What a bunch of knuckleheads!

The less-than-politically-correct College Republicans at Penn State University wisely altered plans to play the "Catch an Illegal Immigrant Game" after people on campus objected.

The group, in light of recent nationwide demonstrations, heated debate and congressional inaction on immigration policy, initially thought that having students "catch" group members wearing orange shirts symbolizing illegal immigrants would be a creative way to stimulate discussion on the topic. (Surely, any similarity between the orange shirts and the orange jumpsuits worn by many criminal defendants was purely coincidental.)

Some students on campus, including the Latino Caucus and the Black Caucus, balked when they got wind of the game, calling it insensitive and racist, and rallied at the student union in protest. The university didn't prohibit the game, but Penn State President Graham Spanier did call it an "unproductive and offensive" idea and the university suggested the College Republicans reconsider.

Once opposition arose, the College Republicans decided to tone things down and now they plan an illegal immigration awareness day, which will include people on both sides of the issue debating their views. Good thinking, young seekers of knowledge.

We commend President Spanier for stopping short of prohibiting the game, and we're glad the 150 students and faculty who rallied against it expressed their opposition. The College Republicans who wanted to play "Catch an Illegal Immigrant" had a right to express their views, too -- then suffer the consequences of their more enlightened neighbors.

That's a more valuable lesson for them about how democracy works than any outright ban of their hijinks would have been.