<p>Reed is one of my favorite schools. But … <start soapbox=“”> Its druggie reputation is a turn-off. People who think of themselves as liberals/progressives/intellectuals really need to examine how the country’s appetite for drugs is feeding destructive behaviors, from family and neighborhood decline to health care costs to the horror going on in Mexico. If hard (?) drugs are in nearly plain view in a dormitory refrigerator, that suggest to me a pretty high level of tolerance for, maybe a failure to seriously examine, the problem. Let’s say we view this as a public health problem, not primarily as a legal one. Seeing hard drugs in a dormitory refrigerator is analogous to seeing bruises on school age children. It’s a red flag that responsible people are ignoring a need for helpful intervention. The first step prospective students and parents can take is to ask about substance free dorms, even insist on them as a condition for matriculation. Send a positive signal. .</start></p>