College Clips

By James Patrick Schmidt

Published April 13, 2007

Drunk drivers not deterred by jail time, Florida study states

A new University of Florida study examining the unsuccessful deterrents of drunk driving found that threats of jail time don't prevent people from driving under the influence.

Of the 48 states studied, 18 had minimum jail sentences for drunken driving, but only five of those states saw a notable decrease in fatal car crashes between 1976 and 2002.

Most drunken drivers spend at least 24 hours in jail while they sober up, said Darin Gentry, University of Florida Police Department officer. Any additional jail time is assigned later. But depending on how long the judicial process takes, it could be several months to a year before a driver experiences those consequences.

"We know from basic psychology that a reinforcer is less and less effective the further away it is from the behavior," UF health policy professor Alexander Wagenaar said.

— The Independent Florida Alligator (University of Florida)

Indiana students educate others on 'bondage' lifestyle

Indiana University sophomores Graham Skinner and Rebecca Dacso gathered friends on Saturday at the University of Indiana to witness a mock "collaring." The event was part of Dacso's Residential Learning Workshop class project and fulfilled a requirement to get the "community involved" in its research.

"Getting collared" is the BDSM version of a wedding, "pretty much pledging to live a lifestyle," Dacso said. Skinner said collarings are performed between two people in a committed BDSM relationship.

Dacso said most collarings aren't as public. They usually involve only the couple and maybe a witness. But close to 20 people attended Dacso's collaring, as it was intended as a demonstration to educate the public.

Dacso also said instead of wearing her white skirt and top, she would be naked in a typical collaring.

— The Indiana Daily Student (Indiana University)

Minnesota doctor backs kidney sales

Two weeks ago, University of Minnesota professor Arthur Matas was the subject of an ABC News story.

For the past several years, Matas, a longtime proponent for increased organ donation, has taken a rather controversial stance in the debate about the sale of organs. He argues in favor of creating a regulated system of kidney sales.

"Every year there are more people added to the (organ) waitlist than we transplant, so every year the waitlist is getting longer," he said.

The sale of organs has been illegal since the U.S. Congress outlawed it in 1984.

One critic yet to be convinced is Minnesota University professor Steven Miles. Miles, a faculty member of the Center for Bioethics, said sales of organs, even regulated, present the potential problem of exploiting people of lower income.

"You still wind up with the problem where the people most susceptible to giving would be people from a lower socio-economic group," he said.

— The Minnesota Daily (University of Minnesota)