AMA warns about dangers of spring break

[MrBern]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060308/ap_on_he_me/spring_break_risks

American Medical Association warns girls not to go wild......shouldnt they be more worried about bird flu?

 

[ITG]

Yeah, I wonder how many college students will care since so many go on trips just for those purposes. Those warnings from AMA are definitely something that all people should heed year round.

 

[CWetherby]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060308/ap_on_he_me/spring_break_risks

American Medical Association warns girls not to go wild......shouldnt they be more worried about bird flu?

Yes, I'm sure college students are terrified of bird flu. About as terrified as they are of things the AMA is warning them about! It's a shame that our culture has produced such a lack of depth that it is quite normal for college AND high school students to go wild on Spring Break. In fact, the prevailing attitude seems to be that not going to the beach on Spring Break would be worse than catching bird flu. I guess we should be grateful that the AMA is making an effort...

 

[Hondo]

Yes, I'm sure college students are terrified of bird flu. About as terrified as they are of things the AMA is warning them about! It's a shame that our culture has produced such a lack of depth that it is quite normal for college AND high school students to go wild on Spring Break. In fact, the prevailing attitude seems to be that not going to the beach on Spring Break would be worse than catching bird flu. I guess we should be grateful that the AMA is making an effort...

One article had a girl say "Duhh, its why we go wild" but over drinking by college students does spell trouble, (they still smoke), its one thing to have a vacation, soak up sun and fun, its another thing with regards to being drunk, or rapes, even jail time spent, Florida, Mexico two hot spots.
I agree "Its a shame...", you have AIDS, and bird flu, I hope they all remember to use common sense, and not stupid as stupid goes, still have fun, be careful out there:cool2:

 

[Feraud]

I assume these college students are financed by their parents?
Why do the parents stop doing their job? Please don't give me that "the students are old enough to make decisions...." This is not about that tired old arguement. What parent today does not know the definition of "Spring Break"? Are you going to send your 20-21 year old boy or girl to another state (or country) with their friends? With the intention of going wild? Bah! I blame the parents, not the students! I do not expect younger folks to have the common sense that the parents are supposed to have.
I should also add this is not about girls on Spring Break but boys too.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Firstly, 21 year olds are adults. They can do what they want. If parents are funding the trip, they can easily remove the funding, and make these students make their own decisions.

Being a foreigner, i don't really get the concept of spring break "going wild". Perhaps if the kids were a little less repressed they wouldn't need to go wild in one week of the year. And believe me, the kids at my particular university are REPRESSED about sex.

Surely we (well, not me: the parents) should appreciate that these things are going to happen on spring break, and strongly encourage their progeny to practise safe sex. If they're going to be having sex, they might as well have the (imperfect) measure of safety that contraceptives provide (I saw no outright statement to this effect in the article). I was lucky to have excellent sex education in primary and high school, which prepared me for responsible sex in adulthood. I wonder if the "going wild" phenomenon is part of, and a backlash against, the repressed attitudes towards sex drummed into kids here?

bk

 

[mysterygal]

I totally agree, college age girls (and some adults for that matter(doing these kind of things lack some serious common sense. I'm glad there's now some attention being drawn to this, this is definetely nothing new, but has gotten out of hand. It's just a really bad mixture combining liquor and raging hormones. Even just a couple respond it'll be worth it. Being in the counseling field I deal with many women who deal with serious consequences over mistakes that they or someone else have made....I've read in another article the amount of rapes that go on during these 'breaks' , it's sad, but these girls need to heed the voice of caution

 

[Baron Kurtz]

I've always wondered what the authorities in these particular places are doing during the various spring break weeks. They know these weeks are going to attract a certain (probably large) number of rapists intent on raping vulnerable (intoxicated) people. Why can't this be effectively dealt with?

bk

 

[Feraud]

Baron Kurtz, I think you bring up interesting points.
I totally agree that parents & teachers should teach safe practices. We should talk about and teach our college kids in the things they will need to know in life. This is probably the most important thing we can do to prepare our young adults for their future.

I disagree with the idea that these kids are going on Spring Break to rebel against their repressive parents & educational institutions. Yes, there is an element of repression in society.
If you ask the kids why they are on Spring Break and partying way to much they will not say it is because society represses them and this is their form of activism against it!
To quote just one of the students

Kathleen Fitzgerald, a 21-year-old junior at Illinois State University, said the AMA's effort to raise awareness is a good idea, but probably won't do much to curb drinking during spring break.

"I think a lot of students wouldn't really pay that much attention to it," Fitzgerald said. "They would just be like, `Duh, that's why we do it.'"

More telling is this quote..

About 30 percent of women surveyed said spring break trips with sun and alcohol are an essential part of college life.

An essential part of college life. That does not sounds like a reply from a repressed person! This group of women sound like they have been raised with the exact opposite of a repressed attitudes. I think the teaching of a more responsible attitude is required by the parents and teachers.

