As an MSU alumna and a current staff person, I doubt I have been prouder of you, the MSU student population, than I have been this week. Given that there have been many proud moments in the past, that is saying something.

The State News and Lansing State Journal have been covering the proposed changes to the open container ordinance daily since news first broke, and conversely there has been a campuswide, collective holding-of-the-breath over how you, the students, might react.

Well, low and behold, you haven't reacted. Instead, you have kept the issue in perspective and responded appropriately. Indeed, it is clear that what happens with the open container ordinance is just one concern among many for you and perhaps it is quite low on the priority list after all.

Take a look at the Opinion Page for instance (which is ultimately what prompted this letter). In the past two weeks or so, you have expressed your concerns and opinions about sex education, abortion, the Izzone, the Attorney General nomination, the Iraq war, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., admission standards - and oh yes, the alcohol "ban." Clearly, being able to drink in public is not the pressing concern for you that others might have feared.

I have no doubt that whatever you bring to the table regarding the proposed changes to MSU alcohol policies, or any other issue for that matter, will be thoughtful and responsive, not reactive and threatening.

Becky Allen
health educator, Olin Health Education Services