Pledge driving is probably the most debated topic in fraternity life. Some people are all for it, while very few are against it. Those very few that are against it have enough power, however, to shut it down completely and ban it from happening during pledging. I can vouch for a huge number of fraternity and sororities when I say that pledge driving is not at all hazing, but reassurance that all the ladies and gentlemen who drink, get home safe. This is especially important now because of the repeated attacks on the UF campus.

There are five basic reasons that I feel pledge driving should be brought back. Future pledges -- please don't think I am out to get you. I am sure you would rather go home at night knowing you brought someone home safe, as opposed to praying that they got home at all.

1. It is a better alternative than walking someone home. Gentlemen, I know you think you are tough enough to bring a lady home no matter what you encounter. However, sorry to burst your ego, but you won't be so tough when a knife, or even a gun, is put into play. Even if you are capable of defending yourself against potential attackers, why not just avoid the confrontation in the first place and simply drive right by them? A girl, or even a guy, would feel a lot safer in a car than walking home with a cocky mindset that no one is going to mess with you.

2. The number of people who drink and drive will be substantially reduced. Whose brilliant idea was it to shut down one of the safest things that fraternities do? If we made our pledges drink and drive, that would be hazing. Now, we are told that pledge driving, which eliminates the possibility of someone driving under the influence, is hazing? Isn't college all about getting home safely? According to the United States Department of Transportation, every two hours, three people are killed in an alcohol-related accident. The University of Florida, and all of its fraternities, do not want to contribute to that statistic and that is why pledge driving will prevent the situation in the first place. Granted, we can't stop everyone, but that is why UF has SNAP and other safer alternatives to get home. I know it might be hard to call SNAP while you are under the influence, but dig deep into your mind and you will quickly realize that it is not worth walking at night or driving.

3. It will improve your relations with the people you drive home. When a pledge goes out of his way to drive a young man or woman home, the people being driven home will automatically think he is a genuine person. While a pledge might think pledge driving is the worst thing, it might not be. What happens when you have to drive a girl home? The pledge is suddenly so eager and now loves the idea of pledge driving, at least for the 10 minute drive to her house. Before pledge driving was banned, I spoke to my friends about their pledge driving experiences. They all said that they met so many people from those rides home and still talk to them to this day. Moral of the story is that while you are doing a good thing for society, you are also doing something good for yourself.

4. People will be more willing to hang out with fraternities knowing they have a safe way home. The main issue of going out and hanging with your friends is whether or not you have a ride home. When you have the reassurance that someone will be driving you home, and there is no doubt that you'll get home the same way you went out, your willingness to go out suddenly increases. That is exactly what we want out of pledge driving. We want people to get home safe, and we want them to hang out with us knowing everything will go smoothly. 

5. It shapes these young men into gentlemen throughout their lives. Pledges will learn from this experience. If anything,  driving now will make them more willing to avoid drinking and driving when they get older. The fraternity, as a whole, aims to improve society and make gentlemen more common on the streets. Pledge driving will not only decrease the amount of drunk drivers during college, but decrease the amount of drunk drivers throughout the future. The gentlemen they are shaped into will go out of their way to drive someone home, even when they are not pledging. This is probably the main reason why pledge driving should come back. When they grow up and drive a nice young lady home who clearly can't drive, I want that girl to say, "Yeah, that was definitely a fraternity man."