Halloween is only a week away, but before you throw your Superman, skanky nurse or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle costume into the back of your buddy’s car and drive to Madison, stop for a second.

It really isn’t in your best interest to come to Madison this year.

Ticket fines have tripled. Possessing a glass container on State Street will cost you $291; disorderly conduct will result in a $416 fine, and a first-offense underage drinking ticket is $166.

The second offense increases the fine to $291.

Add to that the cost of staying in a hotel or motel, since the residence halls will not be accepting any overnight guests this year.

Without proper identification to verify your residence at a specific residence hall, you will not even be able to gain entry to residence hall rest rooms.

Ninety percent of those arrested on Halloween last year did not attend the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Your actions on Halloween weekend not only affect yourself, but the entire student body of UW-Madison.

You do not have to deal with the aftermath of a riot: the trashed streets, the broken windows and the anger of a city that does not support this party.

The mayor has threatened to close down Halloween celebrations in the future if riots do not cease.

We must utilize this year to improve the safety of Halloween, and an important part of increasing safety is shrinking the party and letting its reputation as a destructive holiday fade into the past.

This will be a difficult problem to overcome, for many students at UW-Madison feel pressured to have guests and do not know how to tell their friends “no.” (Please take this as a hint.)

The decision is yours.

Please heed our advice: have fun, be safe – but do it in your own city.

The Daily Cardinal is the independent campus newspaper at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Please send comments to [email protected].