It was terribly dangerous to let your thoughts wander when you were in any public place or within range of a telescreen. The smallest thing could give you away. A nervous tic, an unconscious look of anxiety, a habit of muttering to yourself ? anything that carried with it the suggestion of abnormality, of having something to hide. In any case, to wear an improper expression on your face ? was itself a punishable offense. There was even a word for it in Newspeak: facecrime ? -- from ?1984,? by George Orwell
BYU?s facecrime is not quite the same as it was in Oceania, the state ruled over by Big Brother in Orwell?s classic novel. For students in Provo, facecrime is the unshaven beard, too-short shirts and low-riding pants. Library administration recently considered recording the violation in a database, without informing the student body.
It is appropriate that the Library is reviewing its policy on Honor Code enforcement, after it was pointed out earlier in the semester that nothing was being done. Because all students signed an agreement stating they would conform to the dress and grooming standards, the university to should find ways to encourage students to follow through with their word.
However, much care should be put into development of enforcement methods, so they are not taken too far. While there is nothing wrong with pointing out to a student that he is in violation of the grooming standard, there is something wrong with keeping a secret list of violators.
In ?1984,? the Thought Police tracked every move of every Oceania citizen. If a person made any indication, advertently or not, that he/she was thinking thoughts against Big Brother, that person would unexpectedly be taken away and punished.
Secretly tracking a student?s dress and grooming violations and then denying them service one day because they have too many infractions would be reminiscent of the Thought Police. Such practices would not help students feel any desire to stick to the standards they agreed to follow. Secrecy would only cause many to feel animosity toward an Honor Code enforced without honor. Surely there are better ways to encourage students to live the code and keep the university from becoming Big Brother.