<p>The honor system is not about ease of enforceability. If I am given a take home test and my teacher says they trust me not to use my book, then I wont. The reason I wont isn’t because I couldn’t. I could very easily go in my room, close the door, and cheat, no one but me would ever know. The honor system in relation to DUI would actually be very simple. You drive drunk, and it can be proven that you did (or you are simply asked about it and reminded that your response is on your honor), then you are gone. </p>
<p>I disagree the building more dorms is in fact the “practical answer.” Students already have “on-campus” housing, in the form of fraternity housing, where they can host parties. The problem of people having parties at student leased houses out in the country will not be solved by keeping an additional 400 students on campus. Without forcing people to live on campus all four years you will always have at least 400 kids living off campus who WILL throw parties. The problem isn’t where the parties are held, its how a few irresponsible people choose to leave them.</p>
<p>I also think that is is EXCEPTIONALLY unfair to say the school is allowing drunk driving deaths to happen because they prioritize… something (what is it that is supposedly prioritized over safety in your opinion?) over students lives. Besides, the school already has plans to build on campus housing, rather I like it or not.</p>
<p>The policies of “peer institutions” have little bearing on what would be effective at W&L. This school is a unique place, full of unique and bright people who are capable of solving this problem without stripping W&L of what makes it different (I am NOT insisting that a partying culture and drunk driving is what makes W&L different, quite the opposite). I believe that precisely what makes W&L different, the honor system, needs to be seen as the path for a solution to this problem. Besides, “practical answers” for drunk driving are practices at schools all over the country who also, sadly, have drunk driving incidents. We have a chance to try something different here, thanks to the honor system.</p>