Puke Your Guts Out and Post it on Facebook!

By Pamela Mortimer

Apparently the hot trend this year is self-induced public humiliation. Facebook, the popular social network, touts a website that encourages young women to post photos of their exploits while getting trashed. Sources say that members of the site say they’re is no such thing as going too far.

Of the more notable photos is a shot of a young woman who drinks a beer while sitting on the toilet. Another shakes her booty on top of a bar. Another photo shows a woman with a bruised face, complete with bandages ("I just got drunk and fell out of a car," she claims). In yet another photo, two young women urinate into a waterfall. And, naturally, quite a few of the participants vomit.

Wow! Their parents must be so proud.

If that isn’t bad enough, many of the photos are accompanied with the subject’s full name and the name of the college the young woman attends. Obviously, no one is worried that parents, faculty or prospective employers will see the photos.

"You can't overstate how unthinking these kids are at 18, 19, 20 years old," said Robert L. Carothers, president of the University of Rhode Island. "They're not a thoughtful bunch, by and large." Carothers is also a former member of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism's Committee on Campus Drinking.

One thing you won’t find on the website is an article titled: "Thirty Reasons Girls Should Call it a Night". Apparently, those who post photos are proud of their, um, accomplishments.

The moderator of the site, who wishes to remain anonymous, said that people should not to take it too seriously. "It's just something fun to do," she said. "You need to be able to laugh at yourself sometimes."

According to Carothers, the University of Rhode Island’s advisers tell students that it’s unwise to post photos of themselves while drunk. Many may not be aware that the pictures can be accessed for years to come.

Carothers finds that many times, the students don't listen. "I've told them, 'Look, these pictures are evidence you're doing something illegal,' and mainly they say 'Oh, I never thought about that.' Sometimes they say, 'That's who I am,'" Carothers said.

The Facebook group seems to ignore the staggering statistics on college binge drinking. The site has more than 172,000 members and nearly 5,000 photos that have been posted.

The group's unidentified moderator said she is aware that some people look down on her and other women in the group but doesn't let it bother her.

"[They think we're] sloppy, unladylike, low class,'" she wrote in a recent instant message. "[But] I've noticed when college boys do stupid things when they're drunk, they're just being boys."

That same moderator has posted two photos of herself in the throes: one depicts her with two beer bottles in her mouth, and another shows her lying in the fetal position next to a toilet.

She does have some concern that potential employers could see these photos during the application process. "I know an employer won't [realize] I know how to separate work and personal time, and I have no intentions of being wrapped around a toilet at a job."

One of the members of the Facebook group has become cautious. Laura, a 22-year-old business major, removed the video of a drunken escapade after she was contacted by CNN for an interview. The interview request made the young woman realize that anyone could view the video.

The fact that Laura’s parents had already a video of their daughter drinking also caused her to make changes on her MySpace page. The page is now private, so only invited friends could watch.

"It's good [my parents] saw it," said Laura. "It's better they saw it than a potential employer."