In the interest of public safety, it is necessary to keep the drunken drivers off the roads. However, we believe it could be done better.

Currently, the checkpoints work like this: we drive by a checkpoint, we wait, and wait, and wait, while the police check on people driving ahead of us, then it’s our turn, the officer inquires on our sobriety, and, assuming we’re sober, lets us go.

The Norman Police Department announced this week that they will set up checkpoints throughout the city this weekend. They will be receiving special funding for this from the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office.

We’re receiving money from the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office earmarked specifically for more checkpoints. Their goal is that more checkpoints will scare drunks from driving.

But, it really just tends to scare drinkers from driving on larger roads.

These checkpoints are an intrusion. They make us wait while we could be doing more productive things. They waste our time, which is growing more precious as finals loom ever closer.

These checkpoints also seem to be arbitrarily placed. Instead of placing them near the bars, downtown or by Campus Corner, they are put in somewhat random locations.

This is an egregious waste of money and resources. It could be more efficiently used to achieve the same end.

Instead of more checkpoints, we could have more police officers patrolling near Campus Corner, or Main Street, where there are more bars. Officers could frequent these areas more on the weekends, and less during the week when only the most dedicated alcoholics drink.

In the middle of an economic crisis, we should be more careful with our money.

We understand alcoholism is a problem on university campuses and should be fought. College students often overindulge, and have health consequences as a result.

But instead of unnecessarily hassling students, the local police could use information at hand to do their job more efficiently. We should follow Occam’s razor and not make it needlessly difficult. We should keep it easy and use the resources we have.