EDITORIAL: Ineffecrtive and inconvenient

Requiring students to wear their PennCards during evening hours does not increase campus security. The latest example of this tendency is a new policy requiring students to prominently display their PennCards in eight campus buildings between the hours of 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. The policy strikes us as ineffective and cosmetic -- students are already required to present cards at building entrances. Even if the policy incrementally increased security, it would still not justify the inconvenience and personal intrusion resulting from the required display. Furthermore, the debate over increased security measures seems predicated on the assumption that such potential assailants are not in possession of PennCards. It seems equally possible -- if taboo -- that a future assailant could come from Penn's student body. We remain firm in our belief that the safety of students, faculty and staff is and ought to be a concern. But there is a distinction to be drawn between policies that materially add to the safety and security of late-night building users and policies which serve only to inconvenience students and heighten the tension created by an "us against them" mentality. Indeed, even effective measures -- such as placing alarms on secondary exits and requiring students to swipe cards before entering buildings -- have their limits. We live in a city and we benefit tremendously from our location. But cities are inevitably somewhat dangerous and Philadelphia is no exception. There is simply no way to absolutely guarantee the safety of every student at every moment. Even more troublesome is that the new policy effectively ignores the one area in which real improvement is needed -- student awareness and involvement. Simply put, leaving doors propped open or not reporting trespassers is a recipe for disaster, regardless of the number of precautions Penn puts in place. Rather than attempt to create a carefully regulated vacuum -- an inevitably futile attempt -- we call upon students and security guards alike to accept personal responsibility for their own security and the security of others. Such awareness is ultimately the only effective deterrent.