Are visitation hours really necessary?

There are a few things that are uniquely Hillsdale College: conservatism, liberty and eagles, to name a few. Another would be visitation hours and the guarantee that it'll be debated sometime before the end of the first semester. This is that time.

The argument against visitation hours is obvious: why can I, as an adult, vote, go to war, take out an insurance policy and enjoy pretty much every liberty possible, but, if I happen to be in a dorm of the opposite sex past 11 p.m., I get nailed with a $50 fine? Thus far, I've heard two arguments for visitation and they run like this: visitation hours allow students to study peacefully within their own dorm rooms, and to keep them safe and to protect the poor fool who comes back to his room only to find his roommate committing unspeakable sins. These are fairly trivial, save for the last, and are easily remedied with a scornful talk and common sense. You have the right to live comfortably and your roommate ought to respect that. If not, then bear down your foot. Afraid of theft? Lock your door. If company is distracting, there is always the library. Or, for the adventurous introvert, you can tell your roommate's guests to leave. You have that power.

The second argument, however, suggests that visitation hours holds the student responsible. This is false. If anything, it illustrates the sad illusion of "responsibility" laws: responsible adults don't act this way. If we make a law banning everyone from committing that act, then we can be happy and consider everyone more responsible for it.

To say that it's necessary to have rules which will not only prevent the crimes listed, but to also instill responsibility into the youth, seems a tad misplaced. From my understanding of responsibility, one holds themselves to higher principals and aspirations regardless of laws, not because of them.

We all have the liberty, though not the freedom, to do what we please. And that's exactly the point: we ought to have both the liberty and the freedom. We ought to have the freedom to walk down Hillsdale Street in nothing but boxers and a baseball cap, and if we do have that freedom, we ought to posses the ounce of intelligence, the common sense and the responsibility preventing us from committing such a stupid act.

What's more frightening is when you hold yourself to be responsible. It can be terrifying and far more effective than any fine out there. After all, which is more punishing? Having to pay a $50 fine, or realizing that, once again, you've let yourself down?