Drinking Age During The United States Of America

Many Americans do not feel like adults until their 21st birthday. At age 18 an American has the ability to vote, be drafted or enlist into the military, own a weapon, request a loan, get married, buy cigarettes and many more liberties and consequences that come when a teenager becomes an adult. Nonetheless, in the United States and adult does not have the ability to legally drink until the age of 21. I find the regulation of alcohol necessary and as a protection for the citizens because, as the article “Effects of Alcohol Use” states, the abuse of alcohol contributes to liver damage, leads into driving under the influence, domestic violence and in the long term it can cause cancer and death of brain cells. However, I believe that the alcohol regulation is bias and should be at the same level of liberty as voting, joining the military, owning a weapon, buying cigarettes, requesting a loan and getting married.

First off, the reason the drinking age is 21 is because the United States MAAD program wants to make sure a teen’s brain develops to maturity in order for them to be able to drink alcohol. The argument that congress had in the 70’s was, “If young Americans could be entrusted to vote, serve on a jury and fight in Vietnam, why couldn 't they order a beer?”(Griggs) If Americans are allowed to vote, fight in the wars and serve on jury all at the age of 18 what is the difference in them being able to go out and buy some alcohol. This side of an the argument is using ethos to help convince people that

In the article Save Us from Youth, by Bradley R. Gitz, Gitz points out that many things in the Amethyst Initiative discussing the legal drinking age is inconsistent for an adult between the ages 18 and 21. At the age of 18 you are given many rights and is considered an adult, you are given the rights to buy cigarettes, the rights to vote, the rights to enlist in the army. an be tried as an adult in court. Buying or consuming alcohol is not one of the rights given. “Ultimately, the most important issue at stake with respect to the drinking age is not whether 18-year-olds are responsible enough to consume alcohol, or even the consequences of such consumption in legal vs. illegal circumstances, but whether those who are old enough to be sued in a court of law, carry a gun into combat on behalf of fellow citizens and participate in our democratic process by

Society proposes at the age of eighteen an individual is mature and responsible to make decisions without the consent of a parent or guardian. In the United States an eighteen-year-old is considered a legal adult. By law you are able to fight for your country, vote, and buy cigarettes. Some impose, giving a newly young adult the privilege to consume alcohol would enhance their responsibility as an adult. Mary Cary from

Once a person reaches the age of 18, they are allowed to tattoo their bodies, smoke tobacco, gamble and even enlist if they wanted to! As an adult, they want to be treated as one but how can they feel like an adult if hanging around with their friends and drinking beer while watching TV is illegal? Of course, that does not stop them, though. The United States is one of the few countries in which still have such a high minimum drinking age. Although most people think young adults (18-year olds) are irresponsible, the minimum drinking age should be lowered to 18 because they deserve to be recognized as adults in order to avoid illegal, uncontrolled drinking and other illegal actions.

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.

Teenagers are irresponsible. Young adults can not handle real life situations. New generations do not know how to use things in moderation. These are all stereotypes of America’s youth, yet they all seem to refer to teachable things. They are all things that need to be learned. Most of the time, the young are looked down on for messing up in life, yet the reality is that anyone can screw up, it just is more likely to happen to someone who has less experience as opposed to someone who has more. The more time a person is given to learn about something, and the more guidance they have, the more experienced and reliable they will become. This applies to many things, but one specific example is alcohol. Typically teens are seen as too irresponsible to have access to substances containing alcohol, but if they were to legally have it in their lives, it may educate them sooner as to how to use it properly and in moderation. In the United States of America, the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen years old.

