Lowering Drinking Age

There always has been controversy as to should the united states lower the drinking age to 18. Eighteen year olds should have the right to drink. By lowering the drinking age to eighteen it will give people supervision, teach responsibilities, and eighteen years olds are already considered adults; however, it may cause binge drinking, it will lead to more deaths, and drinking damages brains cells and especially the body itself.

Another great benefit that can be derived through lowering the drinking age is reducing the amount of trouble teenagers get into legaly for underaged drinking, and crimes directly related to it. Teens would be getting into less trouble for drinking since the age limit is lowered more of the ones that already do drink at the age of eighteen wouldn’t get in trouble for it, and it would encourage those under the age of eighteen to wait till they’re of legal age since they don’t have to wait as long to so. Even with the law saying you must be 21 or older to drink, many teenagers still do it, and because of it they get in trouble for it. Not only that but the reduced age limit would make it so teens wouldn’t acquire fake ID’s and overall showing

Reducing the legal drinking age in California to 18 would be a tragic mistake for the state’s youth. 18 years have not developed their full maturity, may cause them to irresponsibly drink alcohol. For instance, many 18 year olds could possibly begin to binge drink once they have ability to regularly purchase alcohol. Furthermore, since many 18 year olds attend high schools, there is a high probability some may purchase alcohol for their underaged peers. Ultimately, lowering the legal drinking age in California to 18 would only benefit alcohol companies, while deteriorating the lives of many young adults.

Almost everyone can agree that children and young adults should not drink alcohol until they reach a certain age. Alcohol is a very dangerous substance when it is used incorrectly and immaturely. This can have some very dangerous consequences to anyone who is drinking or anyone around them. This is one of the reasons for the drinking age being 21 in all of the 50 States. Evan though the drinking age has changed many times over the years. This is one instance where civil disobedience should not be exercised. Because of how dangerous underage drinking is to the individual and others who are around that person.

Countries that have a lower drinking age do not have as many problems as The United States. The US and places such as Europe do not treat alcohol the same way. In Europe, kids as young as twelve share a glass of wine with their parents at dinner. In America if you were to see a situation like that the authorities would be involved. The country does not condition or ease its youth into drinking. They are taught that drinking is a social activity to drink in moderation. In America, moderation and alcohol do not mix. The US does not like to admit that a very large percentage of youth partaken in not just drinking alcohol, but binge drinking. Because of this it leads to many accidents. Around 2,000 teenagers die each year from alcohol related car accidents. In Europe the rate of alcohol related car crashes has had a decline much quicker than the US. The youth in Europe tend to have more responsibility and control compared to

of financial matters, the denial of drug utilization forces costs on society that far surpass the advantages. Others, for example, the psychoanalyst Thomas Szasz, made the same argument. We didn 't take Friedman 's recommendation. (Government commissions infrequently do.) I don 't review that we even talked about authorizing heroin, however, we did examine (yet did not make a move on) legitimizing a drug, cocaine, that numerous individuals then contended was amiable. Our walking requests were to make sense of how to win the war on heroin, not to keep running up the white banner of surrender.

Everyone hears about tragedies because of drunk drivers or the stories of the people who grew up with alcoholic parents or the choices people who drink extensively make that hurt and affect so many others. My mother grew up with two alcoholic parents. They could be mean drunks. There are the different kinds of drunks everyone knows: mean drunks, funny drunks, loud drunks, clumsy drunks, emotional drunks, etc. What a lot of people don't realize is that, all drunks and alcoholics have a few things in common. They all forget it in the morning, always have a drink, always deny their problem, frequently can't/don't accept help unless they want to change. There is no talking to an alcoholic.

Over the years the legal drinking in the United States has been heavily debated. Some people argue that the legal age to drink should be 18 or 19 because people at that age are recognized as adults; while others argue that the drinking age should be 21 because people who are able to drink should be more mature and have their lives better planned out. Although people are legally adults at 18, they are not yet mature adults; in fact, according to NRP “emerging science about brain development suggests that most people don't reach full maturity until the age 25” (“Brain”). Before earning the right to legally drink, people should allow their bodies to fully developed and have a better knowledge of how to organize their lives. The drinking age should remain at 21 because if teens were allowed to drink, they could do harm to their underdeveloped bodies, the progress of decreasing the number of teenage and underage drinkers would be lost, the number of car accidents would increase, and teens would be more likely to experiment with other toxic drugs. By merely keeping the legal drinking age at 21, hundreds of lives would be saved.

