Controversy Of The Legal Drinking Age

There are several controversies in the world today, but one that really catches my attention is on the topic of whether or not the drinking age in the United States should be lowered from 21 to 18. Many people have debated about this topic for several years, and there are several different opinions on this topic. Some people think it is dangerous to lower the drinking age; some people support it. Some children think it is stupid to lower the drinking age; some children support it. However, I strongly believe that the legal drinking age should be lowered from 21 to 18 for several reasons, such as 18 year olds are allowed to do several other adult activities, other countries have the legal age at 21, and people who are under the age of 18 are still going to drink alcohol whether it is illegal or not.

There is controversy about whether the drinking age should be lowered, raised, or remain the same. My opinion is that the drinking age should remain the same. Teenagers still receive alcohol one way or another, and lowering the age would cause more of a problem. When the drinking age was raised to twenty-one in 1984, the amount of underage drinking dropped significantly, and still drops today. If the drinking age was raised, it would be unfair to those who are of the proper age where the maturity level is much greater than a teenager. At the age of twenty-one, the brain is far more developed than a teenager’s brain.

The legal drinking age in the United States is 21, while in other countries the legal age ranges from 16-18. The argument in the United States is “Should the United States lower its drinking age?” There are many sides to this argument but research has given many good points to back up both sides of the question. First thing is the difference between a teen’s brain with alcohol and an adult’s brain with alcohol. Another thing is drinking at a younger age can help teach culture. Lastly the more alcohol exposed the increase in death rate. I believe that it is a good idea to keep the legal drinking age at age 21 because in our past we have had many problems with death increases due to the drinking age being at different ages and the research used uses pathos, logos, ethos and Kairos to help persuade the reader support that 21 should stay the legal drinking age.

What do you think the legal drinking age should be? For years the question, “What should be the legal drinking age,” has been in the air. Many people have been arguing whether or not the legal age to drink should be raised, stay the same, or lowered. Save Us from Youth talks about how there is not a consistency of laws for an eighteen-year-old. As a young adult you are given many rights to be certified as an adult, yet are held back as youth because drinking is prohibited. Different appeals to logic and red herring are used in Save Us from Youth, to give the authors view on consistency of laws and being an adult.

Throughout history drinking and the drinking age has been a controversial topic. There have been many criticisms regarding the drinking age, many of which have some valid points. Some of which believe there should be no drinking age others believe drinking should be banned. The United States government passed a law in 1984 restricting persons under the age of 21 from purchasing alcohol. Brain growth, body growth, and maturity are all factors when looking at why the drinking age is 21. We should also consider the upside of no legal drinking age less abuse, more tax revenue, tradition.

There has been a debate on lowering the drinking age from twenty-one to eighteen. There are many reasons why this policy should not be passed. At the age of eighteen in the United States one is considered as an adult to make there own decisions, vote, and are allowed to buy Tabaco. Drinking is not one of them. Studies have shown that there are scientific reasons this should not happen. First drinking can be very harmful to the body, causing severe symptoms. Second the drinking and driving rate would increase. Finally, eighteen year olds are not as mature as twenty-one year olds. They are not as fully developed as twenty-one year olds. All of these are factors that contribute to why the drinking age should not be lowered.

Throughout the world, the age when a child becomes an adult is at the age 18. Most people gain the right to vote, start to work for themselves, drive in certain countries. All of this being said, an additional privilege is the ability for one to be able to legally drink. The United States is one of the only countries who´s legal drinking age is separate from the declared age of an official adult under the law. The idea of putting restrictions on a “legal” adult, makes the issue more complicated for that their are still restrictions that make an adult like a child. The legal drinking age in the United States should be lowered to the age of 18 because it will not only give the full right of passage into adulthood, but it is important to keep on par with our international community in terms of underlying laws to each government and their respective cultures.

The legal drinking age should be raised to the age of 21. Raising the age to 21 will avoid drinking and driving. Drinking and driving is one of the massive reasons why there are many car accidents and road deaths. In fact, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism “Over 5,000 people die due to drinking and driving every year” ("Underage Drinking"). However, when an individual is 21 years of age or older they are considered more mature and responsible since they have a handful of responsibilities like family duties so they can create smarter and improved decisions and have the ability to identify what’s wrong and right by not drinking and driving at the same time. This way the rate of car accidents and road deaths

Violence may proceed alcohol misuse in offenders as well as victims. For example, violent people may be more likely than nonviolent people to encounter social situations and encourage heavy drinking, violence may contribute to alcohol consumption, which in turn may unpredictable violence.

The legal drinking age in the United States is 21, while in other countries the legal age ranges from 16-18. The argument in the United States is, “Should the United States lower its drinking age?” There are many sides to this argument but research has given many good points to back up both sides of the question. First issue is the difference between a teen’s brain with alcohol and an adult’s brain with alcohol. Another concern is that drinking at a younger age can help teach culture. Lastly, the more alcohol that people are exposed to, there is an increase in death rate. I believe that it is a good idea to keep the legal drinking age at age 21 because in our past we have had many problems with increased deaths due to the drinking age being at different ages. My research used uses pathos, logos, ethos and kairos to help persuade the reader that 21 should stay the legal drinking age.

There are many arguments on why the legal drinking age should be lowered to eighteen. To some, lowering the drinking age to eighteen makes sense and to others it does not make sense at all. Most people believe that if eighteen year olds are old enough to make big decisions such as enlist in the Army, Navy, or other Military services then eighteen year olds are old enough to drink also. Not only does lowering the legal drinking age put the drinker at harm but also the people around the drinker. There are so many reasons why the legal drinking age should not be lowered, never less, three valid and proven reasons why the legal drinking age should not be lowered is, the effect on the brain, the safety of the drinker and the people around them, and the number of deaths that will increase.

The final situation I have had concerning unclear boundaries involved me and a professor. This individual was someone I had grown to know and respect and took several courses under. The incident occurred after I had graduated from Western Carolina University with my bachelor’s degrees while I was living in Cullowhee over the summer. I was invited to the professor’s house along with another former student to eat dinner with him and his wife. While we were eating the meal, the professor gave me and the other student a glass of wine to go with dinner. Even though I was of legal drinking age and was no longer a student of the professor’s, it felt strange to have a professor provide me alcohol.

Also alcohol is a factor in 40% of all violent crimes today. About 3 million violent crimes occur each year in which victims perceive the offender to have been drinking. These crimes include: rape, sexual assault, robbery, aggravated and simple assault.  About two-thirds of violent crimes are characterized as simple assaults. Based on victim reports by NCADD, alcohol used by the offender were 37% of rapes and sexual assaults, 15% of robberies, 27% of aggravated assaults, and 25% of simple assaults. Now, why should this dangerous drink be

The legal drinking age should not be a common controversial topic of debate that people argue about time and time again. It is so obvious to see that when the law was passed to make the legal drinking age twenty-one years, it was the best decision for our nation. Alcohol is the main drug problem for the youth in the United States and as well as the world. This problem is carried over when teenagers get behind the wheel while intoxicated. Although, from studies carried out, young drivers are less likely to drink and drive however the severity of accidents caused by drunken teens outweighs the accidents caused by adults. The legal drinking age should remain as is and there are countless reasons to back this claim.

The drinking age should be lowered because the current age has no real basis. With a lowered drinking age, fewer problems will be present. Safe drinking needs to be taught, along with drinking in moderation. All of the arguments for having a raised drinking level or retaining the current one are weak. The problems that make a drinking age limit necessary are better solved through a lowered drinking level.