As "Senior Bar" season for the class of '96 commenced earlier this month, some seniors faced the unpleasant realization that they're only considered "seniors" sometimes.

Members of the class of '96 were carded hard at the first Senior Bar event, a private party at the Hong Kong. That fact in and of itself was fine, except that the class committee had devised no plan for distinguishing "legal" seniors from those who should be allowed to attend senior events without drinking at them.

Seniors who still hadn't reached 21 were literally tossed out into the cold as their classmates and roommates were forced into making yucky to-ditch-or-not-to-ditch decisions.

This wasn't fun for anyone and shouldn't continue through the rest of the senior spring of the class of '96. Senior events should be for all seniors, "legitimate" or not.

There is no law which legislates people under 21 out of places where alcohol is being served--these rules are created and enforced only by drinking establishments themselves.

And in the balance of power inherent in planning large events which will generate lots of alcohol-sale income for their host establishments, there's no reason why the class committee couldn't request that it define the composition of the event's attendance.

The class committee could easily devise a system by which it distinguished seniors over 21 from their younger classmates, and private parties seem especially ripe for class committee control. It could allow all seniors into events, while stamping or otherwise identifying those who could legally drink--already a common practice at many bars and clubs.

Senior bar events are listed on the class committee's official spring schedule--and officially sanctioned class bonding events should avoid sorting classmates by age and live up to their "senior" status.