As we know, the United States has the highest drinking age in the world. By 1988 the entire U.S had adopted the Federal Uniform Drinking Age Act, which set the drinking age to twenty-one. However, in 1920 the United States banned the sale, production, importation, and transportation of alcohol. This era known as the Prohibition sparked the popularity of hidden underground bars and events. The Prohibition Era is a prime example of how people did anything to intake alcohol and eventually this led to the act of doing illegal things. It is obvious to say that many people in the 1920’s were going against the law and were consuming alcohol. Today, this age seems to be a topic of controversy and debate. Many countries have established their drinking age to eighteen and younger. To many people believe that the idea of lowering the legal drinking age in the United States seems great. However, others believe that this idea may bring upon more conflict and tragedy. The drinking age should not be lowered and should stay at the uniform drinking age of twenty-one.

American’s have long been educated about safe alcohol usage and about how the legal age of 21 leads to fewer deaths by way of alcohol-attributable factors. As a student, I am aware of this incessant peppering of facts and figure all too much; however, this claim about a higher age leading to fewer deaths is simply inaccurate as demonstrated around the world. Two prime examples are Singapore and Norway, which both have legal drinking ages of 18. In reference to what American students are taught in school, this would cause immediate concerns that improper alcohol usage would be more prevalent and the death rates would increase, however; Singapore and

People can go across the world to fight for this country, but are not aloud to drink alcohol legally. Does this make sense? “Living in Harmony with Vegetarians” by Alison Green, and “Getting Stupid” by Bernice Wuethrich are two essays with strong words to help prove that the drinking age should be lowered. The prohibition era lasted only a little time and was proven as an unsuccessful mechanism to control the social practices of Americans. Eighteen year olds have the power to choose their political leaders, buy firearms and ammunition and even fight for our country but yet they are denied one simple right: the ability to purchase alcohol. A main fear of this country is accidents caused by alcohol consumption. In order to increase responsibility and to prevent more road accidents as best as possible, the drinking age should be lowered to the age of eighteen.

Fun Fact!: You only have to be 18 to die for your country in the military, but you can’t buy a beer. In the United States, the legal drinking age, as many of you know, is 21 years old. Now it wasn’t always like this as the original drinking age was 18. However, it was moved up to 21 when an organization known as MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) became well-known amongst societies in the USA. This organization was created after a 13 year old girl died due to a 46 year old drunk driver. With help from the US Congress, the National Minimum Drinking Age Act passed, and it stated that you had to be at least 21 in order to legally drink and purchase alcohol. The goal of this was to lower the rates of DUI’s by allowing more “mature” individuals to be able to handle alcohol. What’s ironic is that MADD used underage drinking and driving to justify passing that law, when the original drunk driver was 46 years old; someone clearly not “underage” (Doman). There are many reasons as to why the drinking age should be lowered to 18, including teaching responsible drinking and lowering the frenzy around alcohol, and the level of significance of other rights granted at eighteen compared to the drinking law. By lowering the drinking age to 18, it allows for parents to oversee and teach their child about how to drink responsibly before going away to college. Under their watchful eye, they can make sure that their kid is fully educated on the do’s and don’ts of alcohol consumption. In

The debate began many years ago and it still continues to this day. Should the legal drinking age be lowered? The argument has always been a very big discussion, with men and women putting out their denials left and right. The fact that there’s decent evidence for both sides, only one brings hard hitting facts that truly make a difference. I think the legal drinking age should not be lowered because it helps prevent youth from driving under the influence, it helps prevent youth from committing crimes, and it prevents incomplete development of the brain (Teen Drunk Driving: The Sobering Facts of Underage DUIs). Although drunk driving may not be one of the leading causes of death, it is still a big issue that should be addressed.

The main push against lowering the drinking age is that the human brain is still delicate into your late teens and early twenties and alcohol can ruin your development. As your brain is still growing, the toxins of alcohol have been known to disrupt this growth for the worse. “Studies of adolescents show that heavy and extended alcohol use is associated with a 10% reduction in the size of the hippocampus. It also shows that the function of the hippocampus is uniquely sensitive to alcohol at this time and that alcohol may be poisonous to the nerve cells of the hippocampus causing them to be damaged or destroyed” (“Impact of Alcohol”, 2017). The hippocampus is the part of the brain that controls your memory and learning. It doesn’t fully develop until your mid twenties, and throwing alcohol

Being a certain age you are expected to be able to make conscious decisions whether something will have good consequence or bad ones. The legal age to consume alcohol is 21, although when you turn 18 you’re able to buy lottery tickets, enlist in the army, vote for president, get married, open a bank account, and more. While 18 year olds are not legally able to consume alcohol but 72% of high schoolers have drank more than a few sips by the end of their high school career. Statistics by SADD, say that in the past month underage drinking (12-20) have consumed alcohol, 26.4% and 17.4% were binge drinking alone. The legal age of 21 is not stopping teens and young adults from drinking behind closed doors.