Yet of all these issues and debates, students have responded most passionately to a discussion on underage drinking and whether or not the right to party is vital to the college experience.

Since printing a letter to the editor on Oct. 25 that criticized the Department of Public Safety for too harshly enforcing drinking laws, the comments and response e-mails have not stopped. According to the Lanthorn’s web stats, that letter is now ranked as the seventh most popular item on the website with 949 unique page views in the last 2 1/2 weeks, just behind the homepages for the news, editorial and sports sections. It has garnered more than 20 online comments, and in light of the widespread controversy it caused, a GVL columnist, Kevin VanAntwerpen, wrote a response to the letter for the Nov. 8 issue of the Lanthorn.

Kevin’s column has already risen to one of the most popular recent stories and drawn eight comments in the four days it has been online. Part of the Lanthorn’s role at GVSU is to spark discussion, and the website provides a place for readers to express their opinions and feedback on what the paper publishes. But is a debate about the right to party really worthy of this much attention?

In contrast stands the results of a previous Question of the Issue from Oct. 18. The Lanthorn took a random sample of student opinion on the gubernatorial candidates prior to the election. Of the five students asked to identify the candidates, four could not name either of the top two candidates. This is evidence of the student body’s skewed priorities.

The passion and active response of the GVSU community should not be stifled or discouraged. However, redirecting it may be worthwhile.

While partying and the topics surrounding it are important to many college students, an effort to go beyond this issue and educate ourselves on topics with state and national relevance would be commendable. College students make up a significant faction of the population, and simply the size of this group would lend it influence if its members rallied around any single cause. Let’s make that cause something with more consequence than debating MIPs.