Upon turning eighteen you are considered to be legal adult and receive all of the responsibilities that accompany the title. At the age of eighteen year olds you receive and are expected to use the rights and responsibilities to vote, serve on juries, get married, sign contracts, join the military--which includes taking on the responsibilities of life and death--and be prosecuted as an adults in the court of law along with many other things. In 1984, the national government raised the drinking age from 18 to 21. Mothers Against Drunk Driving was a key contributing organization that influenced the change in the minimum drinking age. While there are arguments for both sides, it is said that if the national minimum legal drinking age is

In the United Sates, statistics show that the consumption of alcohol by minors has decreased in the last twenty years, but the consumption of alcohol by adults ages twenty-one through twenty-four have increased (Wechsler and Nelson 987). Waiting until you are twenty-one to legally drink is causing adults to binge drink without thinking of the consequences.

Americans have the right to vote when they reach 18 years old, which is one of statutory civil rights; people who is over 14 years old can drive legally in many states, for many young people, they are looking forward to this moment, because it means they can have a car of their own and have real freedom, no longer dependent on their parents or other adults to take them to the places they want. But for young people who want to drink, the minimum legal drinking age is 21 years old, mainly refers to the liquor and drinking in public places. Compared with the legal driving age it has a delay of 5-7 years, compared to the legal voting age is also three years late. This legislation makes many young people feel dissatisfied, also caused much controversy.

When people turn to the age of eighteen, they are finally considered an adult. They can join the army, have the right to vote, buy cigarettes or tobacco products, get a tattoo and even die for our country, but they aren’t allowed to buy alcohol? A person can be responsible enough to live on his or her own, make money, pay bills, and yet they are not old enough to purchase or consume any type of alcohol. Underage drinking has been a major controversial issue for years. Teenagers are continuing to buy alcohol with fake identification cards, drink, get into bars, and drink illegally. As being a teenager, these things are going on not only in college, but also in high school. There are a lot of factors as to

An article written by Sophie Defaix, a staff member of Millersville University, writes an article in The Snapper the University's paper called “The drinking age in America: what’s there to fuss about.” Defaix argues that the drinking age in the United States should be lowered to eighteen, and if so the amount of underage binge drinking incidents would decrease. Defaix writes this paper with the intended audience most likely being staff and students of the university or even parents of students that attend the university. Defaix uses examples and draws on her past to relate to her readers and give them other perspectives, but she has nothing that backs her strengths her argument limiting its effect.

The Minimum Legal Drinking Age(MLDA) in the United States needs to be lowered from 21 to 18. The MLDA being so high simply facilitates unsupervised binge-drinking among minors. Lowering the MLDA will allow those aged 18-21 to drink in a safer environment leading to a reduction in underage alcohol-related accidents.

The drinking age in America has been changed several times since the start of the United States. At the time there were no restrictions on alcohol. One of the next key changes was during the prohibition in the 1930s. This was a time where alcohol was outlawed for everyone in the United States. This did not work because many people drank undercover and the law was difficult to enforce. The most recent, to the legal drinking age, was during the Vietnam war period. At the time, the age limit was set at twenty-one but was reduced so soldiers could drink legally (Daniloff). After the war, the age limit was increased again, since the government thought it was the right idea. This was the last major change to the drinking age so far.

It was a typical Saturday night working as a waiter. The dinner rush had just ended and I was catching up on some side work. As I am refilling the salad dressings, the hostess informs me that she had just sat a table in my section. After arriving at the table and introducing myself, I proceed to ask for their drink orders. The first words articulated out the woman’s mouth are spoken with a deep, thick, Irish accent. I could not help but acknowledge it and after chatting for a few minutes, I come to learn that they had just arrived from the airport and are vacationing in Florida for two weeks. After taking both parents drink orders, I ask their son what he would like to drink. Like the true Irish man he is, he asks me for a Guinness. He looked a little young to be drinking so I asked him for some id. He hands me the id and it reads that he is only nineteen years old. I had to explain to them that the legal drinking age in the United States was twenty one years old and I could see the look of confusion in their face. The father tried quarreling with me that the law was stupid and since they are allowed to drink their country, they should be allowed to drink here. Little did they know that this issue is very personal to me. One of my good friends in high school was riding his bike one night and was hit and killed by an underage drunk driver. The look of confusion was wiped from their face forthwith after telling them my story. The topic of changing the minimum legal drinking