The last thing a student wants to come home to after a tough biology midterm or long French oral exam is a roommate conjugating more than verbs with a significant (or not-so-significant) other.
Sometimes students feel like giving their inconsiderate roommates the shaft. Now, at Tufts University near Boston they can, thanks to a new policy that obliges students to keep it in their pants while their roommates are around.
But the policy itself is the elephant in the bedroom; unnecessary and hard for a lot of students to swallow. It ultimately discourages roommates from building mutual respect and trust through communication.
The main thrust of Tufts’ argument for the policy is that students should never be in an uncomfortable position in their own rooms nor should they be forced in and out repeatedly. But the last thing any upstanding student wants is to be a snitch for informing the school that his or her roommate got a mack on.
Forcing friends to swallow their pride and repeat their dirty deeds (in words) to a stiff authority figure can damage any relationship. So what’s the alternative?
Simple: rommate communication. A little mouth to mouth never hurt anyone and will help bury the hatchet over those late-night anatomy sessions. A little communication about fornication can go a long way to avoid friction. You don’t need to be a master debater to have an adult conversation. A firm grasp of the ground rules between roommates is key to coming to an understanding. Both roommates must get on top of the issue.
But if all else fails and you can’t beat ’em, join ’em!