquor is the likely consequence. Students inevitably will drive to and from parties more often under the new proposal.