Columbia isn't known for its thriving campus life, but many students still choose to remain in Morningside Heights, spending their weekend nights at neighborhood bars. But now students will have to work even harder to have a good time, since the University has initiated an apparent war on fun, cracking down on parties and allegedly putting pressure on local nightspots to be more diligent about seizing fake IDs. While it is necessary for the University not to encourage underage drinking, Columbia should only enforce restrictions that are reasonable and that do not encourage students to seek alcohol in unsafe situations.

Many students who returned to campus this fall faced long lines at both area bars and East Campus. The increased restrictions on fraternities have almost brought an end to parties on frat row, thanks to an overly complicated registration process for parties, requiring students to fill out several pages of paperwork to hold an event with more than a few guests. These new regulations proved problematic to Alpha Delta Phi, which was not able to hold its annual gala Hot Jazz for the first time in 20 years after the University came down on the party a few days before it was supposed to be held.

Students hoping to hold parties in East Campus suites and townhouses have created long lines that have inconvenienced many residents who are stuck waiting to enter the dorm. This puts an unnecessary burden on the building's security guards, who have routinely refused to allow anyone in without an EC sticker. Instead of unduly frustrating students, Columbia should consider opening a second entrance to EC on the weekends or, at the very least, installing a second card swipe so that students can enter and exit the building more easily.

Above all, Columbia should try and keep its students around campus. It makes the school more attractive and lively. Limiting parties at Columbia will send students downtown where they lack the additional security provided by CAVA and public safety. While drinking is not a part of everyone's life, the University must acknowledge that parties are major component in many students' social lives. What's more, students will find ways around restrictions, sometimes at the cost of their own safety.
Many universities attempt to combat underage drinking by facilitating student parties in a controlled environment. While Columbia occasionally regulates University-wide events with alcohol, drinking is limited to two beers an hour. The administration has the right idea, but it must treat parties more like bars in which patrons are asked to leave or stop drinking when it is clear they have had too much. Columbia, whose students have unlimited nighttime opportunities away from their school, has an interest in keeping its students safe around campus.