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TechnographSpring break offers sun, sand, scams
By Brittany Abeijon
Posted: 3/16/07 Section: News
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Humid temperatures, sandy beaches, good company and endless amounts of alcohol describe how some students at the University spend their spring break vacation.
Many students travel to popular tourist destinations such as Cancun, South Padre Island, Panama City and Las Vegas, but are often blinded by the exotic aspects of these foreign places and forget the actual dangers they present.
Thomas E. Betz, an attorney for University student legal services names the essentials of spring break, the five S's: sand, sun, sex, suds and smokes.
Betz said the most dangerous place to travel for spring break is Las Vegas. The city is where many students, even under the age of 21, go to drink and gamble. He stressed that most students are unaware that casino security and police enforcement are massively increased during spring break, and some of the toughest drug laws are enforced in Nevada.
Outside of the U.S., many younger students travel to Mexico to legally drink at the age of 18. This often causes students who do not normally drink to consume abnormal amounts of alcohol.
"They drink to the point of insanity and stupidity, often leading to physical violence and other dangerous activities," Betz said.
Betz stressed that students should remember that they are in a foreign country. Students often forget that when traveling to a major tourist area, like Cancun, where a vast majority of people are English-speaking.
The most important difference to remember concerns the legal systems.
"All they want is your money," Betz said. "If you're in jail in Mexico, they could post a bond of $5,000 to $6,000 that either your friends or your parents will have to pay to get you out."
Betz said students need to be aware of their surroundings, and to take their common sense with them.
"If you look like you can be taken advantage of, then you will be," Betz said. "Try not to look like an easy target."
Drinking and debauchery often lead to arrests, but can also lead to date rape, sexually transmitted diseases and even pregnancy.
Many students travel to popular tourist destinations such as Cancun, South Padre Island, Panama City and Las Vegas, but are often blinded by the exotic aspects of these foreign places and forget the actual dangers they present.
Thomas E. Betz, an attorney for University student legal services names the essentials of spring break, the five S's: sand, sun, sex, suds and smokes.
Betz said the most dangerous place to travel for spring break is Las Vegas. The city is where many students, even under the age of 21, go to drink and gamble. He stressed that most students are unaware that casino security and police enforcement are massively increased during spring break, and some of the toughest drug laws are enforced in Nevada.
Outside of the U.S., many younger students travel to Mexico to legally drink at the age of 18. This often causes students who do not normally drink to consume abnormal amounts of alcohol.
"They drink to the point of insanity and stupidity, often leading to physical violence and other dangerous activities," Betz said.
Betz stressed that students should remember that they are in a foreign country. Students often forget that when traveling to a major tourist area, like Cancun, where a vast majority of people are English-speaking.
The most important difference to remember concerns the legal systems.
"All they want is your money," Betz said. "If you're in jail in Mexico, they could post a bond of $5,000 to $6,000 that either your friends or your parents will have to pay to get you out."
Betz said students need to be aware of their surroundings, and to take their common sense with them.
"If you look like you can be taken advantage of, then you will be," Betz said. "Try not to look like an easy target."
Drinking and debauchery often lead to arrests, but can also lead to date rape, sexually transmitted diseases and even pregnancy.
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