I was saddened to read a recent New York Times story titled “Last Call for College Bars,” which described how fewer and fewer college students are going out to the bars.

Now, the sampling in the story was small and thus can’t be applied to the larger population, but there’s still evidence of it on some campuses. My reaction consists of surprise, mainly because I went to college in apparently a different era of packed campus bars. Plus, I follow the mantra of Homer Simpson, who said “I will never tire of the bar scene.”

I remember in the height of FAC (Friday After Class) in Madison, you could pick between Brothers and MadHatter’s (when they were across the street from each other) for $2 pitchers of domestic beer, and both would be near standing-room only by the late afternoon/early evening. Now Brothers is closed and MadHatters has moved and discontinued the special. Over in Iowa City during its FAC prime, lines at the bars used to form at noon, but not any longer.

The article talks about the increased focus on pre-barring at home, and I agree that doing so can save money, but it doesn’t mean to stay in all night. Going out is about seeing people and being seen. You’re not going to make new friends (or meet potential hook-ups) or have a crazy adventure at home.

One person interviewed in the article offers an explanation: “Students don’t need bars to create a community the way they used to.” That’s pitiful, since the author was implying that social media has replaced that need.

I say we have a stimulus package in which you find a college student, donate $10 to them and tell them to go spend it at the bars. Make ’em see what they’re missing. If they don’t go to the bars now, they may not in the future. And I don’t want to see a world in which bars are only full of old people like me talking about the good ol’ days … well, the days we remember, anyways.