Once again, thousands of students and guests descended on Palmer Street for the biggest street fest of the year. They drank heavily, irritated police and set fire to furniture in the street. Now, the student body must consider the repercussions.
Students have cemented a reputation of destructive behavior at street fests, and the city will treat us accordingly. After a few years with relatively relaxed police enforcement, local officers will patrol these parties anticipating a riot. City Council will continue passing laws that single out students, such as the noise ordinance. Mayor Paul Wiehl - soon seeking re-election in a town where few students vote - will likely encourage both.
But now, students have no room to complain.
It's time we look forward. Next weekend is Mill Fest, the last street festival of the year. With such a long street dispersing partiers, it's typically been one of the calmer fests in the past. This is a great opportunity to show the city we can responsibly enjoy ourselves without setting fires in the street and placing an undue burden on Athens.
Students must prove they can be responsible because it seems one of these fests will eventually end with someone seriously hurt or killed. Thousands of drunken and belligerent people gathered in a small area is a recipe for disaster - especially if one person pushes a police officer's horse too far. We are all lucky this has not yet happened.
Every year, Ohio University students on a few streets open up their houses to guests who are hoping to make this fest bigger than the last one. With those students providing free alcohol to most strangers who show up, the fests take a turn for the worse come evening. Thousands of people screaming and cheering by these fires certainly does not help.
It might be a few people who are solely responsible for turning these fests violent, but all students must now live with the reputation or help change it.
Editorials represent the majority opinion of The Post's executive editors.
4 Opinion
Students must consider consequences of actions
