This past weekend was homecoming, which rung in another victory by the Central Michigan football team and was filled with an energized feeling of unity and pride to be a Chippewa. The night unfortunately ended on a sour note when an 18 year old man from Dearborn Heights went missing. Michael Anthony Harnett was found dead in the pond outside of the Park Library around 7 p.m. on Sunday. Hartnett who was in insulin-dependent diabetic had last been seen walking on Washington Street near St. Mary’s Church around 2 a.m. before he went missing.
This is the kind of horror story that often occurs on weekends that are considered to be “Big Party weekends,” such as Western Weekend, St. Patrick’s Day, Homecoming, Welcome Weekend and other weekends that involve a lot of out of town visitors coming to campus. It is especially sad when an incident such as this can be easily avoided. When you are out partying with your friends it is always important to remember the basic rules of drinking.
1. Always have a buddy
2. Never Leave a party alone
3. Never let your friends leave a party alone if they are obviously too drunk to function
4. If a friend left a party alone make sure to make contact with them, or look for them before calling it a night and going to bed
5. Know Your LIMIT!
These are five basic rules that I feel the majority of college students know, or at least should know by the time they even come to college. These may seem like common sense but in four years of being at Central Michigan I cannot tell you how often I have seen people forget all five of these “basic,” rules. The biggest of which is knowing your limit. Drinking should not be a contest to see who can knock back the most drinks in a night until you blackout. It’s important to know your limits on how much alcohol you can consume, in order to not embarrass yourself when you become a blackout mess, as well as knowing when you’ve gone beyond the limit and need to stop.
Our hearts go out to the Hartnett family and his friends from the Central Michigan community for their loss. When you’re out partying next weekend be safe, know your limits and if your friends are too drunk keep an eye on them so they don’t wander off. Stay safe, drink smart.