University of Wisconsin-La Crosse student Adam Bauer has nearly 400 friends on Facebook. He got an offer for a new one about a month ago. “She was a good-looking girl. I usually don’t accept friends I don’t know, but I randomly accepted this one for some reason,” the 19-year-old said. He thinks that led to his invitation to come down to the La Crosse police station, where an officer laid out photos from Facebook of Bauer holding a beer — and then ticketed him for underage drinking.

The police report said Bauer admitted drinking, which he denies. But he did plead no contest in municipal court Wednesday and will pay a $227 fine. He was among at least eight people who said Wednesday they had been cited for underage drinking based on photos on social networking sites.

I don’t think I’ll be drinking to this Orwellian news.

(As has been mentioned before: At 18 years of age you are responsible enough to handle a rifle in order to murder someone for the U.S. military, but at 19 years of age you are not responsible enough to handle your liquor in order to have a little fun.)

[Thanks to Travis Holte]