A Call to Lower the Drinking Age

[hnooe]

Imagine all the money we'd save if we lowered or eliminated the drinking age and de-criminalized marijuana and other soft drugs. Utopia isn't a realistic goal when your dealing with a race as imperfect as our own.

Yes! Well said!

 

[Smiling JOe]

I think one reason why 18-21 year old college kids drink so heavily at home is that they know that they won't be served in the bars when they go out, so they get plastered at home (dorm/apartment), quickly. I've always said that if young kids were allowed to drink a glass of wine or a couple of beers at home, with their parents, they wouldn't be as likely to experiment (get effed up) with alcohol so much at the same time they get out of Mom and Dad's house. Rock and Roll! People want what they are told they cannot have, b/c that makes them socially cool, rebellious to their parents and the System.

 

[scooterbug44]

It was perfectly okay for me, as an underage student to have a drinking party in my dorm room (w/ illegally obtained alcohol) and serve it to other underage guests.

We also had several underage bars (one w/ such lax standards I had an ID that said I was a black man).

Didn't stop people from drinking themselves sick/to the hospital/into bad situations.

 

[Mango]

I'm for lower the drinking age. If one can protect their country at 18, they should be able to drink as well. However, I'm for lowering the blood alcohol level for those between the ages of 18-25. Research has shown that lowering the blood level reduces fatalities on the road. Also, there's a reason why rental car companies do not rent to anyone 25 or younger. Studies have shown that the part of the brain that is responsible for taking responsibility is not fully developed until 25. Not that I agree with that, there are many responsible people below the age of 25, but, I think that lowering the blood level will reduce fatalities.

I also think that these breath alcohol ignition interlock devices should be federal law.

Then there's the way this country culturally is different from other parts of the world, especially Europe. I do not know the statistics of alcohol related deaths vs. the U.S, but Europeans are known to give their children wine at dinner every now and then. Better education needs to come from the family, especially if it can not legally be professed in schools. That should change as well. I feel that road offenders who have children, should be forced to have their children attend some sort of educational intervention since exposure to alcoholism is a problem. It also has been shown that alcoholism can be genetically inherited.

 

[scooterbug44]

It isn't that Europeans give their kids wine at dinner occasionally, or that the drinking age there is 18, it's that it is COMPLETELY socially unacceptable to be visibly drunk in Europe.

 

[Smiling JOe]

The real problem I see is saying that someone who is 17 years, 364 days old, isn't responsible, but the next day, suddenly they are enlightened. Remove the taboo, and the social pressures, and part of the problem goes away.

Why do so many people drink to get wasted? I used to do when I was very young, as did most people I knew. I think that could be attributed to the lack of self esteem we 16 year olds had. Alcohol suddenly makes you forget about the obstacles in your path (dangerous thing). Spirituality is often missing, as is any resemblance of adult hood, even though my grandparents married at age 13 and 15, built their own house, and started their own farm. As pointed out, age doesn't make one an adult -- values, morals, ethics, respect for others and respect for yourself does make one an adult. If we made a law that vaguely stated that only adults could drink liquor or smoke dope, in my book, less than 1% of the US population should be intoxicated, legally. Getting drunk is a way in which people "escape" (hide) from reality. Avoidance, however, doesn't make reality go away. One's problems grow and may escalate, pushing one's problems onto others. I've chosen to lead a fairly sober adult life, though you may see me with a beer in the hand. I'd rather feel the ups and downs of reality.

The amount of emphasis we place on age is really is amazing.

 

[Mango]

It isn't that Europeans give their kids wine at dinner occasionally, or that the drinking age there is 18, it's that it is COMPLETELY socially unacceptable to be visibly drunk in Europe.

Does that include not swaying around the road in your car?

 

[30ashopper]

The real problem I see is saying that someone who is 17 years, 364 days old, isn't responsible, but the next day, suddenly they are enlightened. Remove the taboo, and the social pressures, and part of the problem goes away.

Why do so many people drink to get wasted? I used to do when I was very young, as did most people I knew. I think that could be attributed to the lack of self esteem we 16 year olds had. Alcohol suddenly makes you forget about the obstacles in your path (dangerous thing). Spirituality is often missing, as is any resemblance of adult hood, even though my grandparents married at age 13 and 15, built their own house, and started their own farm. As pointed out, age doesn't make one an adult -- values, morals, ethics, respect for others and respect for yourself does make one an adult. If we made a law that vaguely stated that only adults could drink liquor or smoke dope, in my book, less than 1% of the US population should be intoxicated, legally. Getting drunk is a way in which people "escape" (hide) from reality. Avoidance, however, doesn't make reality go away. One's problems grow and may escalate, pushing one's problems onto others. I've chosen to lead a fairly sober adult life, though you may see me with a beer in the hand. I'd rather feel the ups and downs of reality.

The amount of emphasis we place on age is really is amazing.

That hits on the main problem with the way our laws work. In an effort to help those who have a pre-disposition toward substance abuse, we blanket the entire population with rules and laws restricting their rights. The flip side would be to only target those who have problems, and leave everyone else alone. I doubt there are statistics available that show which approach would cost less, but I'd love to see us experiment with the latter approach to see.

 

[scooterbug44]

Does that include not swaying around the road in your car?

I believe that in some European countries you lose your license forever for a DUI and the legal limits are lower than the US.

 

[Mermaid]

As I mentioned, the legal drinking age was 18 years when I was a college student. I learned to pour a good pint at Thursday Pub Night at the student union. ;-) I do not think 21 years old is reasonable, but I do have reservations about 18 and the reason is this. Back in my day you started 1st grade as young as five years old. As long as you turned six by the end of December, you were eligible. This meant you graduated high school at age 17 and turned 18 while you were in college.

These days, parents send their kids--particularly boys--to first grade at 7 and even 7 1/2 years old in some cases. Which means there are plenty of high school students out there who are 18. I do not think it bodes well to allow high school students to legally buy alcohol because of their proximity to the younger students. Too close, too close. Lower the drinking age to 19 when most kids are more likely to be off to college or out of the house working and supporting themselves.

Butler University president Bobby Fong (who supports lowering the age) commented that he learned to drink socially in the homes of college professors and other adults, and that it was appropriate drinking which fostered responsible attitudes towards alcohol. College students these days drink without any adults present and it is a furtive, destructive activity for too many of them. My 19 year old daughter told me that one of her friends was caught drinking on campus and subsequently had to take classes about alcohol use. One of the things that came out was that police who arrest underage drinkers are seeing higher and higher blood alcohol levels. That's frightening. Why is it? Because it's not legal for them to be drinking and since they can't keep or carry the alcohol, kids finish the bottle or case right on the spot.