 

[Feraud]

I've always wondered what the authorities in these particular places are doing during the various spring break weeks. They know these weeks are going to attract a certain (probably large) number of rapists intent on raping vulnerable (intoxicated) people. Why can't this be effectively dealt with?

bk

I totally agree with you on this! Irresponsible authorities at these hot spots are taking extreme advantage of the younger crowd.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

I think we are coming at this quote in two different ways:


"Quote:
About 30 percent of women surveyed said spring break trips with sun and alcohol are an essential part of college life."

I read that as showing how the standard, everyday repression of the sexual urges spills over into one burst of "going wild" on spring break. If there was a more open atmosphere re. sexual activity then i think these "going wild" episodes would diminish. The very repression causes the "going wild". This belies an immature attitude towards sex which, unfortunately, is being inculcated by the media, educational authorities and to some extent parents.

The over consumption of alcohol is an entirely different matter, though there are some parallels. It's different because most (in my experience at Purdue) undergraduates are drinking to excess every weekend anyway, but somehow on spring break this leads to sexual actvity. Ask a student what his favourite beer is and he'll say "anything! I just drink it to get drunk". This again belies an immature attitude towards alcohol - which again, i'm fortunate to have been educated about early. Drinking with meals (a glass of wine, for example) being something of an institution in eurozone, one learns to respect the stuff and know its effects.

bk

 

[mysterygal]

I blame a large part of teens/college age kids going out and getting 'wild' on the media....take a look at Britney Spears, Christina Aqulera(sp?), and so on, they wear next to nothing, and being the role model for younger adults and/or kids, I see a lot even middle-school aged girls walking around like street walkers, it all comes down to wanting attention from the opposite sex, but the kind of attention it brings is too much for what their maturity level can handle...the media portrays drinkiing and having sex as one big happy party where everyone is having fun and no consequences, you don't ever see them showing the ugly side of it...I wonder if too much of the wrong messages are being pushed to these young ladies and their acting out on the wrong information, it hasn't been too long since I've been out of high school (at least it doesn't feel like it ) and I still remember what was taught by the teachers as a anything goes type mentality 'whatever feels good well, must be right philosophy) there was an article talking about girls who were very sexually active in middle school through high school years, they were later interviewed and 95% of them were ashamed of the things they did and regret the fact that they gave a part of themselves away so cheaply that should have been hold dear....it's probably society in total, were we're decling away from good ol' fashion values...parents need to (and I think this is more necessary with girls) teach kids that sex is something not meant to be given to just anybody

 

[Baron Kurtz]

STDs

Well, whatever the reasons and however much info they are given, i'll bet the Purdue Student Health Centre will be full of undergrads the week after next looking for some Penicillin. Or whatever else they need to get over their STD. The rates of contraction in a place like Cancun recall to mind dysentery rampaging through a refugee camp somewhere in eastern Africa.

Or they'll be looking for some pregnancy/abortion advice. And there'll no doubt be a lot of unhappy girl/boy-friends - even though they are perfectly aware they're going to be cheated on, they get upset all the same.

bk

 

[Feraud]

Good thoughts all around! What I notice in this thread and others is how everything (almost) is connected.
We go from college drinking, safe sex, parental and teacher influence, raising children to the lack of fedora wearers in society and back to the beginning of the thread!
For me the bottom line is usually the example that parents, teachers and society sets. I do not think young people are as bad as some people make out. A sure sign of getting old is your tolerance level to others doing what you used to do!! btw, I say that half joking... Most of us grew up and did our share of hanging out, drinking, going to clubs, etc. We werer not bad. We were just young adults stepping out into the bigger world.

there was an article talking about girls who were very sexually active in middle school through high school years, they were later interviewed and 95% of them were ashamed of the things they did and regret the fact that they gave a part of themselves away so cheaply that should have been hold dear....

A very good point! I saw a television program that interviewed a group of girls 10 or so years after their spring breaks. They had very little good to say about what occured.

The nonsense a man gets away with most women can not! It is not right, it just is... This does not condone any bad behavior on the part of men but should illustrate that Life is not always fair or equal.

 

[mysterygal]

I think the reason why guys can get away with a lot more is because they seem to think of sex as an act where girls take it more on the emotional side, hence girls have a lot more at stake.
I started laughing though when you talked about when we ourselves (the older bunch here, ok , maybe not that much older ) of our escapades....some, I look back and cringe, and others are just memories of just being plain young and stupid but funny.

 

[Feraud]

Another reason why men get away with it is because life isn't fair!

I started laughing though when you talked about when we ourselves (the older bunch here, ok , maybe not that much older ) of our escapades....some, I look back and cringe, and others are just memories of just being plain young and stupid but funny.

ah, I was hoping for just that response!