Have things really gotten better?

Taken at face value, the East Lansing crime statistics released Monday show that violent crimes are down, but citations for open alcohol violations are on the rise.

Of course, those numbers can't be looked at in a vacuum, considering the laws that were changed over alcohol and tailgating on campus last year.

According to the statistics, aggravated assaults decreased from 157 in 2004 to 34 in 2005, but open alcohol citations are at a 10-year high.

The number of citations given out for underage possession of alcohol increased from 744 in 2004 to 1,141 in 2005.

East Lansing police officers have also noticed more drinking in East Lansing as well as partying, but the number of serious crimes was the lowest it's been in a decade.

We might be getting more drunk, but we're not as violent.

The numbers on their own don't tell the whole picture of what it's like to live in East Lansing and the level of crime. We need to take a closer look at the situation behind the numbers.

Disorderly conduct citations, for instance, reached a 10-year high this year. It's important to keep in mind that most of the people charged in the April 2-3 disturbances were arraigned on disorderly conduct charges.

Part of why drinking in East Lansing looks like it's increasing is because having open alcohol was banned on campus last year. Restrictions were also put on tailgating and drinking games on campus.

These new rules could have pushed more people to take their drinking related antics into the city, and doesn't necessarily mean students or residents are drinking more.

That's important to remember if these numbers are ever brought up as proof students are drinking more.

It's a good sign that the numbers of aggravated assaults are down if that means less people are being hurt.

This doesn't mean, however, that students don't need to take steps to make sure they are following the law and staying safe.

Making sure to use precautions when going out and staying aware of one's surroundings can help keep everyone safe, regardless of the statistics.